Heuristic-systematic Model Research Articles

Creepy, but Persuasive: In a Virtual Consultation, Physician Bedside Manner, Rather than the Uncanny Valley, Predicts Adherence

Care for chronic disease requires patient adherence to treatment advice. Nonadherence worsens health outcomes and increases healthcare costs. When healthcare professionals are in short supply, a virtual physician could serve as a persuasive technology to promote adherence. However, acceptance of advice may be hampered by the uncanny valley effect—a feeling of eeriness elicited by human simulations. In a hypothetical virtual doctor consultation, 441 participants assumed the patient’s role. Variables from the stereotype content model and the heuristic–systematic model were used to predict adherence intention and behavior change. This 2 × 5 between-groups experiment manipulated the doctor’s bedside manner—either good or poor—and virtual depiction at five levels of realism. These independent variables were designed to manipulate the doctor’s level of warmth and eeriness. In hypothesis testing, depiction had a nonsignificant effect on adherence intention and diet and exercise change, even though the 3-D computer-animated versions of the doctor (i.e., animation, swapped, and bigeye) were perceived as eerier than the others (i.e., real and cartoon). The low-warmth, high-eeriness doctor prompted heuristic processing of information, while the high-warmth doctor prompted systematic processing. This pattern contradicts evidence reported in the persuasion literature. For the stereotype content model, a path analysis found that good bedside manner increased the doctor’s perceived warmth significantly, which indirectly increased physical activity. For the heuristic–systematic model, the doctor’s eeriness, measured in a pretest, had no significant effect on adherence intention and physical activity, while good bedside manner increased both significantly. Surprisingly, cognitive perspective-taking was a stronger predictor of change in physical activity than adherence intention. Although virtual characters can elicit the uncanny valley effect, their effect on adherence intention and physical activity was comparable to a video of a real person. This finding supports the development of virtual consultations.

Judging fast and slow: The truth effect does not increase under time-pressure conditions

AbstractDue to the information overload in today’s digital age, people may sometimes feel pressured to process and judge information especially fast. In three experiments, we examined whether time pressure increases the repetition-based truth effect — the tendency to judge repeatedly encountered statements more likely as “true” than novel statements. Based on the Heuristic-Systematic Model, a dual-process model in the field of persuasion research, we expected that time pressure would boost the truth effect by increasing reliance on processing fluency as a presumably heuristic cue for truth, and by decreasing knowledge retrieval as a presumably slow and systematic process that determines truth judgments. However, contrary to our expectation, time pressure did not moderate the truth effect. Importantly, this was the case for difficult statements, for which most people lack prior knowledge, as well as for easy statements, for which most people hold relevant knowledge. Overall, the findings clearly speak against the conception of fast, fluency-based truth judgments versus slow, knowledge-based truth judgments. In contrast, the results are compatible with a referential theory of the truth effect that does not distinguish between different types of truth judgments. Instead, it assumes that truth judgments rely on the coherence of localized networks in people’s semantic memory, formed by both repetition and prior knowledge.

Effects of Affect: How Mood and Arousal Influence Consumer Evaluation of Search Engine Result Page (SERP) Ad Snippets

An experiment was conducted with the goal of determining how mood and arousal influence the way consumers process ad information in a search engine result page (SERP) environment. By focusing on the relationships among mood, arousal, and search ad snippet length, the study shows that mood and arousal states influence information processing (heuristic vs. systematic) on search pages both independently and jointly. Using the heuristic-systematic model, the present research explains how information processing modes triggered by mood and amplified by arousal shape the processing and evaluations of search ads with different snippet lengths. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Listing popularity on the peer-to-peer accommodation platform: the heuristic-systematic and uncertainty reduction perspectives

PurposeListing popularity indicates the public’s interest in a listing on peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation platforms. Although listing popularity is crucial to the survival and development of the P2P accommodation platform, this issue has received limited attention in the tourism management discipline. Drawing upon the heuristic-systematic model and uncertainty reduction theory, this study aims to examine the impacts of host and property attributes on listing popularity.Design/methodology/approachThe model was empirically validated using a data set of 6,828 listings on a popular P2P accommodation platform called Airbnb. This study chooses a hierarchical regression analysis to perform the model validation.FindingsThe findings reveal that host self-disclosure, host reputation and host identity verification are key host attributes in promoting listing popularity. Meanwhile, property visual description, property photo verification and property visual appeal are important property attributes in facilitating listing popularity.Research limitations/implicationsThe study adds useful insights on understanding on determinants of listing popularity. Future researchers are recommended to empirically verify the underlying psychological mechanism by which host attributes and property attributes influence listing popularity.Practical implicationsThe P2P accommodation platform should promote the listing popularity by taking advantage of the host attributes and providing property attributes.Originality/valueFirst, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is one of the few studies to explore the formation of the listing popularity. Second, this study examines how the host and property attributes promote the listing popularity through the heuristic and systematic information processing modes.

