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Subliminal marketing

- Infiltrating the mobile device through multiple exposures -

Exposé

Submitted by

Andrea Scarpa

October 21st, 2013

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1. ABSTRACT Title: Subliminal Marketing - Infiltrating the Mobile Device through Multiple Exposures -

Abstract

Studies throughout the last decade have proved that subliminal priming can actually produce

effects provided that particular conditions are met. This thesis aims at assessing whether

subliminal priming can be an effective tool also when it comes to priming subjects through a

mobile phone device screen. In addition, it intends to evaluate whether multiple exposures to

the subliminal message can lead to higher results in terms of priming efficacy. An experiment

is hence conducted and the outcomes discussed, taking into account the implications that might

arise as a consequence of this study.

Keywords:

Subliminal Messages, Subliminal Advertising, Subliminal Marketing, Multiple Exposures to

Subliminal Adverting.

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2. TABLE OF CONTENT 1. ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................................................ II 2. TABLE OF CONTENT .......................................................................................................................................... III 3. LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................................................................ IV 4. LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................................................... V 5. LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................................................... VI 6. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................................... 1 7. PURPOSE STATEMENT ....................................................................................................................................... 2 8. HYPOTHESES .......................................................................................................................................................... 5 9. METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................................................................... 6 9.1 General Methodology ................................................................................................................................... 6 9.2 Experiment Outline ....................................................................................................................................... 6 9.2.1 Experiment Description ..................................................................................................................... 6 9.2.2 Subliminal Message .............................................................................................................................. 7 9.2.3 Potential Issues ...................................................................................................................................... 8

10. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ............................................................................................................................ 10 10.1 Subliminal Priming Studies ................................................................................................................. 10 10.1.1 Subliminal Priming Studies -‐ Positive Results (before 2002) ...................................... 14 10.1.2 Subliminal Priming Studies -‐ Negative Results (before 2002) .................................... 15

10.2 Conscious and Subconscious Decision Making ........................................................................... 16 10.3 Multiple Exposures to Advertising ................................................................................................... 16 10.4 Additional Readings ................................................................................................................................ 17

11. OVERVIEW OF CHAPTERS ........................................................................................................................... 19 12. PLAN OF WORK ................................................................................................................................................ 19 13. REFERENCES ..................................................................................................................................................... 21

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3. LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CO: Control group shown the ads Once CM: Control group shown the ads Multiple times TO: Treatment group shown the ads Once TM: Treatment group shown the ads Multiple times

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4. LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Subliminal Message

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5. LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Visualization of the four groups

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6. INTRODUCTION The modern concept of subliminal priming saw the light of day as a result of Vicary’s

experiment. Back in 1957, advertising executive James Vicary asserted that during the

projection of a film in a movie theater, sales of Coke increased by 18% and sales of popcorn

increased by more than 50% as a result of subliminally displaying the words “EAT POPCORN”

and “DRINK COKE” (Weir, 1984). Unfortunately, the scientific community was never able to

replicate the study and after years of pressure Vicary admitted that his was nothing but a hoax

aimed at saving his advertising agency from failure (Loftus & Klinger, 1992). Hoax or not, ever

since Vicary’s so-called experiment, the subliminal-related literature has long debated whether

subliminal messaging and advertising could actually be effective. Numerous studies have been

carried out since 1957, never reaching a consensus. The main reason why all of the studies and

researches conducted until the beginning of the XXI century failed to prove the efficacy of

subliminal priming is due to the fact that they did not consider the impact of certain requisites to

be met. The turning point in the subliminal-related scientific research is represented by the

findings of Strahan, Spencer, and Zanna (2002). They demonstrated that in order for subliminal

priming to be effective the prime must be relevant to one’s current goal (e.g. being thirsty) and

the subject must be motivated to pursue such goal (e.g. drinking). A number of experiments

followed, revealing that when these conditions are met, subliminal marketing can actually be

effective.

