Which statement about Hicks Law is accurate?

Which statement about Hicks Law is accurate?

• A. The number of options has no effect on decision time
• B. More options increase decision time
• C. Fewer options decrease decision time
• D. More options decrease decision time

Answer: (B)

Hicks Law describes how decision time grows as the number of possible choices increases. The more options you have to consider, the longer it takes to pick one because your brain processes and compares more alternatives. The relationship is roughly logarithmic, meaning doubling the number of options adds a constant amount of time, not a proportional one. This is why designers try to limit choices or organize them to reduce cognitive load. That makes the accurate statement: more options increase decision time. The other options contradict the law or miss its main point—the idea that increasing options slows you down, not that options have no effect or that more options would speed up the choice.

Hicks Law describes how decision time grows as the number of possible choices increases. The more options you have to consider, the longer it takes to pick one because your brain processes and compares more alternatives. The relationship is roughly logarithmic, meaning doubling the number of options adds a constant amount of time, not a proportional one. This is why designers try to limit choices or organize them to reduce cognitive load.

That makes the accurate statement: more options increase decision time. The other options contradict the law or miss its main point—the idea that increasing options slows you down, not that options have no effect or that more options would speed up the choice.