When the digital reconfigures rationality: a behavioral perspective on digital consumption decisions

Abstract

Grounded in an interpretivist epistemological stance, this article combines an analytical review of the literature in behavioral economics and cognitive psychology with a quantitative empirical study conducted among 500 consumers aged 18 to 35. It examines how digital environments replace traditional maximizing rationality with a logic of bounded rationality – based on the use of heuristics and the illusion of control – and evaluates the effects of this substitution on consumers' decision-making autonomy and sustainable well-being. The analysis highlights three major findings. Platforms structurally favor the activation of System 1 (intuitive) to the detriment of System 2 (deliberative). The illusion of control constitutes a paradoxical mechanism that fuels impulsivity by reducing cognitive vigilance. Reliance on algorithmic recommendations generates a "paradoxical promise of digital happiness," where immediate gratification comes at the cost of a gradual erosion of autonomy and ephemeral well-being. Based on these findings, the article proposes an integrated model of the digital decision-making process, as well as avenues for rethinking the regulation of choice architectures. It invites platform designers and regulators to design digital devices that preserve autonomy and sustainable well-being, beyond the sole logic of immediate gratification.

JEL Code: D90 ; D11 ; M31 ; O33

Paper Type: Empirical Rsearch