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Related Experiment Video

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Measuring the Subjective Value of Risky and Ambiguous Options using Experimental Economics and Functional MRI Methods
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Reducing and exaggerating escalation of commitment by option partitioning.

Jessica Y Y Kwong1, Kin Fai Ellick Wong2

  • 1Department of Marketing, Chinese University of Hong Kong.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Decision-making is influenced by how options are presented. Partitioning escalation options increases commitment to failing actions, while partitioning alternatives reduces it, impacting subjective utility.

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Area of Science:

  • Decision Sciences
  • Behavioral Economics
  • Cognitive Psychology

Background:

  • Escalation of commitment situations occur when decision-makers continue a failing course of action.
  • The presentation of options, whether as a general class or partitioned suboptions, can influence decision-making.
  • Theoretical frameworks of partition priming and mental accounting provide a basis for understanding these effects.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how partitioning escalation and alternative options affects commitment to failing actions.
  • To examine the mediating role of subjective utility in these partitioning effects.
  • To provide empirical evidence for the influence of option framing on decision-making under uncertainty.

Main Methods:

  • Conducted four experiments manipulating the partitioning of escalation and alternative options.
  • Measured decision-makers' commitment to a failing course of action.
  • Assessed the mediating role of subjective utility, including subjective values and probabilities.

Main Results:

  • Partitioning escalation options into multiple suboptions significantly exaggerated commitment to failing actions.
  • Partitioning alternative options into suboptions reduced commitment to failing actions.
  • These partitioning effects were mediated by changes in the subjective utility of the options.

Conclusions:

  • The way options are structured (partitioned vs. general) critically influences escalation of commitment.
  • Framing of alternatives can serve as a buffer against escalating commitment to failing ventures.
  • Understanding subjective utility is key to explaining how option partitioning impacts decision-making.