Skip to main content

Choice Architecture: Using Fixation Patterns to Analyze the Effects of Form Design on Cognitive Biases

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Information Systems and Neuroscience

Abstract

User-generated online reviews are an important input into purchase decisions, but are susceptible to cognitive biases, which ultimately undermine the reviews’ value. As even minor changes to the design of online environments (such as Web pages) can influence people’s behavior, design modifications to online review forms could help reduce biases. We hypothesize that design modifications to online forms can help reduce three common sources of biases (availability, anchoring, and response style), and propose an experiment that employs eye tracking and recording of mousing behavior to test the hypotheses.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    While some online retailers are attempting to use technological means to detect and remove fraudulent reviews (ex post), such attempts are beyond the scope of our research.

References

  1. Kumar, N., Benbasat, I.: The influence of recommendations on consumer reviews on evaluations of websites. Inf. Syst. Res. 17(4), 425–439 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Forman, C., Ghose, A., Wiesenfeld, B.: Examining the relationship between reviews and sales: The role of reviewer identity disclosure in electronic markets. Inf. Syst. Res. 19(3), 291–313 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Willemsen, L.M., Neijens, P.C., Bronner, F., de Ridder, J.A.: “Highly recommended!” The content characteristics and perceived usefulness of online consumer reviews. J. Comput.-Mediated Commun. 17, 19–38 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Mudambi, S.M., Schuff, D.: What makes a helpful online review? A study of customer reviews on Amazon.com. MIS Q. 34(1), 185–200 (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  5. Aral, S.: The problem with online ratings. MIT Sloan Manag. Rev. 55(2), 47–52 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Hu, N., Zhang, J., Pavlou, P.A.: Overcoming biases in online word-of-mouth communication. Commun. ACM 52(10), 144–147 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Wang, C., Zhang, X., Hann, I.-H.: Social bias in online product ratings: A quasi-experimental analysis. In: Workshop on Information Systems and Economics. WISE (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  8. Wang, G., Wilson, C., Zhao, X., Zhu, Y., Mohanlal, M., Zheng, H., Zhao, B.Y.: Serf and turf: Crowdturfing for fun and profit. In: Proceedings of WWW 2012 Conference. ACM, New York, NY (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  9. David, S., Pinch, T.J.: Six degrees of reputation: The use and abuse of online review and recommendation systems. Social Science Research Network, 25 Nov 2005

    Google Scholar 

  10. Thaler, R.H., Sunstein, C.R., Balz, J.P.: Choice architecture. Social Science Research Network, 2 April 2010

    Google Scholar 

  11. Tversky, A., Kahneman, D.: Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases. Science 185(4157), 1124–1131 (1974)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Muchnik, L., Aral, S., Taylor, S.J.: Social influence bias: A randomized experiment. Science 341(6146), 647–651 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Furnham, A.: Response bias, social desirability and dissimulation. Personality Individ. Differ. 7(3), 385–400 (1986)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Dellarocas, C.: The digitization of word of mouth: Promise and challenges of online feedback mechanisms. Manag. Sci. 49(10), 1407–1424 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Bickart, B., Schindler, R.M.: Internet forums as influential sources of consumer information. J. Interact. Mark. 15(3), 31–40 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Haywood, K.M.: Managing word of mouth communications. J. Serv. Mark. 3(2), 55–67 (1989)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Johnson, E.J., Goldstein, D.: Do defaults save lives? Science 302(5649), 1338–1339 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Piccoli, G., Ott, M.: Impact of mobility and timing on user-generated content. MIS Q. Executive 13(3), 147–157 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  19. Yin, D., Bond, S., Zhang, H.: Anxious or angry? Effects of discrete emotions on the perceived helpfulness of online reviews. MIS Q. 38(2), 539–560 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  20. Evans, J.S.B.T.: Dual-processing accounts of reasoning, judgment, and social cognition. Annu. Rev. Psychol. 59, 255–278 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Baumeister, R.F., Bushman, B.: Social Psychology and Human Nature. Cengage Learning, Belmont (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  22. Chaiken, S., Trope, Y.: Dual-process Theories in Social Psychology. Guilford Press, New York (1999)

    Google Scholar 

  23. Kahneman, D.: Thinking, Fast and Slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  24. Deerwester, S.C., Dumais, S.T., Landauer, T.K., Furnas, G.W., Harshman, R.A.: Indexing by latent semantic analysis. J. Assoc. Inf. Syst. 41(6), 391–407 (1990)

    Google Scholar 

  25. Dimoka, A., Banker, R.D., Benbasat, I., Davis, F.D., Dennis, A.R., Gefen, D., Gupta, A., Ischebeck, A., Kenning, P., Müller-Putz, G., Pavlou, P.A., Riedl, R., vom Brocke, J., Weber, B.: On the use of neurophysiological tools in IS research: Developing a research agenda for NeuroIS. MIS Q. 36(3), 679–702 (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  26. Riedl, R., Banker, R.D., Benbasat, I., Davis, F.D., Dennis, A.R., Dimoka, A., Gefen, D., Gupta, A., Ischebeck, A., Kenning, P., Müller-Putz, G.R., Pavlou, P.A., Straub, D., vom Brocke, J., Weber, B.: On the foundations of NeuroIS: Reflections on the Gmunden Retreat 2009. Commun. Assoc. Inf. Syst. 27(1), Article 15 (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  27. Vom Brocke, J., Riedl, R., Léger, P.-M.: Application strategies for neuroscience in information systems design science research. J. Comput. Inf. Syst. 53(3), 1–13 (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  28. Vom Brocke, J., Liang, T.-P.: Guidelines for neuroscience studies in information systems research. J. Manag. Inf. Syst. 30(4), 211–234 (2014)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Cyr, D., Head, M., Larios, H., Pan, B.: Exploring human images in website design: A multi-method approach. MIS Q. 33(3), 539–566 (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  30. Djamasbi, S.: Eye tracking and web experience. AIS Trans. Hum.-Comput. Interact. 6(2), 37–54 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  31. Chen, M.C., Anderson, J.R., Sohn, M.H.: What can a mouse cursor tell us more? Correlation of eye/mouse movements on web browsing. In: CHI01 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 281–282. ACM, New York (2001)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Markus Weinmann .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this paper

Cite this paper

Schneider, C., Weinmann, M., vom Brocke, J. (2015). Choice Architecture: Using Fixation Patterns to Analyze the Effects of Form Design on Cognitive Biases. In: Davis, F., Riedl, R., vom Brocke, J., Léger, PM., Randolph, A. (eds) Information Systems and Neuroscience. Lecture Notes in Information Systems and Organisation, vol 10. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18702-0_12

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics