Hick's Law
Cognitive Load & Information Processing
Hick's Law
The time it takes to make a decision increases logarithmically with the number of choices available. Named after psychologists William Edmund Hick and Ray Hyman.
Explained
- The time to choose grows as the number of options increases.
- Every added choice imposes a small tax on the decision.
- Long, flat menus overwhelm, while grouped or staged options stay manageable.
- Reducing or sequencing choices speeds people toward a confident pick.
In the wild3 screens
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