The impact of choice overload on confidence, satisfaction, and brand loyalty in the skincare industry

Abstract

This thesis explores choice overload in the skincare industry, a context with no prior research, and how it influences consumer processes such as satisfaction, decision confidence, and brand loyalty. Additionally, it investigates whether satisfaction mediates the relationship between choice overload and brand loyalty and whether self-confidence moderates the relationship between choice overload and decision confidence. Using a between-subjects design, the study gathers data from consumers to evaluate their responses to varying choice set sizes. Findings confirm that larger choice sets decrease ease of choice and increase response times, consistent with choice overload literature. Choice overload reduces satisfaction, but satisfaction does not mediate the relationship with brand loyalty. Decision confidence is only partially affected by choice overload, with mixed results across dimensions. Self-confidence positively influences satisfaction but does not significantly moderate the effects of choice overload on decision confidence or brand loyalty. These findings contribute to the literature by clarifying the effects of choice overload in the skincare market. They emphasize the impact on satisfaction and decision-making difficulty, while no significant relationship with brand loyalty was observed. Further research is encouraged to explore additional factors that may influence brand loyalty and examine the effects of choice overload in this context.

Date of Award	6 Feb 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Cristina Mendonça (Supervisor)