The Paradox of Choice

The Paradox of Choice – Why More is Less

Author	Barry Schwartz
Cover artist	David High & Ralph del Pozzo, High Design, NYC
Country	United States
Language	English
Subject	Psychology, Sociology
Genre	Choice, Decision making
Publisher	Harper Perennial
Publication date	2004 (hardcover) January 18, 2005 (paperback)
Media type	Print (hardcover, paperback)
Pages	304
ISBN	0-06-000568-8 (hardcover) 0060005696 (paperback)
OCLC	64265862
Dewey Decimal	153.8/3
LC Class	BF611 .S38 2004

The Paradox of Choice – Why More Is Less is a book written by American psychologist Barry Schwartz and first published in 2004 by Harper Perennial. In the book, Schwartz argues that eliminating consumer choices can greatly reduce anxiety for shoppers. The book analyses the behavior of different types of people (in particular, maximizers and satisficers). This book argues that the dramatic explosion in choice—from the mundane to the profound challenges of balancing career, family, and individual needs—has paradoxically become a problem instead of a solution and how our obsession with choice encourages us to seek that which makes us feel worse.