Social Influence in Sequential Choice
Public, sequential choices can be influenced by earlier choices in the group. Ariely describes diners choosing for uniqueness or conformity and reporting less satisfaction than diners who ordered privately. Choosing independently before sharing a preference may reduce this influence.
THE IDEA
Sequential Ordering and Social Influence
At the Carolina Brewery, Ariely and his colleagues offered beer samples to tables of four. Some groups ordered aloud in sequence; others wrote their orders privately. Public orders included a wider variety of beers, and public orderers reported lower satisfaction overall. The first person to order was as satisfied as the private orderers. Ariely interprets the pattern as evidence that later diners sometimes traded their preferences for a chance to appear different.
A follow-up wine study with MBA students found an association between the "need for uniqueness" trait and choosing differently from others. A Hong Kong study described in the book found more conformity in public choices, also accompanied by lower satisfaction. The direction of social influence therefore differed across the settings.
Ariely connects these findings to the economic idea of "no free lunches": opportunities to improve an outcome without an offsetting cost should already have been taken. Predictable decision errors can leave opportunities for useful changes to how choices are presented.
One example is "Save More Tomorrow" (Thaler & Benartzi), in which employees committed part of future salary increases to retirement savings. Reported savings rates rose from 3.5% to 13.5%. Linking increases to future raises reduced the need to give up current take-home pay when joining the plan.
For group dining, a smaller intervention is to decide or write down an order before hearing everyone else. Ariely describes such opportunities as "free lunches". Their value depends on the setting and on whether the change actually helps people choose what they prefer.
When to use it
Group dining: decide what you want before hearing other orders, or write your preference down privately.
Workplace brainstorming: have team members write ideas independently before sharing them, so early speakers have less influence on the initial pool of ideas.
Personal Finance: Enroll in a 'Save More Tomorrow' or similar auto-escalation program to automatically increase retirement savings with raises, overcoming the psychological pain of present sacrifice.
Product Marketing: Frame products to appeal to the 'need for uniqueness' (e.g., limited editions, customizable features) or the desire to conform (e.g., 'bestseller,' 'most popular'), depending on the target audience and cultural context.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Beer Tasting at the Carolina Brewery
In Ariely’s brewpub study, groups ordering beer aloud chose more varied beers and reported lower satisfaction than groups ordering privately. First orderers were as satisfied as private orderers. Ariely interprets the difference as a cost of trying to appear unique.
Save More Tomorrow Retirement Plan
Employees committed part of future salary increases to retirement savings. Reported savings rates rose from 3.5% to 13.5%. Making the commitment before receiving the raises reduced the immediate sacrifice of take-home pay.
Duke Wine Study and Need for Uniqueness
MBA students with higher scores on a 'need for uniqueness' measure were more likely to order a wine different from others at their table. The association supports Ariely’s interpretation that social identity can influence choices.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
When was the last time you chose an option at a restaurant mainly because no one else had selected it, or to avoid seeming like a follower? Did you actually enjoy it as much as you hoped?
What 'free lunches' exist in your life right now—simple changes to your environment or routines that help you make better decisions despite your natural biases (e.g., automatic savings, pre-committing to a workout)?
Are there areas of your life where you sacrifice personal utility (what you truly want) for reputational utility (how you want to be seen by others)? What is the true cost of this trade-off?
References
- Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions — Dan Ariely (2008)
- Save More Tomorrow: Using Behavioral Economics to Increase Employee Saving — Richard H. Thaler and Shlomo Benartzi (2004)
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely