Consumer Information Processing Research Articles

Effects of Interruptions on Consumer Online Decision Processes

The growth of e‐commerce and its attendant new technology features has increased interactivity in consumer information processing and decision‐making processes. The pull and push of information can be both more personalized and more commonly used. The ease of pushing information may lead to interruptions in consumer information processing that are more pronounced than those experienced in non‐Internet environments. Our study investigated the impact of interruption frequency, timing, and content and the moderating effects of consumer knowledge, control, and goal type on time spent on the decision task as well as satisfaction with the decision process and the choice. Our results show that the right configuration of interruptions may lead to increased online viewing time, whereas ill‐designed interruptions may be detrimental.

What to Say When: Advertising Appeals in Evolving Markets

The authors study how ad cues affect consumer behavior in new versus well-established markets. The authors use theoretical insights from consumer information processing to argue that the same ad cues can have different effects on consumer behavior, depending on whether the market is new or old. The authors then test these hypotheses in the context of a toll-free referral service, using a highly disaggregate econometric model of advertising response. The results indicate that argument-based appeals, expert sources, and negatively framed messages are particularly effective in new markets. Emotion-based appeals and positively framed messages are more effective in older markets than in new markets.

Threats to the External Validity of Brand Extension Research

The findings of prior research suggest that a brand's extendibility is constrained by the degree of perceived fit between the brand and extension product categories. However, there are many examples of brands that have been extended successfully into “perceptually distant” domains. Drawing on theories of consumer information processing and product adoption, the authors identify three background traits of prior work that may help explain the discrepancy between prior research and marketplace observation: (1) limited extension information, (2) failure to account for consumers' new product adoption tendencies (i.e., earlier versus later), and (3) single exposure to proposed extensions. In this study, the authors find that the effects of fit disappear when attribute information is added to extension stimuli and are applicable only for later product adopters. The authors also find that perceived fit increases with greater exposure to an extension. Beyond implications for brand extension research, this study underscores the need to recognize that certain research design factors related to external validity, which are often assumed irrelevant, can alter what is held to be true.

New developments in marketing communications and consumer behavior

In this special issue of the Journal of Business Research, some new developments in marketing communication and consumer behavior will be sketched. The developments pertain to price communication, consumer information processing and attitude change, brand loyalty, memory for radio advertisements with the help of mnemonic devices, and the impact of sales promotion on store choice. The five papers of this special issue were selected from the papers presented at the second International Seminar on Marketing Communications and Consumer Behavior, held at La Londe les Maures, France, June 3–6, 1997.

“What Is It?” Categorization Flexibility and Consumers' Responses to Really New Products

To understand really new products, consumers face the challenge of constructing new knowledge structures rather simply changing existing ones. Recent research in categorization suggests that one strategy for creating representations for these new products is to use information already contained in familiar product categories. While knowledge from multiple existing categories may be relevant, little research has examined how (and if) consumers process information drawn from more than one domain. We use two experiments to demonstrate how consumers use cues from multiple categories to develop expectations about and preferences for new products. Our findings suggest that the first plausible category label provided to the consumer significantly influences their categorizations, expectations, and preferences. Only when advertisers place limits on the type of information to transfer from each existing category can consumers use information from multiple categories effectively.

Benefit and Risk Information in Prescription Drug Advertising

As pharmaceutical companies began to advertise prescription drugs directly to consumers as well as to physicians, understanding the impact of benefit and risk information in drug advertising on physicians and consumers has become more critical. This paper reviews previous empirical studies that examined the content of benefit and risk information in drug advertising and its potential effects on physicians' subsequent prescribing behaviors. It also reviews studies that investigated how consumers process information on a drug's efficacy and side effects. Based on the findings of these studies, implications are discussed for effective marketing information development as well as for government regulation.

Global product stereotypes and heuristic processing: The impact of ambient task complexity

This study examines consumer information processing heuristics in the context of ambient task complexity. Individual consumers are often called upon to make evaluations of product and advertising stimuli while ambient events not directly related to the purchase at hand may enter the evaluative process and influence the way evaluations are made. Subjects facing a more complex task due to ambient events were found to evaluate the target stimulus in a way that was more consistent with category-based rather than piecemeal processing. Additionally, the findings provide considerable evidence for stereotype-driven evaluations and processing of attribute information. The theoretical and practical implications of this research are discussed. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The Impact of Health Claims on Consumer Search and Product Evaluation Outcomes: Results from FDA Experimental Data

The authors report results of a mall-intercept study regarding the effects of health claims on consumer information search and processing behavior. Results suggest that the presence of health and nutrient-content claims on food packages induces respondents to truncate information search to the front panel of packages. Respondents who either truncate information search or view claims provide more positive summary judgments of products and give greater weight to the information mentioned in claims than to the information available in the Nutrition Facts panel. The presence of a claim also is associated with a halo effect (rating the product higher on other health attributes not mentioned in the claim) and, for one of the three products tested, a magic-bullet effect (attributing inappropriate health benefits to the product). The authors discuss the policy implications of these results for Food and Drug Administration health claim regulations.

