What category does Decoy Effect belong to?

Decoy Effect belongs to the "Cognitive Biases" category in personal knowledge management and productivity.

What are the key topics related to Decoy Effect?

Key topics related to Decoy Effect include: cognitive-biases, decision-making, psychology.

What are alternative names for Decoy Effect?

Decoy Effect is also known as: Asymmetric dominance, Attraction effect.

Decoy Effect

Adding an inferior option makes another option more attractive by comparison.

Also known as: Asymmetric dominance, Attraction effect

Category: Cognitive Biases

Tags: cognitive-biases, decision-making, psychology

Explanation

The Decoy Effect occurs when adding a third, inferior option makes one of the original options seem more attractive. A medium drink for $4 might seem expensive until a large for $4.50 is added - suddenly the large looks like great value. This asymmetric dominance influences decisions by changing the comparison context. Understanding this helps both in pricing (adding strategic decoys) and in personal decisions (recognizing when choices are being framed to push you toward a particular option).

Related Concepts

Price Anchoring
Choice Overload
Loss Aversion

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