Is one health product choice enough to maintain good health? The role of choice sets as a driver of consumer sequential health choices

Purpose This study aims to investigate how choice sets influence consumers' sequential health product choices. We examined how their composition (homogeneous vs mixed) affected consumers' perception of hedonic value in a prior health product and their subsequent health choices, considering consumption timing and consumers' age differences. Design/methodology/approach We used a scenario-based experimental design with two studies. Study 1 (n = 196) examined whether choice set type (mixed vs homogeneous) affected perceived hedonic value and subsequent choices. Study 2 (n = 431) replicated Study 1 and added consumption timing (same vs different) as a factor, using a 2 × 2 between-subjects design with mediation analysis. Findings Health products chosen from a mixed choice set were perceived as lower hedonic than those from a homogeneous set, decreasing preference for health products in subsequent choice situations when consumption timing was the same. However, with different consumption timing, mixed choice sets better promote sequential health choices. These effects were stronger among younger consumers (aged 20–43 years). Originality/value The originality lies in identifying choice sets as marketing interventions that influence sequential health choices. Previous research focused on one-shot decisions; this study uniquely reveals how choice set composition in prior health choice situations affects perceived hedonic value and subsequent health choices, bridging marketing with sequential choice psychology.