Looking back: Exploring the psychology of queuing and the effect of the number of people behind
Zhou and Soman examine how consumers feel while waiting in a queue and when they give up after waiting a while. In the first two studies, people with more others behind them reported a more positive state and were less likely to leave the line. The authors attribute this mainly to downward social comparison, in which waiting consumers see those behind them as worse off. They propose that characteristics of the queue, individual tendencies to compare and situations that prompt counterfactual thinking each moderate the effect, and three further studies supported each moderator.
Zhou and Soman examine how consumers feel while waiting in a queue and when they give up after waiting a while. In the first two studies, people with more others behind them reported a more positive state and were less likely to leave the line. The authors attribute this mainly to downward social comparison, in which waiting consumers see those behind them as worse off. They propose that characteristics of the queue, individual tendencies to compare and situations that prompt counterfactual thinking each moderate the effect, and three further studies supported each moderator.
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Zhou, R., & Soman, D. (2003). Looking back: Exploring the psychology of queuing and the effect of the number of people behind. Journal of Consumer Research, 29(4), 517-530. doi:10.1086/346247