An examination of the relationships between coping styles, task-related affect, and the desire for decision assistance

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Abstract

Individuals cope in varying ways with the conflict and corresponding emotion resulting from the decision process. Their propensity to cope in a particular manner may subsequently influence their choice behaviors. The purpose of this research is twofold. We expand the study of decision task-related emotion by first examining how an individual’s decision coping style interacts with characteristics of the choice environment to influence decision task-related affect. Then, the effects of decision task-related affect and decision coping style on the desire for decision assistance, a choice avoidant behavior, are examined. Two types of maladaptive decision coping behavior, hypervigilance, and defensive avoidance are considered. Two characteristics of the choice context are also evaluated, the alignability of the differences that describe the options comprising a choice set and the attractiveness of the commonalities. Results indicate that an individual’s propensity to use a particular coping style and characteristics of the choice environment interact to influence choice avoidant behavior. Discussion of these results and implications for decision research and organizational decision-making are provided.

Introduction

Important aspects of choice are the behavioral and emotional responses evoked by decisions (Garbarino & Edell, 1997; Luce, James, & John, 2001). However, while the different types of information processing strategies used by people when forming judgments and making choices have been extensively studied (e.g., Bettman, 1979; Brown & Carpenter, 2000; Johnson, 1984; Klein & Yadav, 1989), decision task-related affect has only recently received attention in the marketing and decision literatures. Decision task-related affect refers to the “relatively short-lived affective states directly resulting from and focused on a choice with which one is currently engaged (Luce, 1998, p. 410).” The fact that decision task-related emotion has received relatively limited research attention is surprising. Zhang and Fitzsimons (1999) note that choice-process satisfaction is an especially important topic of study because a satisfactory choice experience will lead individuals to adopt a decision seeking attitude whereas an unsatisfactory choice experience may influence complaint behavior, store selection, satisfaction with the product, and the likelihood of choice avoidant behaviors. Consequently, a better understanding of decision task-related emotion is important, from both a managerial and theoretical perspective.

While the research on judgment and choice is quite extensive, little attention has been given to the relationships between individual differences, decision task-related emotions, and avoidance behaviors (desire for decision assistance). Individual differences such as the coping strategies used by consumers to deal with choice conflict and stress are likely to influence choice processes, perceptions, decision task emotion and decision outcomes. Thus, the purpose of this research is twofold. We expand the study of decision task-related emotion by first examining how an individual’s decision coping style interacts with characteristics of the choice environment to influence decision task-related affect. Two types of maladaptive decision coping behavior, hypervigilance and defensive avoidance are considered. We focus on maladaptive decision coping styles, rather than on the adaptive or vigilant coping style, because of the potential negative impact these styles may have on the choice process. Two characteristics of the choice context likely to increase decision difficulty are also evaluated, the alignability of the differences that describe the options comprising a choice set and the attractiveness of the commonalities. The influence of these factors on two specific types of task-related affect are explored, the extent to which positive emotion is experienced (i.e., the level of joy elicited by the choice experience) and choice-process satisfaction (i.e., satisfaction with the actual decision making process.) Additionally, this research examines whether perceived information amount plays an important role in the elicitation of decision task-related affect. Then, the effects of decision task-related affect and decision coping style on the desire for decision assistance, a choice avoidant behavior, are examined. Finally, we examine the importance of choice context, decision coping style, perceived information amount, and decision task-related affect on the desire for decision assistance. Thus, this research provides insights regarding how individual differences interact with characteristic of the choice options to influence decision task-related affect and, in turn, how the affect elicited during the decision process influences choice behaviors.

Before describing the study used to address these issues, we briefly review the relevant research on comparison-based decision-making and decision coping style. Then we present a series of hypotheses examined by this research. After describing the method and results of the analyses, a discussion of our findings and their implications is presented. Finally, the limitations of this research are identified and opportunities for future research provided.

Section snippets

Characteristics of the choice environment

Comparison processes are an essential aspect of many different types of decision behavior. For example, Zhang and Markman (1998) suggest that consumers learn about new brands by comparing them to existing brands. Choice and judgment processes also involve comparisons between two or more options. Prior research (Goldstone, 1994; Zhang & Markman, 1998) revealed that people use a structural alignment process when comparing choice options. This process gives “rise to three types of represented

The affective experience and decision coping style

Although the emotional aspects of decision-making have only recently become a popular area of empirical research, a number of studies have shown that affect has a significant impact on decision processes and outcomes (Holbrook, Chestnut, Oliva, & Greenleaf, 1984; Westbrook & Oliver, 1991). Of particular interest to researchers is how decision task-related emotion is influenced by individual differences. Behavioral decision researchers have called for studies incorporating individual differences

Hypotheses

Although the series of studies conducted by Zhang and Fitzsimons (1999) provide convincing evidence that attribute alignability has a significant influence on choice-process satisfaction, many other questions are unanswered. Not surprisingly, choice studies not only tend to involve options defined by alignable differences, they also often ignore commonalities among the options. Furthermore, the features used to define the options in many choice studies are typically either neutral (e.g., uses

Subjects, stimuli, and procedure

One hundred and six students enrolled in upper-level marketing courses at a public university located in the United States served as subjects. Students received extra course credit for participating in the study. The study involved a choice between three different brands of popcorn. The features used to define the options were based on prior research conducted by Zhang and Fitzsimons (1999). Four sets of choice options, each containing three brands, were constructed and are presented in

Decision coping styles

The type of features used to define the choice options are not the only factors expected to influence decision-task related emotion and choice avoidant behavior; an individual difference variable, decision-coping style, is expected to play a significant role, as well. The Melbourne Decision Coping Inventory developed by Mann et al. (1997) was administered to all respondents. For each item, subjects had three possible responses: True for me (2 points); Sometimes true (1 point); Not true for me

Dependent measures

Four dependent measures are considered in the analyses. There are two measures of decision task-related affect, the level of positive emotion (joy) elicited by the choice process and choice-process satisfaction. Positive emotion experienced during the choice-process experience was assessed by three items selected from the Consumption Emotions Set developed by Richins (1997) that capture the emotion of joy. A five-point response scale for all three items, that is, happy, pleased, and joyful

Results

The first hypothesis predicts that the alignability of feature differences and the attractiveness of the commonalities will interact to influence perceived information amount. This hypothesis was tested by a 2 (alignability of the differences: alignable vs. not alignable) by 2 (attractiveness of the commonalities: attractive vs. unattractive) ANOVA. The results indicate that perceived information amount is influenced by an interaction between the alignability of the difference and the

Discussion

Many decision tasks involve comparisons between options. Consequently, substantial research has examined the types of comparison processes used during decision-making. However, decision task-related affect, a significant aspect of the decision making process, has received only limited attention. Decision task-related affect is an especially important aspect of consumer choice. Consumers’ decision processes may not only involve tradeoffs between effort and accuracy (Payne, Bettman, & Johnson,

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