The Confirmation Nudge: Prompts to Change or Confirm Initial Preferences Steer Consumer Choice

Abstract Across two field experiments and several pre-registered laboratory experiments, we demonstrate that confirmation nudges, which ask consumers whether they would like to confirm or change their initial choice, impact choice. First, consumers navigating a subscription company’s smartphone app were randomized to a control or confirmation nudge condition, which asked them to either confirm their initial choice or switch to an annual subscription. Confirmation nudges increased subscribers’ choice of the annual subscription by over 8 percentage points–an effect size similar to default effects tested by the same company. In Experiment 2, conducted by a jewelry retailer, confirmation nudges had countervailing effects, increasing purchases of a nudged service plan add-on, but decreasing originally-planned jewelry purchases likely because it added a step and thus frictions to the purchase process. Confirmation nudges had larger effects when nudged options were desirable and among consumers who would benefit from the nudge (Experiments 3-4). But, they were perceived as more manipulative than comparison conditions (Experiment 5). We suggest that confirmation nudges undo tendencies to focus on initially-preferred options, shifting attention towards alternatives relative to control conditions. Consistent with this, confirmation nudges were especially effective when the wording of the confirmation prompt focused on the “switch” option.