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Decoy Effect
“A third option appears that nobody wants. Suddenly, one of the first two looks better.”
01 / SUMMARY
In short
An alternative clearly inferior to one option but not another can shift preferences toward the first. The contrast creates an easy local comparison and makes one offer appear dominant.
03 / SCENE
In the wild
Between a small coffee at 3 and a large at 5, adding a medium at 4.90 can make the unchanged large look more attractive.
04 / LIMIT
The limit
Decoys do not work identically in every setting, and a third option may provide useful information rather than bias.
FINAL NOTE
What remains
Compare every alternative with your original criteria, not just with the option placed beside it.