Collecting information: Optimizing outcomes, screening options, or facilitating discrimination?

Collect ion of information prior to a decision may be integrated into a com pensatory choice process; if it is, the information packet that is collecte d should be the one that produces the highest net gain. Alter natively, inf ormation may be collected in order to screen out options that fail to meet minimum standards; if this is the case, people should not choose options on which they have not collected available information. We tested these and o ther predictions from the two approaches in four experiments. Participants were given specific information about three attributes of each choice optio n but only probabilistic information about a fourth one. They rated attract iveness of options, decided whether to collect specific information about t he fourth attribute of each one, rated options again, and then selected one of them. Data were consistent with neither of the above approaches. Instea d they suggested that people collect information in order to facilitate the ir ability to discriminate between the attractiveness of options.