Consumer Behavior News

January 28, 2025

Top Headlines

Myth Busted: Healthy Habits Take Longer Than 21 Days to Set in

Jan. 24, 2025 — We're nearly one month into 2025, but if you're struggling to hold onto your New Year's resolution, stay strong, as new research shows that forming a healthy habit can take longer than you expect. Researchers found that new habits can begin forming ...

Why Are Most Companies Failing to Benefit from AI? It's About the People Not the Tech

Jan. 22, 2025 — Successful uptake of new technology is a matter of emotions -- and with 4 in 5 companies saying they're failing to capitalize on its potential, managers need to know how to deal with them, say ...

Study Shows Travelers Are Dreaming Forward, Not Looking Back

Jan. 22, 2025 — When it comes to getting people to want to go places, the future is ever more lovely than the past, according to a new study. The study found that forestalgia-focused destination ads -- those that emphasize an idealized future -- are more effective ...

How People Make Life's Biggest Decisions

Jan. 8, 2025 — Some decisions in life are so significant that they have a massive impact on the course of a person's future. Whether it's the decision to emigrate, quit a job, end a long-term relationship, or report a sexual assault, these choices are ...

Latest Headlines

updated 5:31pm EST

Exploring Decision Making in People With Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Jan. 24, 2025 — Although obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) can be treated, research has shown that people with the disorder tend to have a lower quality of life than neurotypical people. Many struggle to achieve ...

Naughty or Nice? Many Parents Rely on Threats to Manage Misbehavior -- From No Dessert to No Santa

Dec. 16, 2024 — When young children's behavior becomes challenging, many parents resort to threats -- from taking away toys to threatening that Santa will skip their ...

Smarter City Planning: Researchers Use Brain Activity to Predict Visits to Urban Areas

Nov. 21, 2024 — Researchers have measured the brain activity of people who had never been to a specific city and then use this brain activity to predict other ...

Confidence Drives Feedback-Seeking Behavior: Insights Into Learning and Motivation

Nov. 21, 2024 — New research reveals how low confidence drives feedback-seeking, enhancing learning with insights for education and rehabilitation ...

Researchers Discover New Cognitive Blueprint for Making and Breaking Habits

Nov. 19, 2024 — Cognitive neuroscientists have described a brand new approach to making habit change achievable and ...

Cash Is King: The Surprising Truth About Spending Habits in a Cashless World

Nov. 14, 2024 — Physical cash not only influences how much we spend but also fosters a profound sense of psychological ownership that digital payments cannot ...

Cannabis Use During Pregnancy Can Impact Thinking and Learning Skills, Increase Aggression Among Children, Study Shows

Oct. 28, 2024 — As cannabis is legalized and is more accessible in various forms across the country, there is increasing concern among health care providers about ...

How Social Structure Influences the Way People Share Money

Sep. 26, 2024 — A study of informal finance finds that in East Africa, money moves in very different patterns depending on whether societies are structured around family units or age-based ...

A Risky Business: Why Do Some Parkinson's Disease Treatments Affect Decision Making?

Sep. 24, 2024 — Parkinson's disease, a debilitating nervous system disorder, is treated with medications that sometimes cause impaired decision-making and poor ...

Just 10 Minutes of Mindfulness Daily Boosts Wellbeing and Fights Depression

Aug. 22, 2024 — New research reveals how short bursts of daily mindfulness can boost wellbeing, combat depression and anxiety, and inspire healthier lifestyle ...

Political Opinions Influence Our Choice of Chocolate

Nov. 25, 2024 — We distance ourselves from completely neutral products if they are liked by people who have political views that we find disagreeable. Even chocolate can be political, according to new research from ...

New Study Sheds Light on the Role of Sound and Music in Gendered Toy Marketing

Nov. 6, 2024 — New research reveals that the music and soundscapes used in toy commercials are reinforcing rigid gender norms, shaping the way children perceive masculinity and femininity. The study uncovers how ...

