Decision Making
Avoiding the Tyranny of Choice
Too many options can be paralyzing, so it pays to avoid “decision fatigue.”
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After I moved to a new flat in January, it took a week to get my internet connection hooked up, leaving me without Netflix. So each evening, I chose from shows broadcast over the air in London. The lack of choice was glorious.
The liberation I felt isn’t unusual, says Barry Schwartz, a psychologist at the University of California at Berkeley. While some choice is good, our mistake is thinking more of it is always better. “The act of choosing is very debilitating cognitively,” he says.