people are so afraid of going without a needed item, they buy all they are able, thus furthering the actual scarcity of the item. Impulse buying Impulse buying can also be a side effect of perceived scarcity. When people are faced with the possibility of having to go without an item, they often times will buy it, with no regard to whether or not it is actually needed. This, similarly to hoarding, often stems from a sense of urgency that develops when an item is perceived to be scarce. Heuristics Heuristics are basically mental shortcuts to be able to make judgement calls quickly. We use heuristics to speed up our decision-making process when an exhaustive, deliberative process is perceived to be impractical or unnecessary. Thus heuristics are simple, efficient rules, which have developed through either evolutionary proclivities or past learning. While these “rules” work well in most circumstances, there are certain situations where they can lead to systemic errors or cognitive bias. According to Robert Cialdini, the scarcity heuristic leads us to make biased decisions on a daily basis. It is particularly common to be biased by the scarcity heuristic when assessing quantity, rarity, and time. Quantity The simplest manifestation of the scarcity heuristic is the fear of losing access to some resource resulting from the possession of a small or diminishing quantity of the asset. For example, your favorite shirt becomes more valuable when you know you cannot replace it. If you had ten shirts of the same style and color, losing one would likely be less distressful because you have several others to take its place. Rarity Objects can increase in value if they have unique properties, or are exceptionally difficult to replicate. Collectors of rare baseball cards or stamps are simple examples of the principle of rarity. Time When faced with a short amount of time, the decision may be rushed and made in haste, leaving room for error in decision making. Studies Numerous studies have been conducted on the topic of scarcity in social psychology: Scarcity rhetoric in a job advertisement for restaurant server positions has been investigated. Subjects were presented with two help-wanted ads, one of which suggested numerous job vacancies, while the other suggested that very few were available. The study found that subjects who were presented with the advertisement that suggested limited positions available viewed the company as being a better one to