Planning has pronounced effects on consumer behavior and intertemporal choice. We develop a six-item scale measuring individual differences in propensity to plan that can be adapted to different domains and used to compare planning across domains and time horizons. Adaptations tailored to...

A fundamental dilemma confronts retailers with stand-alone sites on the World Wide Web and those attempting to build electronic malls for delivery via the Internet, on-line services, or interactive TV (Alba et al. 1997). For consumers, the main potential advantage of electronic shopping over...

Recent consumer research suggests that lowering search costs for quality information reduces consumer price sensitivity by creating greater perceived differentiation among brands (e.g., Kaul and Wittink 1995; Lynch and Ariely 2000). We argue that lowering quality search costs by smart agents can...

We illustrate information overload in annuity decisions. More complete, and therefore more complex information about annuity products leads to reduced attention and produces worse consumer choices. In an eye-tracking experiment comparing consumer response to a real, relatively brief annuity...