No. 17 Peak-End Rule

People remember the peak moment & the end.

Memory doesn’t average things out. It keeps the peak (the best or worst moment) & the end.

A lovely last step can rescue a so-so trip.

Make the last step the nicest one.

In 1993, Daniel Kahneman & colleagues had people dunk a hand in cold water, twice.

One dunk ran longer but ended a bit warmer. Most chose to repeat the longer one.

Memory kept the peak & the end. The length barely counted.

• Kahneman et al., “When More Pain Is Preferred to Less,” Psychological Science (1993)
• Redelmeier & Kahneman, colonoscopy patients’ memories of pain, Pain (1996)

Save this for the next time someone says the “thanks” screen doesn’t matter.