In 1996, Daniel Kahneman led a team, which conducted a well-known study on patient experiences of uncomfortable colonoscopies.
The team had someone sit next to the patient throughout the whole procedure. They would ask the patient ever 60 seconds to rate their pain on a scale of 1 to 10. From this, the team had a complete pain profile for the whole procedure. They also know how long it lasted. In theory this should have been enough information to determine which patients experienced the most pain throughout the procedure.
But, it turned out not to be so simple. After the procedure had finished, the team asked each patient about their memory of the colonoscopy.
It turned out that the way the patient remembered the experience was dependent on two factors. First, there was the moment that the pain was at it’s highest (the peak) and, second, there was the final level of pain (the end).
So the amount of time it took for the procedure to take place actually had little impact on the memory of the experience.
Then, in a second study, these findings were developed further. Patients were split into two groups. The first underwent a standard colonoscopy. The second underwent a procedure where the scope was left in (without being moved) for an extra three minutes. This meant the second group experienced additional discomfort, but not necessarily more pain. The results uncovered the the patients who had the longer procedure found the experience more positive because the pain at ‘the end’ was less pronounced. On top of this, the patients who had the longer procedure were more likely to return for subsequent treatment.
These findings led Kahneman to conclude that we all have two selves: the Experiencing Self, who lived through the colonoscopy, and the Remembering Self, who is the one who tells the story of the experience.
What defines a customer experience story?
The full story of a customer experience is in flux. It changes. Significant moments and ending shape the way we perceive our experience. Endings are very important. In fact, it’s often the ending that will dominate.
As Kahneman explains, the Remembering Self is actually a storyteller. It is the one who decides what we get to keep from our experiences and the perception we have of them. It’s the person we’re approaching when we ask for feedback after the event has happened. The Remembering Self is the one we talk to when we send out our survey, at the end of the customer journey.
The Experiencing Self lives it’s life continuously as single moments of experience.
For the most part, these single moments are lost forever. They are completely ignored by the Remembering Self. So, as customer experience professionals, we have to ask ourselves: how can we capture the insight that these moments provide?
The closest we can get is by asking for feedback in the moment, at Moments of Truth.
Find out more about how to capture the Voice of the Customer at Moments of Truth in our Infographic:
