The study, published in a marketing journal, compared anxiety in different shopping situations and found that purchases intended for shared use cause more stress than personal buys or gifts. Researchers tested three decision types: choosing only for oneself, choosing for another person, and choosing for shared use. More than 2,000 people took part and they rated their anxiety in scenarios such as picking healthy drinks for meetings, snacks for movies, wine for a promotion party, or activities while traveling.
Results showed the effect was strongest when the chooser did not know the other person's preferences or expected them to differ. Margaret Campbell and her colleagues explain that the anxiety comes from a sense of responsibility and the worry about disappointing others, not from the decision being more difficult.
The study offers simple coping ideas: ask about preferences, pick popular options, or offer several choices. Marketers can help by highlighting popular items or selling mixed assortment packs.
Difficult words
- anxiety — A strong worry or nervous feeling.
- purchase — To buy something for money.purchases
- choose — To select one option from others.choosing
- shared use — Use by more than one person together.
- responsibility — A duty to take care or act.
- preference — Things someone likes more than others.preferences
- disappoint — To make someone feel sad or let down.disappointing
- cope — To manage a difficult situation or stress.coping
- marketer — A person or company who sells products.Marketers
- assortment — A collection of different items or types.
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Have you ever felt anxious when choosing something for a group? What did you do?
- Which coping idea from the article would you try when buying for others? Why?
- How could marketers make shopping easier for people who buy for shared use?
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