Abstract
Objective: In order to help people make healthy decisions, healthy choice options were presented as defaults. Study 1 examined the effectiveness of such a default strategy. Study 2 aimed to gain insight into the mechanism underlying the effectiveness of this strategy by investigating whether the default effect is due to pre-selection or salience. Both studies were conducted online, in an e-commerce setting in a between-subjects design.
Method: Participants were asked to choose their preferred food among four food pictures, for a total of twelve choices per study. In Study 1 (N = 204), the healthy target option was suggested as the default choice and compared to a control condition. A prototypical default manipulation was employed in which the target option was pre-selected and displayed more saliently (i.e., centrally and larger in size). In Study 2 (N = 210), the healthy target option was either pre-selected or made more salient.
Results: Results of Study 1 showed that the default intervention led to significantly larger increase the number of healthy choices (4.45 vs. 2.69). Results of Study 2 showed that the healthy option was chosen significantly more often in the pre-selection condition as compared to the salient condition (4.52 vs. 3.59).
Conclusions: Results indicated that default interventions can help people make more healthy choices in an online grocery shopping setting, and suggest that this effect is mainly due to pre-selection rather than to salience.
Method: Participants were asked to choose their preferred food among four food pictures, for a total of twelve choices per study. In Study 1 (N = 204), the healthy target option was suggested as the default choice and compared to a control condition. A prototypical default manipulation was employed in which the target option was pre-selected and displayed more saliently (i.e., centrally and larger in size). In Study 2 (N = 210), the healthy target option was either pre-selected or made more salient.
Results: Results of Study 1 showed that the default intervention led to significantly larger increase the number of healthy choices (4.45 vs. 2.69). Results of Study 2 showed that the healthy option was chosen significantly more often in the pre-selection condition as compared to the salient condition (4.52 vs. 3.59).
Conclusions: Results indicated that default interventions can help people make more healthy choices in an online grocery shopping setting, and suggest that this effect is mainly due to pre-selection rather than to salience.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Health Psychology |
| Publication status | Unpublished - 2020 |