The Tyranny of Choice

In the article “Tyranny of Choice,” written by Barry Schwartz, there is a definition of personality types that distinguishes those who are more at risk for clinical depression than those that aren't. The names of these particular personality types are “maximizers” and “satisficers” (Schwartz, 2004). “Maximizers” are defined in the article as “those who always aim to make the best possible choice.” For example, if presented with 300 different makes and models of cars, someone who is a Maximizer (on the extreme end of the spectrum) would not be comfortable or content to make a purchase until all 300 cars at his or her disposal had been test driven. Alternatively, “Satisficers” are defined as “those who aim for “good enough,” whether or not the better selections might be out there. If the Satisficer is presented with the same 300 different makes and models of cars, he or she will stop their search when they find one that meets their standards.

The “Maximization Scale” is a psychological assessment of an individual composed of thirteen separate statements, which the individual being tested can rank as numbers one through seven, with one representing “Completely Disagree” and seven representing “Completely Agree.” Those whose average scores exceeded the midpoint of four would be considered Maximizers, while those whose average scores did not exceed the midpoint would be considered Satisficers. A third of participants in the study where the Maximization Scale was employed scored as Maximizers, a third scored as Satisficers and about 10 percent of subjects were each extreme Maximizers and extreme Satisficers (Schwartz, 2004).

Upon calculating my results following the assessment, my average score came out to be 3.77, which puts me within the majority of subjects who scored relatively near the midpoint. According to the assessment, I tend to be more of a Satisficer than a maximizer, as my decisions aren’t always made based upon comparison of what could or should have been. That said, I scored sufficiently high in the assessment to where it could not be said that standards do not come into play for the choices I make.

The author has created a relatively sound study of human interactions with an ever increasingly complex lifestyle. Where American citizens may not have had many choices considering where there food came from, the types of clothes they wore or the type of social media they chose to engage in, this explosion of choice over the past half-century has created a depressing situation for the third of individuals who score above the midpoint on the Maximization Scale. In fact, the third of individuals who scored above the midpoint on the Maximization scale correlate statistically with a study cited in the article, where nearly 14 million Americans profess to being less than happy with their lives (Schwartz, 2004). While it is not in the authors (or my own) interest to limit choices for a free society, it should be noted that the link between Maximizers, depression and an increased number of choices for individuals has not been cited as the primary reason for the collectively failing mental health of United States citizens. Despite the lack of evidence indicating the increase in choices as a primary suspect of such mental health issues, it does not discount the idea that providing people with the means to effectively make choices in every-day life could be an incredibly important link in the fight to create a happier and more well-adjusted society.

With the advent of more and newer technologies, new ways to manufacture, distribute and obtain products and the consistent 24 hour bombardment of commercialization, the problems of too much choice may very well become more and more difficult for the average American. Unless the steps proposed by the author are taken to allow those who suffer as Maximizers to navigate this growing sea of options, we may see even higher levels of depression and clinical psychological disorders in the future.

Reference

Schwartz, B. (n.d.). The tyranny of choice. Swarthmore College. Retrieved from http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/bschwaar1/Sci.Amer.pdf