The effects of ad heuristic and systematic cues on consumer brand awareness and purchase intention: Investigating the bias effect of heuristic information processing

With growing numbers of digital users, social media advertising becomes a vital marketing channel for attracting and sustaining consumers. Drawing on the heuristic-systematic model, this research investigates the effects of advertisement systematic cues including ad informativeness and ad persuasiveness, and ad heuristic cue which is ad poster category on the consumer brand awareness, and the sequential effect on consumer purchase intention. An experimental design featuring two categories of ad poster, namely, firm and influencer, is created for empirical evidence collection. Results show that ad informativeness and ad persuasiveness contribute to greater consumer brand awareness and purchase intention. The poster category can positively bias the influence of ad informativeness, and firm poster outperforms the influencer poster when controlling the advertisement content the same. The findings demonstrate the co-occurrence of heuristic and systematic information processing in the social media advertising context. This research deepens current understanding of social media advertising and provides practical implications for marketers to capitalize on different ad posters according to advertisement informativeness and persuasiveness feature.

A Study on the Perceived Value of Video Conferencing Platform: Focused on Heuristic-Systematic Model and Value-based Adoption Model

Purpose - Due to the Covic-19 pandemic, the perceived value of video conferencing platforms has been increased drastically. However, there is little guidance on how service providers can improve video conferencing platforms. The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors that influence the users’ perceived value of video conferencing services based on the heuristic-systematic model and the value-based adoption model. Design/Methodology/Approach - In this paper, we theoretically explore the relationship of the antecedents of perceived value(credibility, expertise, attractiveness, economic feasibility, security, and interactivity) and its outcomes (perceived usefulness, perceived risk and perceived value). The outcomes of this research is a conceptualization of antecedents of perceived value supported by research hypothesis based on the existing literature. A total of 100 valid questionnaires were collected to empirically test the research model. Findings - The analysis results showed that credibility, economic feasibility, and interactivity positively influenced perceived usefulness. On the other hand, credibility, professionalism and interactivity negatively influenced perceived risk. Perceived usefulness positively affects perceived value and perceived risk has a negative effect on perceived value. The brand image as a moderating variable was found to decrease the effect of perceived risk on perceived value. Research Implications - The contribution of this study is significant for video conferencing providers as follows. First, a service provider can actively utilize influencers or referees with high credibility and expertise to maximize the perceived usefulness of users. Second, economic feasibility should be ensured in respect of users through various alliance discount strategies. Third, a video conferencing service company needs to build a positive brand image in order to increase users’ perceived value.

How source-level and message-level factors influence journalists’ social media visibility during a public health crisis

Social media has become a channel through which journalists distribute their work, reach audiences and gain visibility. Informed by the frameworks of journalistic branding, the heuristic-systematic model, and hypertextual elements, the present study examines the extent to which the source factor (journalists’ branding on social media profiles) and message factors (communication styles and hypertextual elements) influence visibility (i.e. the popularity of the account and the number of favourites and retweets of the posts). We analysed the Twitter profiles of 98 health journalists from seven major media organizations in the US and conducted a manual content analysis of a representative sample of their public tweets (n = 3982) published during the Covid-19 pandemic. In contrast to expectations, branding contributed little to any indicators of visibility, and profiles with institutional branding had fewer followers. Both affective messages and rational messages received more likes and retweets than messages without these elements. Tweets containing images or news-related hyperlinks received more retweets, whereas the number of @mentions in a tweet was negatively related to visibility. Journalists from traditional media, those who tweeted more often, and those with more followers had higher levels of visibility.

