Sunk Cost Fallacy in Blind Box Consumption Among High School Students

Abstract

Blind box consumption attracts young consumers with its novelty and mystery, and high school students are essential consumers in the blind box economy. With the increasing popularity of blind boxes among senior high school students, a rising number of high school students consume irrationally, and the sunk cost fallacy influences consumers’ decisions. The research entails a laboratory experiment, exploring the existence and extent of sunk cost fallacy in blind box purchase behavior of senior high school students in China, and uses SPSS to analyze data. Research results have shown that the majority of high school students are affected by sunk cost fallacy in blind box consumption. They are more heavily influenced by this heuristic bias when the sunk costs are high. Also, females are more likely to be affected by this bias than male students, as they consider more about the money and time they already spent.