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7. PURPOSE STATEMENT Recent studies, conducted throughout the last decade, have proved that subliminal priming can

be an effective manipulation tool provided that certain conditions are met (Strahan, Spencer, and

Zanna, 2002; Karremans, Stroebe, Claus, 2006; Bermeitinger, Goelz, Johr, Neumann, Ecker, &

Doerr, 2009). The purpose of this thesis consists in measuring whether subliminal messages can

be effective on mobile phone devices as well. In addition to this, this thesis also aims at

assessing whether multiple exposures to the same subliminal message can possibly have an

impact on the efficacy of the priming. Before proceeding further, it needs to be made clear that

the goal pursued in this thesis is a social one, in that it aims at subliminally influencing primed

subjects so to make them prefer healthy food to unhealthy food. As far as the way to do it is

concerned, it will be discussed later on in the Methodology section.

The main purposes stated above make this thesis potentially interesting and, in a way, innovative

(1) because in the literature of subliminal priming the great potential of having multiple

exposures to the subliminal message, as suggested by traditional advertising literature (Tellis,

1997) has essentially been ignored so far. In addition to that, another feature that makes this

thesis worth being consists in the fact that (2) subliminal messages have never been shown on a

mobile phone device screen. In fact, it could be argued that if subliminal priming through a video

works on a mobile phone, it should as well work through a phone application. Clearly, one needs

to expect a difference between priming an active user, such as in the case of an app, rather than a

passive one, such as in the case of a video. Yet, it is thought that being active would result in

having even a larger degree of influence, as suggested by the results of the experiment conducted

by Bermeitinger, Goelz, Johr, Neumann, Ecker, & Doerr (2009). Concerning this last point, it

could be wrongfully argued that subliminal messages in phone applications are already a reality.

As a matter of fact, these kinds of applications do exist. One example is “Weight Loss

Subliminal1”, which aims at helping its users lose weight by subconsciously inspiring them

through embedded messages in the ocean’s sound. However, it can be easily deduced that it goes

against the principle of being subliminal as argued by (Verwijmeren, Karremans, Bernritter,

Stroebe, & Wigboldus, 2013; Loersch & Payne, 2012). When receiving a subliminal message, in

fact, only one’s subconscious should perceive it. If not, the message would affect the conscious

mind, consequently not being able to produce subliminal stimuli of any kind and resulting in

acting just like non-subliminal messages do in everyday life. And as literature suggests,

1 (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.t3apps.weightlossfree&hl=en)

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conscious and subconscious mind operate differently (Cronley, Kardes, & Hawkins, 2006). It is

therefore clear that if the very application reveals that it contains subliminal messages, which in

the case of the abovementioned app needs however to be verified, the mere fact of making its

purpose known renders it no longer effective. In addition, this needs to be placed on a complete

different level in terms of subliminal messages, from the moment that the one discussed in this

thesis concerns visual ones, which makes audio subliminal messages simply out of scope.

Another example of subliminal phone applications currently available on mobile phone devices

is “Subliminal Learning2”, which is directed to users who wish to improve their vocabulary.

Needless to say, the major pitfall remains the one described above, even though the application

area is this time more similar to the one that is treated in this thesis, i.e. visual subliminal

messages.

Now that the current situation has been made clear, one can easily see how come that the

aforementioned innovations that this thesis encompasses might potentially raise great interest. In

addition to that, the exponential growth that the smartphone industry has known during the last

decade is also worthy being considered. As a matter of fact, in the beginning of 2013, the sales

of smartphones exceeded those of feature ones on a global scale.3 In fact smartphone sales in the

second quarter of the year grew by 46.5%.4 Moreover, it is estimated that as of July 2013, 90%

of worldwide mobile phone sales derive from the purchase of Android and iPhone smartphones.5

In developed countries the ratio is nearly one smartphone-one person. Furthermore, as of 2013,

80% of the world’s population owns a mobile phone. There are over 5 billion mobile phones in

the world, out which more than 1 billion are smartphones6 and hence fitting for visual subliminal

marketing purposes. It is estimated that 89% of these users use their smartphones extensively

throughout the day.7 As a consequence, the latent efficacy of subliminal messages even on

smaller screens combined with the potential of having the subliminal message exposed multiple

times might greatly affect the future of subliminal marketing campaigns, although it remains an

illegal practice in a number of countries. Clearly, the implications are numerous, as well as are

the ways in which subliminal priming on smaller screens might be used. As already mentioned,

it must be understood that the aim of the present thesis consists in subliminally influencing

2 (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lwi.android.subliminallearning&hl=it) 3 (http://www.3news.co.nz/Smartphones-‐now-‐outsell-‐dumb-‐phones/tabid/412/articleID/295878/Default.aspx#.UnkspxbSFUQ) 4 (http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2573415) 5 (http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/jul/18/nokia-‐revenues-‐fall-‐lumia-‐sales?CMP=EMCNEWEML6619I2) 6 http://www.go-‐gulf.com/blog/smartphone/ 7 http://www.go-‐gulf.com/blog/smartphone/

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subjects towards conducting a healthier life. Namely, subjects will be manipulated in order to

make them prefer healthy food to other less healthy types of food. In this case, it could be argued

that the goal is social and it substantially aims at letting people benefit from such manipulation.

