Center of Attention: Spatial Position Affects Quantity Judgments and Product Preference

Consumers often encounter products featuring assorted components, such as bags of flavored popcorn or flower bouquets. How do they judge the quantity of each component to form overall preferences? Across twelve pre-registered studies, this article shows that spatial positioning significantly shapes judgements of relative quantity. The findings reveal a proximity-to-center bias: When evaluating products with assorted items, consumers tend to perceive a given type of item as more numerous when it appears closer to the center of the display, even when actual quantity is lower. This bias impacted both hypothetical and real choices. Consumers preferred products where the packaging positioned more of the type of item that they liked most, such as a specific popcorn flavor, closer to the center. Remarkably, this preference persisted even when the actual quantity of their favored type was lower. These results suggest that these biases are rooted in selective attention, specifically to the center of the product display. This research highlights the intricate relationship between spatial positioning, quantity judgments, and consumer decision-making, offering valuable insights for product design and display strategies.