We face thousands of decisions every single day. Ultimately these decisions shape our future, who we are and who we become. Thousands of decisions every day. It is not easy to get every single one right every single day. On top of this, the amount of decisions we face is increasing. Fifty years ago there were not twenty different salad dressings in every store or three hundred-different jeans on the market. With the advent of internet shopping, choosing what to buy has become a question of how long you are willing to search. One might think this would make us happier with our choices, however studies show that all these choices are actually making us less satisfied with the choices we make. Furthermore as society becomes more and more liberal social norms are becoming more and more blurred. Our grandparents were likely married in their early twenties. Meet someone you like, marry them and then you have made that choice for the rest of your life. Anyone who has ever been in love knows what a distraction it is and now we get to fall in love many times over before we find “the one”. But how do you know when you find “the one”? It is a decision you have to make. And a hard decision, that requires tons of thinking. Ultimately more choice is ultimately a good thing. There is, however, room for improvement. I want to research how design can help people make good decisions without overwhelming them with choice.
