On the practical relevance of the attraction effect: A cautionary note and guidelines for context effect experiments

Abstract

While the attraction effect has received considerable attention in consumer research, recent research concludes that the effect is restricted to artificial choice settings, which questions its relevance for marketing practice. This paper takes a broader perspective on the issue of the generalizability of research results and introduces a set of background factors, which, if neglected, have adverse consequences for such generalizability. The results of our extensive review of the literature on this topic, published during the last four decades in the top 30 marketing journals, show that context effect studies have routinely neglected these background factors. In light of our results, we propose guidelines for implementing context effect experiments in future consumer research. These guidelines allow for a more realistic analysis of the attraction effect and related context effects in consumer research.