William A. Shryer, scientific advertising, habits and motivation research

Abstract

PurposeThis paper examines a neglected stream of literature in marketing theory which engaged with the idea that there was more to consumer behavior than conscious and rational thought.Design/methodology/approachThis is a close reading of the core themes that appear in William A. Shryer’s work. Linkages are made to other pertinent sources.FindingsWe extend McMahon’s (1972) study and offer a different reading of Shryer’s writing to that proffered in recent commentary by Tadajewski (2019), focusing on the managerial side of Shryer’s publications, connecting this to the theoretically innovative foundations based on normal and abnormal psychology. We respond to the suggestion proposed by McMahon (1972) that Shryer was an early pioneer of motivation research, largely in the affirmative.Originality/valueWe provide an alternative interpretation of Shryer’s writing, connecting this to an emergent “advertising science” and subsequently to contemporary strands of literature that have a “family resemblance” to his contributions. These include salient aspects of motivation research; crowd and habitual behavior; mindlessness and social cognition; and finally, empirical examinations of cumulative value theory.