Decision fatigue

In decision making and psychology, decision fatigue refers to the deteriorating quality of decisions made by an individual after a long session of decision making.^[1]^[2] It is now understood as one of the causes of irrational trade-offs in decision making.^[2] Decision fatigue may also lead to consumers making poor choices with their purchases.

There is a paradox in that "people who lack choices seem to want them and often will fight for them", yet at the same time, "people find that making many choices can be [psychologically] aversive."^[3]

For example, major politicians and businessmen such as former United States President Barack Obama, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg have been known to reduce their everyday clothing down to one or two outfits in order to limit the number of decisions they make in a day.^[4]

^ ^a ^b Tierney, John (August 21, 2011). "Do You Suffer From Decision Fatigue?". New York Times Magazine. Retrieved August 23, 2011.
^ ^a ^b Baumeister, Roy F (2003), "The Psychology of Irrationality", in Brocas, Isabelle; Carrillo, Juan D (eds.), The Psychology of Economic Decisions: Rationality and well-being, Oxford University Press, pp. 1–15, ISBN 978-0-19-925108-7.
^ Vohs, Kathleen; Baumeister, Roy; Twenge, Jean; Schmeichel, Brandon; Tice, Dianne; Crocker, Jennifer (2005). "Decision Fatigue Exhausts Self-Regulatory Resources — But So Does Accommodating to Unchosen Alternatives" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-10-04. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
^ Baer, Drake (28 April 2015). "The scientific reason why Barack Obama and Mark Zuckerberg wear the same outfit every day". Business Insider. Retrieved 24 October 2018.

[NYT_mag_story-1] Tierney, John (August 21, 2011). "Do You Suffer From Decision Fatigue?". New York Times Magazine. Retrieved August 23, 2011.

[irrationality-2] Baumeister, Roy F (2003), "The Psychology of Irrationality", in Brocas, Isabelle; Carrillo, Juan D (eds.), The Psychology of Economic Decisions: Rationality and well-being, Oxford University Press, pp. 1–15, ISBN 978-0-19-925108-7.

[decision-fatigue-exhausts-3] Vohs, Kathleen; Baumeister, Roy; Twenge, Jean; Schmeichel, Brandon; Tice, Dianne; Crocker, Jennifer (2005). "Decision Fatigue Exhausts Self-Regulatory Resources — But So Does Accommodating to Unchosen Alternatives" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-10-04. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

[4] Baer, Drake (28 April 2015). "The scientific reason why Barack Obama and Mark Zuckerberg wear the same outfit every day". Business Insider. Retrieved 24 October 2018.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]