Whether justifiable or not is a moral debate, and will be, as such, treated in the discussion

section.

An additional source of innovation offered by this thesis derives from the fact that the

experiment is performed in a real life situation, whereas the large majority of the experiments

conducted so far have been in a laboratory. It derives that the “real life situation” factor has not

been taken into account. The way this will be considered in the experiment is later described in

the section methodology.

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8. HYPOTHESES It needs to be clear that the starting point of this thesis is represented by the status quo of the

literature on subliminal priming belonging to the last decade. As already discussed, before 2002,

year in which Strahan, Spencer, and Zanna found that particular conditions are required for

subliminal stimuli to actually affect behavior, the scientific community was not able to prove

the efficacy or inefficacy of subliminal priming. Yet, after their findings, multiple studies have

proved that taking into account the identified conditions, subliminal priming could, as a matter

of fact, be effective. It derives that the present study is deeply related to not only their findings,

but also to all of the studies pointed out in the Review of Literature section.

It is henceforth based on such studies that the following hypotheses are formulated:

(1) H1: subjects exposed once to subliminal priming through the screen of a mobile phone

device will present greater willingness to consume healthy food than subjects who were not

exposed to manipulation.

(2) H2a: subjects exposed multiple times to subliminal priming through the screen of a mobile

phone device will present greater willingness to consume healthy food than subjects who

were not exposed to subliminal priming.

(3) H2b: subjects exposed multiple times to subliminal priming through the screen of a mobile

phone device will present greater willingness to consume healthy food than subjects who

were only once exposed to manipulation.

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9. METHODOLOGY

9.1 General Methodology

The overall methodology consists in reviewing the literature, in order to gain precious insights

of previous studies so to have a literature-based starting point on which to base the experiment.

It derives that (1) the first step of the study will consist in identifying, reading, and extrapolating

all relevant and potentially useful information out of the existing literature. The latest and

updated studies will be mostly considered, as they empirically take into consideration Strahan,

Spencer, and Zanna (2002) ‘s requirements to be met. (2) The second step consists in the

experiment, which clearly represents the core of this Master’s thesis. Due to its importance, the

main idea of the experiment is presented in the following section. (3) The third step concerns

the analysis of the experiment outcomes. Hence, statistical tools will be applied in order to

understand whether the hypotheses presented above should be accepted or rejected. (4) The

fourth step consists in discussing either the reasons and possible flaws that led to a rejection of

the null hypotheses or about the implications that might arise as a consequence of an acceptance

of the null hypotheses.

9.2 Experiment Outline

9.2.1 Experiment Description

The main idea standing behind the experiment resides in placing a subliminal message in three

commercials. Then, two different groups of subjects will be shown the commercials. The two

groups will be distinguished between a control group and a treatment one. It follows that for the

two control group, the commercials shown will contain no subliminal priming at all, whereas

for the treatment one, the commercials will actually contain the subliminal manipulation. Now,

each of the two group will be sub-divided into two additional groups. One will be shown the

three commercials only once and then monitored, while the other will be shown the

commercials multiple times before being monitored. This way it should be possible to assess the

efficacy of multiple exposures to subliminal priming as opposed to a single one. It follows that

there will be a total of four groups: one Control group with One exposure (CO), one Control

group with Multiple exposures (CM), one Treatment group with One exposure (TO), and finally

one Treatment group with Multiple exposures (TM). The differentiation of the four groups can

be better visualized on the table presented below (Table 1).

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Once Multiple times

Control Group CO CM

Treatment Group TO TM

Table 1: Visualization of the four groups

The methodology intended to be pursued as far as the experiment is concerned fundamentally

consists in (1) showing the commercials on a mobile phone screen, consequently priming the

two treatment groups, in order to subsequently (2) measure the contingent effect of priming on

the subjects exposed to the subliminal message. As already pointed out, the measuring of the

efficacy of priming will occur for the CO and TO groups immediately after the first exposure,

while for the CM and TM ones after the series of exposures. As there is no literature consensus

in terms of effective frequency, that is the number of an advertisement exposures needed for it

to receive a response (Tellis, 1997), an estimation of five exposures is estimated to be required

for this particular experiment (Dahlen, 2001; Cronley, Kardes, & Hawkins, 2006). Finally, it is

estimated that 30 people per each of the four groups will be needed in order to gain an

accurately reliable statistical sample (Pukelsheim, 2006). Therefore, 120 people will be overall

required for the completion of the experiment.

9.2.2 Subliminal Message

The aim of the subliminal message will consist in leading people towards conducting a healthier

diet. It derives that the very message should be clear, concise, easily understood, and easily

subconsciously elaborated by anyway who will watch the commercials containing the

subliminal priming of healthy food. The subliminal message will appear for approximately 10

milliseconds, as suggested in the study conducted by Bermeitinger, Goelz, Johr, Neumann,

Ecker, & Doerr (2009).

When it comes to the form of the message to be displayed, it needs in the first place to

communicate and consequently evoke positive feelings. No negative ones should arise as a

consequence of elaborating the message; otherwise it is likely to result in losing its efficacy

(Jakštiene, Susniene, Narbutas, 2008). It follows that positive advertisement incorporates higher

probabilities to succeed than does negative one.

Additionally, it is believed that a picture will turn out more effective. First, the place where the

experiment will take place needs to be taken into account. Being the place the canteen of the

University of Kassel, Germany, lots of international students for whom neither German nor

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English are mother tongues, are expected to become possible subjects for the experiment. It

derives that showing a subliminal message composed of either German or English words might

reveal as totally ineffective due to the fact that it was not properly understood. Hence, a picture

is way more likely to produce the desired effect than words are possibly expected to. Secondly,

it can be argued that “a picture is worth ten thousand words”, as suggested by a famous ancient

Chinese proverb. Figure 1 illustrates the picture that is meant to be subliminally displayed on

the mobile phone screen.

Figure 1: Subliminal Message

9.2.3 Potential Issues

In order not to make the same mistake as all studies conducted until 2002, the conditions

identified by Strahan, Spencer, and Zanna (2002) need to be taken into account. In fact, they

proved that in order for subliminal priming to produce the desired effect, the prime needs to be

relevant to one’s current goal (e.g. being thirsty) and the subject needs to be motivated to pursue

such goal (e.g. drinking). Applying these conditions to our case, we need to find subjects who

meet the requirements for the priming to be effective. Hence, the two issues to consider are:

a) The relevancy of the goal

b) The intention of pursuing the goal

These two issues can be easily overcome by selecting the proper individuals, which in our case

are represented by hungry subjects. Hence, the solution resides in selecting students that are

lining up in the canteen and subsequently manipulate them. This means that (a) they are hungry

and (b) intend to satisfy their hunger through the action of eating.

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Yet, there are additional potential issues that might arise, as it needs to be identified whether the

goal “to eat” presents further implications. This means determining how the subjects intend to

satisfy this goal. It may be the case that the subjects have already made their final decision about

the food they will be selecting, in which case, if the choice consisted in unhealthy food, then the

priming will possibly reveal as ineffective. In addition, we consider that the relevant goal is “to

eat healthy”. In the case the relevant goal was to become “to conduct a healthy life”, the

implications arising from it might affect the whole experiment.

Finally, a last potential issue arising from the experiment might be due to the “real life situation”

setting. Whilst most of the experiments conducted so far missed to consider the fact that if

subliminal priming works in a laboratory it does not necessarily imply that it might work in a

real life situation as well, the present study aims at taking this factor into account. Clearly, this

results in causing the arousal of an additional potential ground for rejection of the

aforementioned hypotheses.

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10. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

10.1 Subliminal Priming Studies

Author, Date Description Title, Publication

Strahan,

Spencer, and

Zanna, 2002

Their findings represent a turning point in the

subliminal priming field. They proved that if

the prime is relevant to one’s current goal (e.g.

being thirsty) and the subject is motivated to

pursue such goal (e.g. drinking) it could

actually affect behavior.

Subliminal priming and

persuasion: Striking while

the iron is hot. Journal of

Experimental Social

Psychology, 38

Karremans,

Stroebe,

Claus, 2006

Their study demonstrated that subliminal

priming of a brand name positively affects

subjects’ feeling towards the primed brand, but

only when Strahan, Spencer, and Zanna’s

conditions are met

Beyond Vicary’s fantasies:

The impact of sublimina

l priming and brand choice.

Journal of Experimental

Social Psychology, 42(6)

Légal,

Chappé,

Coiffard, &

Villard-Forest,

2011

Their study examines the effect of goal priming

in terms of elaboration of a persuasive

message, revealing that subconscious activation

of the goal “to trust” directs primed subjects

towards a better judgment of the message,

making them agree with the displayed message.

Don't you know that you

want to trust me?

Subliminal goal priming

and persuasion. Journal of

Experimental Social

Psychology, 48

Bermeitinger,

Goelz, Johr,

Neumann,

Ecker, &

Doerr, 2009

Their study proves that under Strahan, Spencer,

and Zanna’s conditions, subconscious priming

might be effective. They embedded a brand

logo of dextrose pills into a computer game,

revealing that tired participants consumed more

of the subliminally primed brand.

The hidden persuaders

break into the tired brain.



Verwijmeren,

Karremans,

Bernritter,

Stroebe, &

Wigboldus,

They demonstrated that it is possible to be

protected from subliminal priming by being

aware of it. Hence, one needs to be warned

either before or after the subliminal priming

takes place.

Warning: You are Being

Primed! The Effect of a

Warning on the Impact of

Subliminal Ads, Journal of

Experimental Social

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2013 Psychology

Veltkamp,

Custers, &

Aarts, 2010

Their study investigates whether subliminal

priming can be effective even in the absence of

deprivation, meaning the individual presents no

current need, revealing an interaction effect.

Finally, they proved that subliminal priming

may motivate subjects as if they were deprived.

Motivating consumer

behavior by subliminal

conditioning in the absence

of basic needs: Striking

even while the iron is cold.

Journal of Consumer

Psychology, 21

Verwijmeren,

Karremans,

Stroebe, &

Wigboldus,

2011

Their study investigates the role of habit related

to subliminal priming, revealing that in absence

of habitual brand, the primed one was more

consumed. When the primed brand competed

with the habitual one priming increased

preference for the one advertised.

The workings and limits of

subliminal advertising: The

role of habits. Journal of

Consumer Psychology,

21(2)

Veltkamp,

Aarts, &

Custers, 2007

CITATION: Their research examines the effect

of subliminal priming in absence of

deprivation, proving that “specific motivational

goal states and corresponding behaviors do not

arise directly from deprivation per se, but that

accessible goal-related cognitions play a role in

this process”.

On the emergence of

deprivation-reducing

behaviors: Subliminal

priming of behaviour

representations turns

deprivation into motivation.



Mayer &

Merckelbach,

1999;

Bengesser &

Walli, 1994;

Shevrin, 1986;

Johnson &

Eriksen, 1961

These four articles will be used in the

introductory section, when the concept of

subliminal will be presented. They provide an

excellent overview of its history and the

meaning of the term itself.

For these Journals please

see Bibliography

Custers &

Aarts, 2010

Norretranders,

1998

These two articles will be cited when saying

that in daily life individuals elaborate most of

the information they receive outside of their

conscious awareness.

The unconscious will: How

the pursuit of goals operates

outside of conscious

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awareness. Science, 329 +

The user illusion: Cutting

consciousness down to size.

New York: Penguin Books.

Brasel and

Gips, 2011

In their study they proved that priming the logo

“Red Bull”, a brand associated with speed and

risk taking, motivated participants to go as fast

as possible and take greater risks in a racing

game compared to those who were not

associated with the brand.

Red Bull "Gives You

Wings" for better and

worse: a double-edged

impact of brand exposure

on consumer performance.

Journal of Consumer

Psychology, 21

Loersch &

Payne, 2011

In their study they argue that the primed

construct eventually turns out to be more easily

accessible from memory.

The Situated Inference

Model: An Integrative

Account of the Effects of

Primes on Perception,

Behavior, and Motivation.

