Animation attracts: The attraction effect in an on-line shopping environment

Two studies examine the attraction effect - an inconsistent choice behavior typically observed when consumers are presented with two products (target and competitor), both good for different reasons, and a worse "decoy" - in the context of on-line consumer decisions with different product displays (animated or static). The experiments, with different participant populations, show that the attraction effect in an on-line shopping environment depends on the animation format of the products. Experiment 1 (with Italian participants) suggests that the attraction effect is eliminated when target and competitor are both animated and is accentuated when the target is animated and the competitor is static, regardless of whether the decoy is animated or static. Experiment 2 replicates this animation/attraction effect in the United States, where on-line shopping is more common than in Italy. The paper concludes with theoretical and practical implications for on-line shopping. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.