The Effects of Search Interface on Consumer Preferences: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment

While structured search interfaces—such as filters and sorting tools—help consumers reduce search frictions on digital platforms, they also shape how consumers encounter product information during search. This paper studies how search interface design influences revealed preferences and market outcomes. We develop a theoretical framework linking interface design to attribute preferences through salience reallocation and information-based preference updating. The framework generates two predictions that can be formally derived: restricting faceted filters reduces the concentration of attribute importance weights (i.e., preference dispersion) and increases the diversity of products chosen (i.e., choice diversity). We test these predictions using a randomized, incentive-aligned online experiment in which 1,200 participants searched for wireless headphones on a custom-built e-commerce platform. Restricting filters led consumers to explore more broadly and resulted in more evenly distributed attribute importance weights and more diverse, higher-priced product choices. Mediation analysis further suggests that increased exploration was associated with shifts in attribute preferences. Our findings demonstrate that search interface design can construct, rather than merely reveal, consumer preferences.