Perspectives on

Psychological Science, 6(3)

Loersch &

Payne, 2012

Their study proved that when participants were

informed about the fact that their behavior had

been subliminally manipulated, priming effects

were no longer observed, consequently

rendering subliminal priming ineffective.

On Mental Contamination:

The Role of

(Mis)Attribution in

Behavior Priming. Social

Cognition, 30(2)

Hart &

Albarracin,

2009

In their study they found that priming people

with achievement goals results in better

performance and greater persistence of

behavior even when primes are subliminal. In

addition, they proved the interaction between

personal dispositions and subliminal

environmental stimuli, resulting in affecting

subjects’ behaviors.

The effects of chronic

achievement motivation and

achievement primes on the

activation of achievement

and fun goals. Journal of

Personality and Social

Psychology, 97

Custers &

Aarts, 2010

The reason standing behind the fact that primed

goals affect motivation outside of awareness is

The unconscious will: How

the pursuit of goals operates

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that goals are pictured in the mind of

individuals as desirable. It derives that the

process of priming these goals results in a

positive affective tag that operates as a reward

signal.

outside of conscious

awareness. Science, 329

DeMarree,

Loersch,

Briñol, Petty,

Payne, &

Rucker, 2012

In their study they argue that by introducing a

feeling of doubt in the priming stage, the result

will be a decline in the relationship that exists

between priming and the observed behavior.

From Primed Construct to

Motivated Behavior:

Validation Processes in

Goal Pursuit. Personality

and Social Psychology

Bulletin

Bos,

Dijksterhuis,

& van Baaren,

2011

In their study they argue that as a consequence

of the fact that the majority of information are

processed subconsciously, there might be no

need to present them subliminally for resulting

in them having non-conscious effects.

The benefits of “sleeping on

things”: Unconscious

thought leads to automatic

weighting. Journal of

Consumer Psychology,

21(1)

Loftus &

Klinger, 1992

This study will be cited to prove that Vicary’s

experiment is a hoax.

Is the unconscious smart or

dumb? American

Psychologist, 47

Erdelyi, 1985

(p. 59)

CITATION: In his study he says that

unconscious operations are an “obvious and

fundamental feature of human information

processing”

Psychoanalysis: Freud's

cognitive psychology.

NewYork: Freeman

Lewicki, Hill,

& Czyzewska,

1997

CITATION: In their study they argue that there

is “no doubt that unconscious processes are a

crucial element of normal, ordinary

functioning. Problem solving, writing,

listening, learning, and so on often do not

require consciousness”

Hidden covariation

detection: A fundamental

and ubiquitous

phenomenon. Journal of

Experimental Psychology:

Learning, Memory, and

Cognition, 23

Weir, 1984 This study will be cited when introducing

Vicary’s experiment.

Another look at subliminal

"facts". Advertising Age 55

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10.1.1 Subliminal Priming Studies -‐ Positive Results (before 2002)


Silverman,

Martin, Ungaro,

& Mendelsohn,

1978

In their experiment on obese women they

assumed that overeating was caused by the

need to be nourished by mother. After

subliminally priming, the treatment group,

exposed to the message “mommy and I are

one”, lost more weight than the control

group, exposed to “people are walking”.

Effect of subliminal

stimulation of symbiotic

fantasies on behavior

modification treatment of

obesity. Journal of

Consulting and Clinical

Psychology, 46

Silverman, Ross,

Adler, & Lustig,

1978

In their experiment, college males were

subliminally primed with “Beating dad is

ok” or “Beating dad is wrong”. After the

subliminal priming took place, they played

darts. Those who received the “ok” stimulus

obtained higher dart scores than those who

received the “wrong” one.

Simple research paradigm

for demonstrating

subliminal psychodynamic

activation: Effects of

oedipal stimuli on dart-

throwing accuracy in

college males. Journal of

Abnormal Psychology, 87

Murphy and

Zajonc, 1993

In their study they argue that, under

particular conditions, emotions are

precognitive. In their experiment subjects

were shown subliminal images (either a

smile or a scowling face) and then asked to

rate Chinese characters.

Affect, cognition, and

awareness: Affecting

priming with optimal and

suboptimal exposures

Journal of Personality and

Social Psychology, 64

Murphy,

Monahan, &

Zajonc, 1995

In their study they came to the conclusion

that, under certain circumstances, emotions

are precognitive.