Sexual Consumption in the Time of AIDS: A Study of Prostitute Patronage in Thailand

On the basis of short-term, qualitative fieldwork, the authors provide a culturally embedded portrait of AIDS knowledge, attitudes, and risk-taking behaviors in prostitute patronage by students and tourists in the most heavily HIV-infected region of Thailand. The authors find that the mix of cultural values, rituals, sex roles, and emotions in this Thai context challenge the underlying assumptions of belief-based Western models of behavior. This may help explain the limited effectiveness of prior research and prevention efforts in stopping the spread of HIV and AIDS. Although the findings are preliminary, they pose provocative challenges to consumer information processing models and existing public policy efforts in this milieu of sex and death.

The Role of Narratives in Consumer Information Processing

Participants estimated the attractiveness of vacations described in 2 travel brochures. The information about 1 vacation was conveyed in a narrative that described the sequence of events that would occur. In contrast, information about the other vacation was conveyed in an ostensibly unorganized list. Vacations were generally evaluated more favorably when they were described in a narrative than when their features were simply listed. Moreover, this difference increased when (a) negative features of the vacations were mentioned, (b) pictures accompanied the text information, or (c) recipients were encouraged to imagine themselves having the experiences described. Although narrative forms of information elicited more extreme affective reactions than list forms, this did not account for the difference in their effectiveness. Rather, the advantage of narratives was attributed to (a) their structural similarity to information acquired through daily life experiences and (b) the use of a holistic—as opposed to a piecemeal—strategy for computing judgments.

An Investigative Model Evaluating How Consumers Process Pictorial Information on Nonprescription Medication Labels

Abstract Currently, marketed over‐the‐counter (OTC) medication labels were simulated and tested in a controlled environment to understand consumer evaluation of OTC label information. Two factors, consumers’ age (younger and older adults) and label designs (picture‐only, verbal‐only, congruent picture‐verbal, and noncongruent picture‐verbal) were controlled and tested to evaluate consumer information processing. The effects exerted by the independent variables, namely, comprehension of label information (understanding) and product evaluations (satisfaction, certainty, and perceived confusion) were evaluated on the dependent variable purchase intention. Intention measured as purchase recommendation was significantly related to product evaluations and affected by the factor label design. Participants’ level of perceived confusion was more important than actual understanding of information on OTC medication labels. A Label Evaluation Process Model was developed which could be used for future testing of OTC medication labels.

An investigative model evaluating how consumers process pictorial information on nonprescription medication labels

Currently, marketed over‐the‐counter (OTC) medication labels were simulated and tested in a controlled environment to understand consumer evaluation of OTC label information. Two factors, consumers’ age (younger and older adults) and label designs (picture‐only, verbal‐only, congruent picture‐verbal, and noncongruent picture‐verbal) were controlled and tested to evaluate consumer information processing. The effects exerted by the independent variables, namely, comprehension of label information (understanding) and product evaluations (satisfaction, certainty, and perceived confusion) were evaluated on the dependent variable purchase intention. Intention measured as purchase recommendation was significantly related to product evaluations and affected by the factor label design. Participants’ level of perceived confusion was more important than actual understanding of information on OTC medication labels. A Label Evaluation Process Model was developed which could be used for future testing of OTC medication labels.

Consumer Eye Movement Patterns on Yellow Pages Advertising

Process tracing data help researchers understand how yellow pages advertisement characteristics influence consumer information processing behavior. In a laboratory experiment eye movement data were collected while consumers chose businesses from telephone directories. Consumers scan listings in alphabetic order. Their scan is not exhaustive. As a result, some ads are never seen. Consumers noticed more than 93% of the quarter-page display ads but only 26% of the plain listings. They perceived color ads before ads without color, noticed more color ads than noncolor ads, and viewed color ads 21% longer than equivalent ads without color. Also, they viewed 42% more bold listings than plain listings. Consumers spent 54% more time viewing ads for businesses they ended up choosing, which demonstrates the importance of attention for subsequent choice behavior.

