Process-induced decision costs on sequential value judgments

• “Effort-as-information” and “resource availability” differ in coping strategies.
• Intervening effects of decision costs are tested in a 2-stage value judgment task.
• Lower consistency rate occurs when extra resources from layout change are required.
• Difficult preliminary decision produces greater inconsistency under layout change.
• Popular use of dynamic web pages may potentially influence consumer judgments.

Effort-as-information and resource availability have been proposed to explain why people adhere to previously chosen alternatives in repeated-choice situations. These two theories differ in terms of the resource expenditure involved in subsequent decisions. In this study we investigate the impact of the process-induced decision costs of previous decisions on subsequent decisions. Results reveal the occurrence of a lower consistency rate in the layout change condition, implying that resource availability plays a significant role in sequential decision-making situations. Further, when the layout change impedes fluent processing, initial decisions that require longer reaction times produce greater decision inconsistency. Both consumers and managers should be aware that display changes, commonly observed in the popular use of dynamic web pages in online shopping, are likely to increase processing costs, which potentially impede sound consumer judgments.