In this thesis, the effect of choices on preferences is discussed and tested for, with a small scale experiment. A strong body of evidence supports the idea that the choices people make, sometimes feed back into their preferences, altering them. As a result, chosen options are valued higher, and rejected options lower than before the choice was made. However, in economic theory, choices are still commonly considered as mere manifestations of one’s preferences, and the effect of choices on preferences is often disregarded. In the following chapters the existing literature from multiple disciplines exploring the causes, triggers and ways to detect choice-induced preference change is thoroughly discussed. After reviewing past experimental studies and addressing the criticism on the theory and methods used, the Implicit Choice Paradigm by Alós Ferrer et al is chosen to set up a small scale experiment that resembles a consumer-choice setting using real rewards. The study's results did not reveal significant choice-induced preference change. However, a few interesting outcomes occurred, regarding different treatment groups and the respondents' behavior.

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G.D. Granic
hdl.handle.net/2105/47670
Business Economics
Erasmus School of Economics

M. Michalitsi. (2019, July 19). Can guided choices lead to preference change? Exploring the Implicit Choice Paradigm in a consumer choice context. Business Economics. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/2105/47670