Towards a Sustainable News Business: Understanding Readers’ Perceptions of Algorithm-Generated News Based on Cultural Conditioning

The use of algorithms is beginning to replace human activities in the news business, and the presence of this technique will only continue to grow. The ways in which public news readers perceive the quality of news articles written by algorithms and how this perception differs based on cultural conditioning remain issues of debate. Informed by the heuristic-systematic model (HSM) and the similarity-attraction theory, we attempted to answer these questions by conducting a three-way one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test with a 2 (author: algorithm vs. human journalist) × 2 (media: traditional media vs. online media) × 2 (cultural background: the US vs. South Korea) between-subjects experiment (N = 360). Our findings revealed that participants perceived the quality of news articles written by algorithms to be higher than those written by human journalists. We also found that when news consumption occurs online, algorithm-generated news tends to be rated higher than human-written news in terms of quality perception. Further, we identified a three-way interaction effect of media types, authors, and cultural backgrounds on the quality perception of news articles. As, to the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to theoretically examine how news readers perceive algorithm-generated news from a cultural point of view, our research findings may hold important theoretical and practical implications.

A Causal Configuration Analysis of Payment Decision Drivers in Paid Q&A

Abstract Purpose This paper examines factors of payment decision as well as the role each factor plays in casual configurations leading to high payment intention under systematic and heuristic information processing routes. Design/methodology/approach Based on heuristic-systematic model (HSM), we propose a configurational analytic framework to investigate complex casual relationships between influencing factors and payment decision. In line with this approach, we use fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to analyze data crawled from Zhihu.com. Findings The number of previous consultations is a necessary element in all five equivalent configurations which lead to high intention in payment decision. The heuristic processing route plays a core role while the systematic processing route plays a peripheral role in payment decision-making process. Research limitations Research is limited in that moderating effect of professional fields has not been considered in the framework. Practical implications Configurations in results can assist managers of knowledge communities and paid Q&A service providers in the management of information elements to motivate more payment decision. Originality/value This paper is one of the few studies to apply HSM theory and fsQCA method with respect to the payment decision in paid Q&A.

What you expect is (not) what you get: the impact of initial and post-hoc judgments of message characteristics on political information recall

ABSTRACT How does a political text’s complexity – as a crucial characteristic of a text – uniquely affect readers’ political information processing? Based on a metacognitive response framework and extant discussions based on the Heuristic-Systematic Model vs. the Elaboration Likelihood Model, we tested whether a reader’s initial expectation of a message characteristic and stable individual differences intersect with the metacognitive processing fluency experience. Do people recall more information from the news when presented with articles that are more – or less – complex than they expected, or do they recall more information when expectations of article complexity are met? And for whom is this more likely to occur? Our results provide strong support for the notion that objective complexity is indeed the main driver of metacognitive perceptual processing fluency and information recall, while also rending partial support for the role of (in)congruency in this process. The results also showed that individual differences in processing capabilities play a significant role in shaping information recall. We conclude by discussing the theoretical and practical implications.

When E-Commerce Personalization Systems Show and Tell: Investigating the Relative Persuasive Appeal of Content-Based versus Collaborative Filtering

In the e-commerce context, are we persuaded more by a product recommendation that matches our preferences (content filtering) or by one that is endorsed by others like us (collaborative filtering)? We addressed this question by conceptualizing these two filtering types as cues that trigger cognitive heuristics (mental shortcuts), following the heuristic-systematic model in social psychology. In addition, we investigated whether the degree to which the recommendation matches user preferences (or other users’ endorsements) provides an argument for systematic processing, especially for those who need deeper insights into the accuracy of the algorithm, particularly in product categories where quality is subjective. Data from a 2 (algorithm type: content vs. collaborative filtering) x 3 (percentage match: low vs. medium vs. high) x 2 (product category: search vs. experience) + 2 (control: search and experience) between-subjects experiment (N = 469) reveal that for experience products, consumers prefer content-based filtering with higher percentage matches, because it is perceived as offering more transparency. This is especially true for individuals with high need for cognition. For search products, however, collaborative filtering leads to more positive evaluations by triggering the “bandwagon effect.” These findings have implications for theory pertaining to the use of artificial intelligence in strategic communications and design of algorithms for e-commerce recommender systems.

