Product Category Choice Uncertainty Scale

What it measures

A four-item Likert-type scale measuring the degree to which a consumer perceives choosing from a particular product category as difficult due to uncertainty about which option is correct. Originally called 'probability of error' by Habel and Klarmann (2015), the scale captures the subjective risk of making a wrong choice rather than perceived financial or social risk. It was used in a large cross-category survey (n = 1,522 U.S. adults randomly assigned to one of 29 product categories) as a product-category moderator of the downsizing–satisfaction relationship. Items were adapted from the Risk Probability subscale of Laurent and Kapferer's (1985) Consumer Involvement Profile. Construct reliability = .93 and AVE = .77 indicate strong psychometric quality, with reliability reported across all 29 product categories.

Scale items

• I always feel rather unsure about what _____ to pick.
• When you choose _____, you can never be quite sure it was the right choice or not.
• Choosing _____ is rather difficult.
• When you choose _____, you can never be quite certain about your choice.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

The blank in each item should be filled with the name of the focal product category (e.g., 'mobile phones', 'cars', 'TVs'). The response anchors were 'fully disagree' and 'fully agree' on a 7-point scale. Habel and Klarmann (2015) did not discuss the scale's validity beyond reporting AVE = .77. The scale taps perceived choice difficulty and outcome uncertainty rather than the full risk construct from the Consumer Involvement Profile; researchers requiring the broader CIP risk dimensions (including importance of risk and sign value of the product) should use the full Consumer Involvement Profile (id:520). Distinguish from other CIP-derived Habel & Klarmann scales (see also Involvement with Product Category — Pleasure, id:626) which come from the same survey.

Citation

Habel, J., & Klarmann, M. (2015). Customer reactions to downsizing: When and how is satisfaction affected? Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(6), 768–789.