The Harmful Frequency and Reach of Unhealthy Foods on Social Media

Oct. 31, 2024 — An analysis of social media posts that mention food and beverage products finds that fast food restaurants and sugar sweetened beverages are the most common, with millions of posts reaching billions ...

Age Assurance Online Needs to Be Child-Rights Respecting, New Study Says

Oct. 28, 2024 — A range of different age checks are needed to protect children -- but also to ensure they can take advantages of positive opportunities online -- a new study ...

An Individual's Reward-Seeking Strategy Reflects Responses to Nicotine

Oct. 24, 2024 — Individualistic reward-seeking strategies predict responses to nicotine among mice living in a micro-society, according to a new ...

Calorie Labels on Alcohol Might Help Some Drinkers Maintain a Healthier Weight

Sep. 19, 2024 — Just over half of heavier drinkers in England say they would make changes to their drinking if calorie labels for alcohol were introduced, according to a new ...

People Aren't Volunteering as Much These Days: What Gives?

Sep. 17, 2024 — Volunteering used to be a mainstay of U.S. culture. But in recent years, giving back to their community hasn't played as big a role in many Americans' lives. New research suggests the ...

How Cheerful Is That Water Bottle?

Sep. 3, 2024 — New research shows consumers use 'happier' words to search for products when they are in a good mood. Researchers have connected those positive search terms with an increased likelihood of ...

Why Do Researchers Often Prefer Safe Over Risky Projects? Explaining Risk Aversion in Science

Aug. 15, 2024 — A mathematical framework that builds on the economic theory of hidden-action models provides insight into how the unobservable nature of effort and risk shapes investigators' research strategies ...

Swipe Up! Health Apps Deliver Real Results En Masse

Aug. 13, 2024 — They're the little digital tools you can download in a few seconds, but despite their literal size, health and fitness apps pack a real punch when it comes to getting results, say ...

The Atmosphere in the Room Can Affect Strategic Decision-Making, Study Finds

Aug. 13, 2024 — The atmosphere within a group can influence the outcome of strategic decision-making, according to a new study. Researchers found that different atmospheres led to people speaking and interacting in ...

Peer Influence Can Promote Healthier Shopping Habits, Study Reveals

July 30, 2024 — A randomized trial conducted by health economists found that a bit of peer influence can nudge us to select healthier ...

Using the Term 'Artificial Intelligence' in Product Descriptions Reduces Purchase Intentions

July 30, 2024 — Companies may unintentionally hurt their sales by including the words 'artificial intelligence' when describing their offerings that use the technology, according to a recent study. ...

To Get Drivers to Put Down Their Phones, Make It a Game

July 29, 2024 — A large trial of strategies to reduce distracted driving showed that those that were 'gamified' yielded a lasting reduction in handheld phone usage while ...

Does the Onset of Daylight Saving Time Lead to an Unhealthy Lifestyle?

July 23, 2024 — Consumers' attitudes and health behaviors respond negatively to the switch to daylight saving ...

When There's Money to Lose, Phone Usage While Driving Drops

July 10, 2024 — Researchers discovered that feedback plus cash incentives designed with insights from behavioral science reduces phone use while ...

Pie in the Face? Why Inflicting Mild Pain on Others Pays Off

June 20, 2024 — A marketing professor articulates the appeal of inflicting mild misfortune on others, such as tossing pies into faces, for the purpose of charitable fundraising. The paper provides insights on how to ...

The Time It Takes a Person to Decide Can Predict Their Preference

June 20, 2024 — Researchers have found that people can infer hidden social preferences by observing how fast others make social decisions. The study shows that when someone knows the options being considered by ...

We Spend More With Cashless Payments

June 11, 2024 — A study has found that when using cashless methods of payment, individuals tend to spend more when ...

Unregulated Sales of a Toxic and Hallucinogenic Mushroom Endanger Public Health

June 10, 2024 — Americans' interest in a potentially harmful 'magic mushroom' is soaring, according to a new study. The scientists suggest that the growing market for Amanita muscaria may be sparked ...