When deal depth doesn't matter: How handedness consistency influences consumer response to horizontal versus vertical price comparisons

Abstract

The current research introduces a new moderator to the price comparison literature by considering how the processing of regular and sale price information may be grounded in the degree to which consumers are consistent-handed (CHs) or inconsistent-handed (ICHs) in performing manual tasks. Because vertically presenting regular and sale price information facilitates calculation of savings, vertical price comparisons should be processed more fluently than horizontal comparisons. However, this fluency difference should asymmetrically affect ICHs and CHs. Prior research has indicated that ICHs are more cognitively flexible than CHs. Here, ICHs expressed more favorable purchase intentions with greater deal depth for both vertical and horizontal price comparisons, possibly because their greater cognitive flexibility enabled them to process price comparisons effectively regardless of presentation layout. Conversely, possibly due to lower cognitive flexibility, CHs exhibited purchase intentions that were sensitive to differences in deal depth when presented with more fluent vertical price comparisons, but not less fluent horizontal comparisons. These findings are replicated across two experiments relying on different participant populations.