Additivity of nonconscious

affect: Combined effects of

priming and exposure.

Journal of Personality and

Social Psychology, 69

Robles, Smith,

Carver, and

Wellens, 1987

In their study they inserted subliminal

pictures in a video (negative, neutral,

positive) and then performed an anxiety test.

Those presented with positive subliminal

Influence of subliminal

visual images on

theexperience of anxiety.


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pictures were less anxious than those with

negative ones.

Psychology Bulletin, 13

Tyrer, Lewis,

and Lee, 1978

In their study they came to conclusions

similar to the ones reached by Robles,

Smith, Carver, and Wellens, 1987.

Effects of subliminal and

supraliminal stress on

symptoms of anxiety. The

Journal of Nervous and

Mental Disease, 166

Kemp-Wheeler

and Hill, 1987

and 1992

In their study they came to conclusions

similar to the ones reached by Robles,

Smith, Carver, and Wellens, 1987.

Anxiety responses to

subliminal experience of

mild stress. British Journal

of Psychology, 78 +

Semantic and emotional

priming below objective

detection threshold.

Cognition and Emotion, 6

Cooper and

Cooper, 2002

This study will be cited to prove the fact that

subconscious elaboration is found to be able

to affect motivations, judgments, and

behaviors.

Subliminal motivation: A

story revisited. Journal of

Applied Social Psychology,

32(11)

10.1.2 Subliminal Priming Studies -‐ Negative Results (before 2002)


Greenwald,

Spangenberg,

Pratkanis, and

Eskenazi, 1991

In their experiment with self-help tapes they

found a mere placebo effect, arguing that

subliminal priming is not effective.

Doubleblind tests of

subliminal self-help

audiotapes. Psychological

Science, 2

Russell, Rowe,

and Smouse,

1991

In their experiment with self-help tapes they

found that no better grades were obtained,

arguing that subliminal priming is not

effective.

Subliminal self-help tapes

and academic achievement:

An evaluation. Journal of

Counselling and

Development

Key, 1973 In his study he found no evidence Subliminal seduction.

16

concerning the efficacy of subliminal

advertising.

Englewood Cliffs, NJ:

Signet

K. H. Smith and

Rogers, 1994

In their study they found no evidence

supporting the efficacy of subliminal

advertising.

Effectiveness of subliminal

messages in television

commercials: Two

experiments. Journal of

Applied Psychology, 79

In addition to the articles presented above, the following ones provide further evidence

that before 2002, studies were unable to replicate Vicary’s experiment

Pratkanis & Aronson, 1992 Hawkins, 1970 Moore, 1988

Pratkanis & Greenwald, 1988 Trappey, 1996 George & Jennings, 1975

10.2 Conscious and Subconscious Decision Making


Dijksterhuis, 2004

His study researches the role of conscious

and subconscious thought when it comes to

make decisions, revealing that in all of the

five experiments, subconscious decision

making led to better decisions than conscious

one.

Think Different: The

Merits of Unconscious

Thought in Preference

Development and Decision

Making. Journal of


Psychology, 87 (5)

Cronley, Kardes,

& Hawkins, 2006

As repetition of marketing claims increases,

so does the perceived validity of the

message. They finally suggest that conscious

and subconscious mind operate differently.

Influences on the Illusory

Truth Effect in Consumer

Judgment. Advances in

Consumer Research, Vol.

33

10.3 Multiple Exposures to Advertising

17


Dahlen, 2001 Until four exposures to an advertisement of an

unknown brand there is no statistical difference

in terms of its efficacy. From five exposures it

starts to be effective. Moreover, advertisements

for familiar brands usually wear out quickly,

while those for unfamiliar ones need multiple

exposures to wear in.

Banner Advertisements

through a New Lens.

Journal of Advertising

Research (July-August,

2001)

Tellis, 1988 CITATION: “Loyalty is a significant

moderator of the effects of ad exposure, with

buyers responding more strongly to brands to

which they are more loyal. […] Because of

consumer inertia and selective information

processing, untried brands probably require

very high levels of exposure before they begin

to get their message across and induce trial”.

Advertising exposure,

loyalty and brand purchase:

A two-stage model of

choice. Journal of

Marketing Research, Vol.

