Categories help consumers make choices

STANFORD, Calif., July 21 (UPI) -- Consumers are happier in making product choices if their options are categorized -- even if the categories are meaningless, U.S. researchers said.

Study authors Cassie Mogilner of Stanford University, Tamar Rudnick and Sheena S. Iyengar, both of Columbia University, demonstrate a phenomenon called the "mere categorization effect" -- consumers are happier with their choices if options are categorized.

In one study, participants chose magazines from different displays, some magazines were categorized and some were not. Those asked to choose a magazine they weren't familiar with tended to be more satisfied with their choices if they came from categorized selections.

In another study, people at a food court were randomly selected to choose coffee from several menus either categorized or uncategorized.

"Consumers who chose a coffee flavor from a menu divided into seemingly meaningless categories such as categories A, B, and C were just as happy as those who chose from meaningful categories such as 'mild,' 'dark roast ' and 'nutty,'" write the authors.

"People confronted with highly categorized large selections are happier with their decisions because they experience a sense of self-determination as a result of perceiving differences among the available options," the study authors said in a statement.

The findings are published in the Journal of Consumer Research.