Voters Can Easily Be Confused If Order On Ballot Is Not Usual
Nov. 10, 2000
University Park, Pa. -- Basic consumer research explains how voters could mark the wrong spots on the ballots, explain marketing professors in Penn State's Smeal College of Business Administration.

"Consumer Information Processing Research on how individuals perceive and understand the world around them points to the overwhelming importance of prior expectations," says Mita Sujan, professor of marketing in Penn State's Smeal College of Business Administration.

In the context of this ballot there were two strong priors that would lead a voter to mark the spot for Buchanan.

"One, we as voters expect that all the check boxes to appear on the RIGHT hand side of the candidates names. And two we expect the candidates to be listed in a certain order: The first check box for the republican and the SECOND for the democratic candidate," says Mita.

"Information processing research has ample evidence to know that individuals are influenced most by their expectations -- even when the data in front of them suggests otherwise. This would explain why some voted for Buchanan while expecting that they were voting for Gore," says Harish Sujan, associate professor of marketing in Penn State's Smeal College of Business Administration.

"Occasionally individuals can correct their priors, but this takes much mental effort and often occurs AFTER the initial behavior has been enacted. This would explain why some voters double punched their ballot cards. In sum, work on consumers' expectations and its role in choice behavior explains why so many voters in West Palm Beach cast their vote incorrectly," says Harish.

Editors: Harish Sujan is at (814) 863-3795 (phone) and Mita Sujanis at or phone: +1 (814) 863-4250. Steve Infanti, Smeal College External Relations' Coordinator, is at 814-863-3798 or