Search in Service of Choice: An Agenda for Integrating Consumer Search Models

Understanding consumer search behavior is crucial for businesses and policymakers aiming to effectively engage with consumers through product offerings and interventions. Consumer search in service for choice remains a significant topic in marketing, economics, and psychology although existing theories differ in fundamental assumptions and methodological approaches. Theoretical assumptions range from the order in which items are searched being independent of their value, to search being influenced by cognitive and visual factors. Methodological approaches vary from directly observing search (with eye tracking or click stream data), to inferring search from choice data alone. This article proposes a framework for integrating theoretical and methodological approaches to consumer search. This integration will help marketers and policymakers compare and apply theories to different contexts. Ultimately, it paves the way to a unified framework for understanding and guiding consumer behavior as well as strategic decisions in marketing and policy. We review five prominent theoretical models, each with distinct terminologies. For each model, we review its background, aims, core assumptions, and provide illustrative examples. Our contribution is twofold: (1) we initiate a synthesis to resolve terminological differences and outline a path toward theory integration, and (2) we discuss how our framework can guide future research and foster a more comprehensive understanding of consumer search and choice.