25, No. 2 (May, 1988)

Tellis, 1997 Effective Frequency is the number of an

advertisement exposures needed for it to

receive a response. It depends on three factors:

brand familiarity, message complexity, and

message novelty.

Effective frequency: One

exposure or three factors?.

Journal of Advertising

Research (July, 1997)

10.4 Additional Readings


Jakštiene,

Susniene,

Narbutas, 2008

This study will be used to argue that

advertising must evoke positive feelings in

order to influence the emotional sphere of

consumers.

The Psychological Impact

of Advertising on the

Customer Behavior.

Communications of the

IBIMA

Pukelsheim,

2006

This book will be used to argue about the

selected number of participants to the

experiment.

Optimal Design of

Experiments. New York:

SIAM

18

On the one hand, several experiments claimed to prove the efficacy of subliminal priming, such

as the ones conducted by Silverman, Martin, Ungaro, & Mendelsohn (1978) on obese women,

in which starting from the assumption that overeating was caused by the need to be nourished

by their mothers, they subliminally primed the subjects with the message “mommy and I are

one”. The treatment group lost significantly more weight than the control group, exposed to

“people are walking”. Similarly, Silverman, Ross, Adler, & Lustig (1978) subliminally primed

college males with “Beating dad is ok” or “Beating dad is wrong”. After the subliminal priming

took place, they played darts and those who received the “ok” stimulus obtained higher dart

scores than those who received the “wrong” one. Years later, Robles, Smith, Carver, and

Wellens (1987) found that by inserting subliminal pictures in a video (negative, neutral,

positive) and then performing an anxiety test, the subjects presented with positive subliminal

pictures were less anxious than those with negative ones. Similar studies were performed by

Tyrer, Lewis, and Lee in 1978 and Kemp-Wheeler and Hill, both in 1987 and in 1992. In 1993,

Murphy and Zajonc subliminally primed subjects with images, either a smile or a scowling face,

and then asked them to rate Chinese characters, finding that those primed with a smile were

better inclined towards the unfamiliar characters. Hence they argued that under particular

conditions emotions are precognitive. Murphy, Monahan, & Zajonc drew the same conclusion

in 1995.

On the other hand, several studies conducted during the same period have claimed to prove the

inefficacy of subliminal priming, such as Key (1973) or Smith and Rogers (1994), who in their

work found no evidence supporting the effect of subliminal priming. Similarly, Greenwald,

Spangenberg, Pratkanis, and Eskenazi (1991) found a mere placebo effect as a result of their

experiment with self-help tapes. Not differently, Russell, Rowe, and Smouse (1991) also

asserted there is no evidence to support the efficacy of subliminal priming. They conducted an

experiment with self-help tapes as well, finding that no better grades were obtained as a result of

subliminal priming.

19

11. OVERVIEW OF CHAPTERS 1. Introduction

1.1. Background on the topic

1.2. Purpose of the study

1.3. Methodology of the Thesis

2. Theoretical framework

2.1. The concept of subliminal priming

2.2. Literature before 2002

2.3. Literature after 2002

3. Experiment

3.1. Methodology of the Experiment

3.2. Outcomes of the experiment

4. Discussion (implications and limitations)

5. Conclusions

6. References

20

1. PLAN OF WORK

Dates Phase Description

01.10 – 31.10 Introductory Phase

Theory Phase

Collect the topic-related literature and begin

writing the theoretical framework

01.11 – 31.11 Theory Phase

First Set of Experiments

Conclude the theoretical framework and start the

experiment (30 people per set of experiment)

01.12 – 31.12 Second Set of Experiments

Third Set of Experiments

Conduct two sets of experiment (60 people)

01.01 – 31.01 Fourth Set of Experiments

Intermediate Presentation

Conduct the last set of experiment (30 people)

and prepare for the Intermediate Presentation

01.02 – 28.02 Analysis Phase

Writing Phase

Execute the statistical evaluations from the

results of the experiment and keep writing

01.03 – 31.03 Analysis Phase

Writing Phase

Execute the statistical evaluations and

subsequently draw implications and conclusions

01.04 – 31.04 Writing Phase

Finalization Phase

Finish writing the thesis and start the reviewing

process considering it as a whole

01.05 – 31.05 Finalization Phase Review the whole work, make the necessary

adaptations and corrections, and prepare the

final report and presentation

21

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