PSY603 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Descriptive Knowledge, Stereotype, Variety Store
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PSY603 Consumer Behavior
LECTURE 4
Characteristics of message simplicity complexity + Congruity
• Complexity- the more simple a message, more likely a consumer develops meaningful
comprehension
• Message congruity- extent to which a message is internally consistent and fits surrounding
information
• Incongruity motivates deeper processing than when everything is congruent/ the same
• Consumers comprehend and remember more from an add that is presented with
incongruent material surrounding it
Characteristics of message-source:
• Where is the message coming from? Message source
• Likeability- a source you like can change interpretation of stimulus
• Expertise- sources knowledge of the subject.
Sidney Crosby- honkey sticks or financial advice?
• Attractiveness- source affects comprehension of the message
More likely to believe attractive people
Characteristics of message-receiver:
• Intelligence/ ability- intelligent consumers are more likely to comprehend a message as
opposed to less intelligent people
• Knowledge is specific to particular product categories
• Consumer who does not have high IQ may be able to comprehend certain product
information more easily than another consumer with high IQ
• Highly intelligent consumer would still understand a simple message better than complex
• Prior knowledge- brain matches incoming info with pre existing knowledge
• Provides prior resources
• Lack of prior knowledge can create challenges parents/ grandparents asking their children
for help
• Involvement- highly involved consumers will take away different message
• Familiarity/ habituation- consumers like the familiar, however familiarity can lower a
consumers motivation to process a message
• Habituations- decrease in response to a stimulus after repeated presentations
• New sound in environment may get your attention/ become distracting, overtime as you
become accustomed to it, your response to the sound will diminish
• Tune out, non essential stimuli
E.g. in your background and hear a loud sudden noise, you wonder what is making the
noise. Over the next few days, the noise continues at a regular and constant page.
Eventually you tune out the noise. Perfume/ cologne
• Physical limits- physical limitations will alter comprehension
• Brain dominance- hemispheric lateralization
Right brain dominant-visual processors (images for communication)
Left brain dominant- verbal processing (words)
Factors affecting consumer comprehension- Environment:
• Information intensity- amount of info for consumer to process in an environment, when
overloaded, affects comprehension and retention
• Framing- same info can take on different meanings based on the way info is presented
• Prospect theory- the way information is framed differently affects risks assessments and
associated customer decisions
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Document Summary
Lecture 4: complexity- the more simple a message, more likely a consumer develops meaningful comprehension, message congruity- extent to which a message is internally consistent and fits surrounding information. Incongruity motivates deeper processing than when everything is congruent/ the same: consumers comprehend and remember more from an add that is presented with incongruent material surrounding it. Message source: likeability- a source you like can change interpretation of stimulus, expertise- sources knowledge of the subject. Sidney crosby- honkey sticks or financial advice: attractiveness- source affects comprehension of the message. E. g. in your background and hear a loud sudden noise, you wonder what is making the noise. Over the next few days, the noise continues at a regular and constant page. Perfume/ cologne: physical limits- physical limitations will alter comprehension, brain dominance- hemispheric lateralization. Consumer behavior: negative vs positive, priming- cognitive process in which active concept frames thoughts and therefore affect meaning and value.