Thought favorability: mediating role in fit and brand advocacy

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of game-product fit on brand advocacy and mediating role of thought favorability in fit and brand advocacy relationship in the context of in-game advertising (IGA) using congruity theory and heuristic systematic model. This expounds the conditions under which in-game brand placements form favorable or unfavorable thoughts about the game and the advertised brand, and following brand advocacy.Design/methodology/approachA total of 144 student-gamers participated in the study. One-way ANOVA and a path analysis were used for hypotheses testing.FindingsResults showed that the high-fit game resulted in higher thought favorability and greater levels of brand advocacy than the low-fit game. Furthermore, results also revealed that thought favorability mediated the relationship of game-product fit and brand advocacy among players.Research limitations/implicationsResearch on IGA is still in its relative infancy, and how gamers respond to brand placements in games has yet to be fully established. This paper’s theoretical implications are primarily in the context of in-game advertising and explain the role played by game-product fit as an originator to thought favorability that further adds value to thought favorability and brand advocacy relationship.Practical implicationsThe study offers important implications for marketers, advertisers, policy-makers in terms of effective game-designing and IGA execution.OriginalitySince very little research has been done focusing on mediating role of thought favorability in game-product fit and brand advocacy relationship in the context of IGA from attention and elaboration perspectives, this paper scores as a pioneering study of its kind in India.

Biased by being there: The persuasive impact of spatial presence on cognitive processing

Immersive media forms such as virtual reality simulations are considered suitable vehicles for persuasive communication because they enhance the perception of spatial presence and non-mediation. Although the persuasive impact of spatial presence has been confirmed multiple times and immersive media have entered the mainstream market, its influence on individuals’ cognitive processing has not yet been analyzed empirically. An experimental study was conducted with a 2 × 2 between-subjects design (N = 129) and varying levels of spatial presence. The quality of persuasive arguments was manipulated to detect the dominant processing mode. In line with the bias hypothesis of the heuristic–systematic model of information processing, the results indicated that individuals who experienced high levels of spatial presence evaluated the content more positively because they used heuristic processing. The positive evaluation consequently led to biased systematic processing, resulting in persuasive effects, even when the arguments were weak. The implications of the results are discussed.

How highly creative product descriptions lead to attitude change: a dual-process model

ABSTRACT This study employs a heuristic-systematic model to examine the internal mechanisms responsible for the persuasiveness of text descriptions that are high (vs. low) in creativity, and their effect on consumers’ attitudes toward products. It also examines the moderating role of trust cues. We theorised and demonstrated via three between-subjects design experiments that text descriptions high in creativity can be perceived as providing a heuristic signal of style and systematic information regarding their content. Furthermore, perceived effort and perceived message strength mediated the persuasiveness of text descriptions high in creativity in parallel, as measured by consumers’ attitudes. Moreover, the positive valence of the mediating role depended on trust cues. The present study reveals a novel dual-process model of the persuasiveness of text descriptions high (vs. low) in creativity and identifies the boundary condition. The implications of these findings for consumer decision-making and firms seeking to manage online product presentation are discussed.

A Multiple-Motive Heuristic-Systematic Model for Examining How Users Process Android Data and Service Access Notifications

Android access notifications are presented to users to obtain permission to access data and services on smartphones. The number of 'unsafe' apps in the Android marketplaces underscores the importance of understanding what factors influence whether users engage in more effortful systematic processing of access notifications. We propose a multiple-motive heuristic-systematic model to examine how different motives impact users' processing modes. We find that the need to be accurate in making decisions (accuracy), the desire to defend preferred positions (defense), and social pressure from others (impression) influence how users process Android access notifications, and they do so in different ways.

How primary and supplementary reviews affect consumer decision making? Roles of psychological and managerial mechanisms

There exists evidence that online reviews in general and primary (or initial) reviews, in particular, are manipulated and biased by the sellers to increase their reputation. And, primary reviews may provide little information on consumers’ experience of the products since most consumers provide them a few days after the purchase. To overcome the present weakness of primary reviews, such leading platforms as Taobao, the largest C2C marketplace globally, introduced a new type of review, i.e., supplementary (or additional) reviews, which consumers usually do not provide until the products are actually experienced. The present research explores how the interplay of primary reviews and supplementary ones influences consumer decision making, and what sellers should do to manage the ensued inconsistency and consistency by proposing an ambivalence–confidence framework based on the heuristic-systematic model. Moreover, it shows that truthfulness of online reviews and seller responses act as additional heuristics, which bias the systematic processing to mitigate the detrimental effects of inconsistent reviews. Accordingly, this research recommends that e-commerce platforms and sellers should facilitate unbiased reputation systems to encourage truthful reviews to mitigate the adverse effects of inconsistent reviews and strengthen the intention to buy in case of consistent reviews.

