- A.The third stage — the consumer applies a decision rule (compensatory or non-compensatory) to rank or filter brands in the consideration set. ✓
- B.Skinner's theory: behavior followed by reward is repeated; behavior followed by punishment is extinguished — used in loyalty, gamification, and pricing.
- C.The second stage — the consumer gathers information from internal memory and external sources to form a consideration set.
- D.The third stage — the consumer applies a decision rule (compensatory or non-compensatory) to rank or filter brands in the consideration set.
Evaluation of Alternatives is the third stage — the consumer applies a decision rule (compensatory or non-compensatory) to rank or filter brands in the consideration set. The other options describe related but distinct concepts in Consumer Behavior — see the deep-dive guide for the full distinction.
How to think about questions like this
The decision rule determines which brand wins, often before price. Questions like this test whether you can distinguish Evaluation of Alternatives from neighboring concepts. The most common trap is choosing a closely-related concept that sounds similar but applies in a different context.
When you see a definition question on an exam, do two things: (1) translate the question into your own words, then (2) generate the answer in your own words before reading the options. This avoids the cognitive bias of recognizing a familiar phrase as correct just because it is familiar.