In 2009 the three academics On Amir, Dan Ariely and Leonard Lee published the article "In Search of Homo Economicus" in the Journal of Consumer Research (JCR). After having conducted five experiments the conclusion of this article was that people who put more trust
in their feelings show more consistent preferences than people who base their decisions on analytics and deliberation. Supported was that resulting conclusion of the psychological fundamental that emotions are nothing more than efficient programmes, designed by evolution to ensure species preserving reactions on external influences. The author of the present paper tested the aforementioned tenor critically by setting up two experiments using
the previous work by Amir, Ariely and Lee as a basis. In the first experiment 131 probands were tested, in a second slightly modified experiment 26 persons participated in the experiment. After several tests of the collected data material the conclusion of Amir, Ariely
and Lee cannot be supported. In fact, data of persons who are assumed to be deliberate thinkers showed lower numbers of errors.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- 1. Introduction.
- 2. Theoretical Basis.
- 2.1 Emotional Versus Cognitive Decision Making..
- 2.2 The Measure Of Inconsistency
- 2.3 Priming
- 2.4 The Experimental Setup Of Amir, Ariely And Lee.
- 2.4.1 Experiment 1A by Amir, Ariely and Lee.
- 2.4.2 Experiment 1B by Amir, Ariely and Lee
- 2.4.3 Experiment 2 by Amir, Ariely and Lee.
- 2.4.4 Experiment 3 by Amir, Ariely and Lee.
- 2.4.5 Experiment 4 by Amir, Ariely and Lee.
- 2.5 Metaphors And Their Influence On Human Behavior..
- 2.6 The Unpaired Sample T-Test.
- 2.7 The Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney-Test (Also Called Mann-Whitney-U-Test) ..............
- 3. Research Hypothesis
- 4. Our Experimental Set Up.
- 5. Proband Recruitment And Proband Pool For Marketing Chair
- 6. Introduction Into Collected Experimental Data
- 7. Testing For Differences Between Groups.
- 7.1 Test For Difference Between Full And Sliced Group..
- 7.1.1 Test for difference between full and sliced group without outliers..
- 7.1.2 Test for difference between full and sliced group without super consistent probands
- 7.1.3 Test for difference between full and sliced group without outliers and without super consistent probands
- 7.1.4 Test for difference between full and sliced group considering complete data sets only....
- 7.2 Test For Difference Between Full And Sliced Group Within Interquartile Ranges ......
- 7.2.1 Test for difference between full and sliced group within interquartile range of errors......
- 7.2.2 Test for difference between full and sliced group within interquartile range of reading time
- 7.2.3 Test for difference between full and sliced group within interquartile range of age
- 7.3 Test For Difference Between Full And Sliced Group Concerning Age.. _
- 7.3.1 Test for difference between full and sliced group concerning people in the typical age of students..
- 7.3.2 Test for difference between full and sliced group concerning people older than students
- 7.4 Test For Difference Between Full And Sliced Group Regarding Genders
- 7.4.1 Test for difference between full and sliced group regarding women..
- 7.4.2 Test for difference between full and sliced group regarding women without super consisten probands...
- 7.4.3 Test for difference between full and sliced group regarding men
- 7.4.4 Test for difference between full and sliced group regarding men without super consistent probands
- 7.5 Test For Difference Between Full And Sliced Group Regarding The Daytime Of Data Recording
- 7.5.1 Test for difference between full and sliced group between nine a.m. and twelve a.m.
- 7.5.2 Test for difference between full and sliced group between one p.m. and five p.m.
- 8. Modified Experiment..
- 8.1 Set Up Of Modified Experiment..
- 8.2 Descriptives Of Modified Experiment
- 8.3 Hypothesis Testing......
- 9. Critique..
- 9.1 Critique Regarding The Experimental Set Up Of Amir, Ariely And Lee.
- 9.2 Critique Regarding The Experimental Set Up Of Lee And Schwarz..
- 9.3 Critique Regarding The Evaluation Methodology Of Amir, Ariely And Lee
- 10. Conclusion......
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This master thesis aims to critically examine the conclusions drawn from the article "In Search of Homo Economicus" by Amir, Ariely, and Lee (2009), which suggests that individuals who rely more on feelings exhibit greater consistency in their preferences compared to those who base decisions on analysis and deliberation. The thesis investigates this assertion through the implementation of two experiments, building upon the original work of Amir, Ariely, and Lee.
- Preference Consistency and Decision Making
- Emotional Versus Cognitive Processing in Decision Making
- The Role of Metaphors in Influencing Behavior
- Experimental Design and Data Analysis Techniques
- Critique of Existing Research and Methodology
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The first chapter introduces the topic of preference consistency and presents the research hypothesis, which seeks to challenge the findings of Amir, Ariely, and Lee. Chapter two provides a theoretical foundation by examining concepts like emotional versus cognitive decision making, the measure of inconsistency, priming, and the experimental setup employed by Amir, Ariely, and Lee. Chapter three outlines the specific research hypothesis, and chapter four details the experimental setup employed in the present study.
Chapters five and six focus on proband recruitment and the initial analysis of the collected data. Chapter seven delves into statistical tests conducted to examine differences between groups, considering various factors like outliers, consistency levels, interquartile ranges, age, gender, and data recording time. Chapter eight presents a modified version of the experiment, detailing its setup, descriptive statistics, and hypothesis testing. Finally, chapter nine offers a critical analysis of the experimental design, methodology, and evaluation techniques used in both Amir, Ariely, and Lee's study and the present research.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The central keywords and focus topics of this research include preference consistency, emotional and cognitive decision making, the influence of metaphors, experimental design and data analysis, and a critical examination of existing research methodologies. The study seeks to further explore the relationship between decision-making styles and preference consistency through empirical analysis, drawing upon the framework developed by Amir, Ariely, and Lee.
- Quote paper
- David Busse (Author), 2011, At the core: Metaphors and Preference Consistency, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/177539
