Hicks law is best described by which principle?

• A. The brain processes multiple pieces of information in parallel rapidly.
• B. A single channel mechanism limits processing, so more information slows decisions.
• C. Feedback allows parallel processing.
• D. Memory trace drives rapid decisions.

Answer: (B)

Hicks law describes how decision time grows as the amount of information to process increases, specifically with the number of choices you have to consider. The idea is that the brain has a limited processing channel for selecting a response, so it can’t handle many options at once and must process them serially. As the number of alternatives rises, the time to decide increases, roughly in proportion to the information content (logarithm of the number of choices). This is why more information slows decisions.

In practical terms, when you’re deciding among more options, your response time lengthens because there’s a single channel of processing during the decision stage.

The other ideas don’t fit Hicks law because they describe parallel processing or different mechanisms that Hicks law specifically does not claim, such as memory traces driving rapid decisions or feedback enabling parallel processing.