Work

The effect of consumer ratings and attentional allocation on product valuations

Year: 2015

Type: article

Abstract: Online marketplaces allow consumers to leave reviews about the products they purchase, which are visible to potential customers and competitors. While the impact of reviews on valuations of worth and purchasing decisions has been intensively studied, little is known about how the reviews themselves are attended to, and the relation between attention and valuations. In three studies we use eye-tracking methodologies to investigate attention in subjective monetary valuations of consumer goods. We find that, when evaluating consumer goods, individuals’ attention to ratings are related to their frequencies, attention to positive or negative information is related to subjective valuations, and that perspective (owner vs. non-owner) influences the type of information attended to. These findings extend previous research regarding the valuations of risky prospects as implemented in abstract monetary gambles and suggest that similar cognitive processes might underlie both types of tasks.

Source: Judgment and Decision Making

DOI: 10.1017/s1930297500003934

Authors: Nathaniel J.S. Ashby, Lukasz Walasek, Andreas Glöckner

Institutions: Max Planck Society, Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Economics, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Warwick, University of Göttingen

Language: English

Topic: Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics

Subfield: General Decision Sciences

Field: Decision Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,550

Funder: Leverhulme Trust