Consumer Comprehension of Information on Over-the-Counter Medication Labels: Effects of Picture Superiority and Individual Differences Based on Age

Labels containing information from existing over-the-counter (OTC) products were simulated to investigate how pictures can be used effectively to communicate information. Two controlled factors, age (younger and older adults) and label designs (picture-only, verbal-only, congruent picture-verbal, and incongruent picture-verbal), were tested to evaluate consumer information processing. Label designs were crossed with four products (headache, sinus pain relief, menstrual pain relief, and nighttime pain relief) to examine the picture superiority effect. Label designs and consumer's age had significant effects on the processing of information present on OTC medication labels. Older adults had lower scores on all variables than younger adults. Participants were less confused, were more satisfied, were more certain about their knowledge, and had a better understanding of label information when the label designs were congruent picture-verbal and verbal only than when the label designs were picture only and incongruent picture-verbal. Participants' purchase recommendation scores differed significantly across both factors.

An Expanded Model of the Experience/Performance Relationship in Travel Service Selling

Relevant work experience is an important factor in determining the sales performance of travel agents. Unfortunately, some individuals learn more from experience than others. Adapting consumer information processing theory to a personal selling perspective, this study suggests that a major cause of variance in the experience/performance relationship can be explained by the degree to which an agent is motivated to acquire expertise in the form of relevant knowledge and skills. The results show that motivated agents are more likely to acquire greater functional expertise, while relatively unmotivated agents are more likely to acquire greater symbolic expertise. Only functional expertise was shown to be a significant predictor of performance. Managerial implications and directions for future research are presented.

Imagery An alternative approach to the attribute-image paradigm for shopping centres

The concept of cognitive imagery as component of consumer information processing is generally accepted by marketing theorists. In this context, information is treated in a verbal and/or a visual imagery process. But the image of a retail store or a brand image is measured using verbal methods: words on a questionnaire. What then might be said of the effect of visual imagery in recall? Are retail images incomplete structures if they do not reflect the alternative process? Using a random sample of 307 household shoppers in a large suburban market the paper explores the subject in the framework of traditional measurements that are used to identify a retail image against the effect of what is now known as imagery on shopping centres.

Electronic decision aids: Integration of a consumer perspective

Merchants and manufacturers are rapidly adopting electronic decision aids to help sell a variety of merchandise. These systems provide product information or recommendations based on input from the consumer and affect the way consumers process information. A conceptual framework, based on information processing theory and three strategic consumer difference variables — goal orientation, autonomy, and expertise — is presented. Based on these differences, propositions are derived to guide design of effective electronic decision aids.

Informational and motivational influences on consumer evaluations of line and brand extensions

Line and brand extensions have been the basis for strategic growth for many firms during the past decade. This paper examines how consumers react to these strategies. The results of the study reveal that when consumers evaluate a line/brand extension, they engage in one of the three cognitive processes: category-based (or assimilation), contrast, and piecemeal processes. The results also show that these different types of processes are determined by (a) the degree of (in)consistency between the brand information and category expectations and (b) the level of motivation to process the brand information. Implications of the results for consumer information processing as well as for line/brand extension strategies in the marketplace are discussed.

An extension of the congruence hypothesis: The effects of real products, branching format, similarity, and involvement

AbstractThe congruence hypothesis predicts that consumers process information in the form presented. To test this hypothesis, this study examined how consumers adapt their choice processes to choice problems that varied on product class involvement, similarity among alternatives, and information format. To extend previous tests of the congruence hypothesis, the choice stimuli were sets of real, physically present products (instead of verbal descriptions). The stimuli varied on factors other than information format and included a new information format, branching, used by retailers. Thirty‐six female consumers made six choices in a laboratory setting and provided concurrent verbal protocols. Analysis of the protocols supported the congruence hypothesis's predictions for each factor. The results suggest that product class involvement does not affect choice process structure, that similarity encourages attention to similar alternatives, and that information format strongly affects choice processes. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Consumer behavior and nutrition education: An integrative review

This article examines knowledge from consumer behavior theory, research and methods that has contributed to nutrition education for promoting healthful food choices among adult consumers. Three content areas are reviewed: nutrition labeling, consumer shopping behavior, and point of choice nutrition interventions. The research clearly shows that many consumers want nutrition information, but that they often do not employ it because it is hard to use, not readily available, or not perceived as useful or new. Food shoppers have been found to consider nutrition as only one of several factors influencing purchases. Point of choice nutrition interventions in restaurants and supermarkets can be effective when they use highly visible and targeted messages. Consumer Information Processing and Social Learning Theory are helpful frameworks for future research and practice. Also, there is a need for the methods traditionally used in consumer behavior research to be better integrated into community nutrition education studies, in order to achieve and demonstrate the effectiveness of nutrition interventions and their successful application in settings where consumers select food.