Accessibility and the role of the consideration set in spatial choice modelling: A simulation study

A recurring issue in the discourse about choice modelling is the role of consideration sets. Many scholars have proposed that consumers will follow a two-stage decision process. Others however have argued consideration set membership merely reflects utility and provides little additional information relative to observed choices. This paper argues that the role of the consideration set depends on the decision maker s access to the alternatives. It is proposed that in conditions where the decision maker s accessibility toward alternatives is constrained - for example as a result of time space feasibility - two stage model will have a better fit. The more restrictive the constraints, the more important the role of the consideration set. The paper presents a simulation analysis of the effects of geographical accessibility on consideration and choice in the context of motorists decisions where to refuel. It simulates a grid road network where the motorist s access to petrol stations is constrained by the geographical location of the alternatives, the availability of network connections between them and the decision maker s time budget. In this hypothetical spatial environment the study simulates consideration and choice processes for refuelling options under different conditions of petrol station access, (non-spatial) station attractiveness, and heterogeneity in the decision maker s time budget.