A clearer spotlight on spotlight: Understanding, conducting and reporting

There has been a remarkable increase in the use of spotlight analysis to examine any interactive effect between an independent variable and a continuous moderator. Most of the spotlight analyses have been conducted at one standard deviation above and below the mean value of the moderator, even when alternate methods are more appropriate. Additionally, many spotlight analyses are not conducted correctly. More importantly, results for spotlight analyses are reported in a manner that makes it virtually impossible for mistakes to be detected. This article focuses on “understanding,” “conducting,” and “reporting” spotlight analyses. By posing questions for the reader, it highlights some common mistakes made when doing spotlight analysis and explains why confusion often arises. Then it provides an easy to understand way to do spotlight analysis for some popular contexts. Alternatives to spotlight analysis are also briefly discussed. Finally, it suggests how to report results for spotlight analysis and for the alternatives. Pointing out recurrent mistakes should prevent perpetuation of misleading practices. Similarly, reporting essential details of the analyses should prevent mistakes from going undetected.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141063/1/jcpy315.pd

Introduction to the Research Dialogue on Children and Persuasion

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/148341/1/jcpy1095_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/148341/2/jcpy1095.pd

An integrative review of sensory marketing: Engaging the senses to affect perception, judgment and behavior

I define “sensory marketing” as “marketing that engages the consumers’ senses and affects their perception, judgment and behavior.” From a managerial perspective, sensory marketing can be used to create subconscious triggers that characterize consumer perceptions of abstract notions of the product (e.g., its sophistication or quality). Given the gamut of explicit marketing appeals made to consumers every day, subconscious triggers which appeal to the basic senses may be a more efficient way to engage consumers. Also, these sensory triggers may result in consumers’ self‐generation of (desirable) brand attributes, rather than those verbally provided by the advertiser. The understanding of these sensory triggers implies an understanding of sensation and perception as it applies to consumer behavior—this is the research perspective of sensory marketing. This review article presents an overview of research on sensory perception. The review also points out areas where little research has been done, so that each additional paper has a greater chance of making a bigger difference and sparking further research. It is quite apparent from the review that there still remains tremendous need for research within the domain of sensory marketing—research that can be very impactful.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142108/1/jcpy332.pd

It Should Not Take a Funeral: An Introduction to the Dialogue on the Self‐Control Construct

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/153069/1/jcpy1143_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/153069/2/jcpy1143.pd

A Field Experiment on Course Bidding at Business Schools

Allocation of course seats to students is a challenging task for registrars' offices in universities. Since demand exceeds supply for many courses, course allocation needs to be done equitably and efficiently. Many schools use bidding systems where student bids are used both to infer preferences over courses and to determine student priorities for courses. However, this dual role of bids can result in course allocations not being market outcomes and unnecessary efficiency loss, which can potentially be avoided with the use of an appropriate market mechanism. We report a field experiment done at the University of Michigan Business School in Spring 2004 comparing its typical course bidding mechanism with the alternate Gale-Shapley Pareto-dominant market mechanism. Our results suggest that using the latter could vastly improve efficiency of course allocation systems while facilitating market outcomes.

Privacy is a Concern: An Introduction to the Dialogue on Privacy

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/163393/2/jcpy1186_am.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/163393/1/jcpy1186.pd

Announcement of a Special Issue in Journal of Consumer Psychology on: “Sensory perception, embodiment, and grounded cognition: Implications for consumer behavior”

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142226/1/jcpy161.pd

Sensory marketing, embodiment, and grounded cognition: A review and introduction

There has been a recent swell of interest in marketing as well as psychology pertaining to the role of sensory experiences in judgment and decision making. Within marketing, the field of sensory marketing has developed which explores the role of the senses in consumer behavior. In psychology, the dominant computer metaphor of information processing has been challenged by researchers demonstrating various manners in which mental activity is grounded in sensory experience. These findings are arduous to explain using the amodal model of the human mind. In this introduction, we first delineate key assumptions of the information processing paradigm and then discuss some of the key conceptual challenges posed by the research generally appearing under the titles of embodiment, grounded cognition, or sensory marketing. We then address the use of bodily feelings as a source of information; next, we turn to the role of context sensitive perception, imagery, and simulation in consumer behavior, and finally discuss the role of metaphors. Through this discourse, we note the contributions to the present special issue as applicable.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141359/1/jcpy159.pd

Erratum to special issue 24/2, April 2014 titled, “Sensory perception, embodiment, and grounded cognition: Implications for consumer behavior” [Journal of Consumer Psychology 24 (2014)]

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141629/1/jcpy453.pd

Enticing for me but unfair to her: Can targeted pricing evoke socially conscious behavior?

Prior research shows that consumers stop purchasing from firms that treat them badly. In this research we show that consumers also resist firms that treat other consumers badly while favoring them. In three experiments, we demonstrate such social consciousness in the context of targeted pricing, where firms offer lower prices to new (versus old) customers. A significant proportion of consumers in our experiments give up money to resist the price‐discriminating firm, especially when the discrimination is more salient or is not justified. Further, perceived unfairness mediates the relationship between the salience and justification of the pricing practice and consumer resistance.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142145/1/jcpy433.pd