105 5. CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 5.1. Conclusion This study analyzes the factors contributing to consumer confusion in the online commerce of Indonesia's cosmetics and personal care industry. It specifically examines how informational sources of confusion—overload, similarity, and ambiguity—along with individual decision-making styles (hedonic and utilitarian), contribute to overall consumer confusion. Additionally, the research explores the impact of these informational sources of confusion on the outcomes of confusion: decision quality, decision postponement, and cognitive dissonance. Finally, the study analyzes the mediating role of previous brand experience on the relationship between the informational sources of confusion and decision quality. RQ1: What is the impact of informational sources, specifically overload, similarity, and ambiguity confusion, on overall consumer confusion. The study confirms that informational sources, specifically overload, similarity, and ambiguity confusion, significantly contribute to overall consumer confusion in Indonesia's online cosmetics and personal care industry. Overload confusion, driven by excessive information and options, creates significant confusion as consumers grapple with contradictory reviews and promotional messages. Similarity confusion, stemming from indistinguishable brand names, packaging, and claims, further exacerbates confusion, making it challenging for consumers to differentiate between products. Ambiguity confusion, fueled by conflicting information and deceptive claims, adds to the complexity, leaving consumers uncertain about product benefits and ingredient functionalities. RQ2: What are the differences in the impact of individual decision-making styles on overall consumer confusion. The research also establishes that individual decision-making styles, specifically utilitarian and hedonic, significantly influence consumer confusion levels. Utilitarian decision-makers, who adopt a thorough and perfectionistic approach, experience 106 higher confusion due to cognitive overload from extensive research and price comparisons. In contrast, hedonic decision-makers, driven by trends and emotional satisfaction, encounter less intense confusion, as their decision-making process is more spontaneous and focused on enjoyment rather than optimization. RQ3: What role does previous brand experience play in mediating the relationship between informational sources of consumer confusion and decision quality. Previous brand experience plays a crucial mediating role in the relationship between informational sources of consumer confusion and decision quality. For overload confusion, previous brand experience offers a competitive mediation effect, partially offsetting the negative impact of overload on decision quality. In the case of similarity confusion, previous brand experience provides complementary mediation, enhancing decision quality by offering familiarity amidst similar product choices. For ambiguity confusion, previous brand experience again provides a competitive mediation effect, mitigating the negative impact on decision quality. These findings underscore the importance of brand familiarity in enhancing consumer decision confidence and quality despite confusion. RQ4: What is the impact of informational sources of consumer confusion on consumer decision outcomes, specifically decision quality, decision postponement, and cognitive dissonance. Consumer confusion, driven by overload, similarity, and ambiguity, negatively impacts decision quality, leading to dissatisfaction and reduced confidence in purchase decisions. Overload and ambiguity confusion significantly decrease decision quality, while similarity confusion, unexpectedly, improves decision quality by prompting more deliberate decision-making processes. Additionally, all forms of confusion significantly contribute to decision postponement, as consumers delay purchases seeking more clarity and confidence. Overwhelmed by options, similar alternatives, and ambiguous information, consumers tend to postpone their decisions to avoid making unsatisfactory choices. 107 Lastly, confusion significantly contributes to cognitive dissonance, manifesting as post-purchase regret and dissatisfaction. Overload, similarity, and ambiguity confusion lead to a mismatch between expectations and reality, amplifying post- purchase regret and dissatisfaction as consumers reassess their decisions in light of new information. 5.2. Theoretical Implications The study validates and extends the conceptual framework proposed by Chauhan and Sagar (2021), which identified sources and outcomes of consumer confusion. By empirically testing the relationships between informational sources of confusion— overload, similarity, and ambiguity—and consumer outcomes—decision quality, decision postponement, and cognitive dissonance—this research provides strong evidence that supports the theoretical propositions made by earlier studies. Addressing gaps in the literature, the study empirically examines the impact of consumer confusion on decision quality and cognitive dissonance, which prior studies had only proposed (Schweizer et al., 2006; Wang & Shukla, 2013). The findings indicate that overload and ambiguity confusion negatively affect decision quality, whereas similarity confusion has a positive impact. These findings contradict the traditional proposition that all forms of confusion negatively affect decision quality, suggesting a more refined perspective where similarity confusion might, in certain contexts, lead to more deliberate and informed decision-making. Previous research suggests that confusion generally lowers decision quality (Marsden et al., 2006), while experience with a brand can reduce confusion (Mitchell, 2005; Foxman, 1992) thereby improving decision making. This study then provides empirical evidence on how brand experience specifically mediates these relationships. It shows that previous brand experience can lessen the negative impacts of overload and ambiguity confusion on decision quality. This highlights how brand familiarity plays a crucial role in consumer decision-making, offering insights into managing consumer confusion effectively through brand experience. 108 Additionally, this study explores the differential effects of utilitarian and hedonic decision-making styles on consumer confusion. Previous research by Coothoopermal and Chitoo (2017) found differences in how these styles influence the level of confusion, but no further exploration was provided to explain these distinctions. This study's finding that utilitarian decision-making style has a stronger impact on confusion than hedonic style provides a deeper understanding of how individual differences in decision-making styles influence consumer behavior. 5.3. Managerial Implications The findings of this study are applicable to cosmetics and personal care brands across various product categories, providing valuable insights for companies in the online cosmetics and personal care industry in Indonesia to develop their marketing strategies. The following managerial implications are based on a comprehensive analysis combining quantitative, qualitative, and descriptive findings. To address overload confusion, managers should focus on simplifying the consumer's decision-making process. Based on the descriptive analysis, overload confusion has the highest mean value among types of confusion, suggesting that respondents often face difficulties in selecting a specific cosmetic or personal care brand due to the numerous options available. One practical approach is to implement advanced filtering and sorting options on digital commerce platforms. By allowing consumers to narrow down choices based on specific criteria such as skin type, ingredients, price range, and brand, companies can help reduce the overwhelming number of options. Additionally, curating personalization for product recommendations using machine learning algorithms can tailor suggestions based on purchase history, browsing behavior, and preferences. This can streamline the shopping experience and make it more manageable for consumers.