Does the dispersion of online review ratings affect review helpfulness?

The impact of online consumer reviews on online purchase decisions has increased with the growth of e-commerce. This paper tries to explain how rating dispersion impacts the process of review consumption based on the heuristic systematic model. For this research, 10,198 online consumer reviews for 516 DVD products were collected from Amazon.com using a web data crawler. Our results show that when trusting average ratings (i.e., when rating dispersion is low), the incentive to read individual reviews decreases because of the principle of least effort. In this case, consumers consider average ratings to be representative of collective intelligence, so rating inconsistency negatively impacts review helpfulness. On the other hand, when average ratings are not trusted (i.e., when rating dispersion is high), the incentive to read individual reviews increases because of the principle of sufficiency. When it happens, extreme ratings affects review helpfulness more because extreme opinions are not ambiguous. Our findings provide new perspectives to address the inconsistent findings of the previous studies on rating and review helpfulness, and the practical implications for e-commerce platforms.

Antecedents of Trust and Adoption Intention toward Artificially Intelligent Recommendation Systems in Travel Planning: A Heuristic–Systematic Model

Drawing on the dual process theory, this study investigates the impacts of systematic and heuristic cues on travelers’ cognitive trust, emotional trust, and adoption intention toward artificial intelligence (AI)–based recommendation systems in travel planning. The moderating effect of perceived risk is also examined. Two studies with both scenario-based surveys and lab experiment approaches are conducted. Findings suggest that while travelers utilize both systematic and heuristic cues, effects of systematic cues on adoption as a decision aid is stronger than the effects of heuristic cues. Emotional trust has a stronger impact on intention to adopt as a delegated agent than cognitive trust. Perceived risk moderates the relationships between systematic and heuristic cues, trust, and adoption intentions. When travelers perceive high risk, they rely more on systematic cues through building cognitive trust. However, when the level of perceived risk is low, travelers depend more on heuristic cues through establishing emotional trust.

Heuristic Thinking and Credibility of Organic Advertising Claims: The Role of Knowledge and Motivations

Consumers are often overexposed to sustainability symbols and claims on food product packages and find it difficult to accurately judge their meaning when making purchase decisions. Based on the heuristic-systematic model (HSM), this paper aims to identify cognitive mechanisms to reduce the heuristic credibility of organic advertising claims and to increase the motivation for searching for more reliable information when making product judgements. Particularly, we hypothesize that knowledge and defense and accuracy motivations affect organic claim credibility, which in turn is related to organic product judgement. Data collected from an experimental between-subject study with a sample of 412 Spanish undergraduates was analyzed using partial least squares. The results indicated that claim credibility was directly related to the attribution of organic properties to products, and was affected by defense motivation especially when appropriate knowledge was not available. Improving consumers’ knowledge reduced organic claim credibility and triggered a positive effect of accuracy motivation on credibility. The findings stress the importance of improving the regulation of ambitious advertising claims and developing specific educational campaigns to empower consumers and prevent biased purchase decisions of organic products.

Modeling attitude ambivalence and behavioral outcomes from hotel reviews

PurposeThis study aims to offer a conceptual framework that elaborates on how tourists’ perception of contradictory features in reviews’ factuality and comprehension – within a single hotel review and across multiple hotel reviews – trigger attitude ambivalence and psychological discomfort, which determine their behaviors – choice deferral and hotel booking intentions. It also investigates the moderating role of anticipated conflicting reactions (ACRs) through contradictory features on consumers’ attitude ambivalence.Design/methodology/approachUsing a Chinese setting, researchers collected data from 524 inbound tourists who were the consumers of hotels in Beijing. The study used IBM Amos 23.0 to test measurement and structural models for the proposed relationships. It also used PROCESS macro 3.4 for the moderation analysis.FindingsThe findings reveal a positive association between contradictory features in reviews and the resulting ambivalence that affects consumers’ discomfort and leads to the decision to defer the choice of hotel. Conversely, consumers’ discomfort has a positive impact on the hotel booking intentions. ACRs have positive moderating effects on the associations between contradictory features and consumers’ attitude ambivalence.Originality/valueBy investigating the contradictory features in hotel reviews, this study extends the body of research on dual information processing (i.e. the heuristic–systematic model) and the literature on service management, psychological behaviors, travel intermediaries and hotel firms. Future research directions are recommended for tourism and hospitality researchers.