The Cost—Benefit Framework and Perceptions of Decision Strategies

Abstract

Cost—benefit theories of decision strategy choice provide a conceptual foundation for studying human decision behavior. Central to cost—benefit theories are decision makers' perceptions of the efficacy and effort of various decision strategies. The authors apply the cost—benefit framework to study perceptions of decision strategies for samples of university students from the People's Republic of China and the United States. The results show cross-cultural differences in the perceptions. Noncompensatory strategies, especially the lexicographic strategy, are perceived more favorably by the Chinese than by the Americans. Strategies using attribute weights are perceived important by the Chinese, more so than by the Americans. Furthermore, the perceived efficient frontiers of the two cultures differ markedly.