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This article was downloaded by: [Simon Fraser University]On: 11 November 2014, At: 15:05Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH,UK
Journal of MarketingCommunicationsPublication details, including instructions forauthors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rjmc20
Communication, cognition andinvolvement: a theoreticalframework for advertisingArjun Chaudhuri & Ross BuckPublished online: 09 Dec 2010.
To cite this article: Arjun Chaudhuri & Ross Buck (1997) Communication, cognitionand involvement: a theoretical framework for advertising, Journal of MarketingCommunications, 3:2, 111-125, DOI: 10.1080/135272697345998
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/135272697345998
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Communication, cognition and involvement:a theoretical fr amework for adver tising
ARJUN CHAUDHURISchool of Business, Fair® eld University, Fair® eld, CT 06430, USA
ROSS BUCKDepartment of Communication Sciences, University of Connecticut, 850 Bolton Road,
Storrs, CT 06269, USA
It is suggested that there are two different types of involvement outcomes in
advertis ing. The ® rst arises from spontaneous com munication and results in
syncretic cognition (knowledge by acquaintance) and the second arises from
sym bolic comm unication and results in analytic cognition (knowledge by
description). Involvem ent, in the advertising domain, is de® ned as the m otivational
potentia l of an advertisem ent, expressed through spontaneous and sym bolic
communication, that activates both an em otional read out (syncretic cognition)
and an appraisa l of this read out (analytic cognition) in term s of future goal-directed
behaviour. The paper also develops hypotheses about how these involvem ent
outcom es m ay be related to the advertising stim uli that are the antecedents to these
outcom es ± m edia, product category and advertis ing strategy. Suggestions for
testing these hypotheses are provided.
KEYWORDS: advertising; communication; cognition; involvement; emotion
INTRODUCTION
Recent work in marketing communications, advertising and consumer behaviour has grappled
with the concept of involvement. In general, there is agreement that the construct represents
the notion of personal relevance or importance (Zaichkowsky, 1985; Park and Young, 1986;
Ratchford, 1987). Furthermore, Zaichkowsky (1986) identi® ed three different factors that
might be designated as the antecedents of involvement: person, object stimulus and situational
factors. Zaichkowsky (1986) also described three different domains in which these factors
JOURNAL OF MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS 3 111–125 (1997)
1352± 7266 1997 Chapman & Hall
Dr Arjun Chaudhuri is Associate Professor of Marketing at Fair® eld University, USA. Tel: (203) 254
4000; Fax: (203) 254 4105; E-mail: [email protected].
Dr Ross Buck is Professor of Communication Sciences and Psychology at the University of
Connecticut, USA.
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in¯ uence the level of involvement: advertising, product and purchase decision. However, it is
not clear what the nature of involvement (or personal relevance importance) is in each of
these domains. For example, it is uncertain what constitutes high personal relevance in the
advertising domain. What mental outcomes, speci® cally, represent the involvement construct?
Developmental ± interactionist theory (Buck, 1984, 1988) suggests that there are two
different types of involvement outcomes. The ® rst arises from spontaneous communication
and results in syncretic cognition (knowledge by acquaintance) and the second arises from
symbolic communication and results in analytic cognition (knowledge by description). This
paper will attempt to provide a framework for understanding the nature of these involvement
outcomes and how they may be related to the advertising stimuli that are the antecedents to
these outcomes ± media, product category and advertising strategy.
The distinction between syncretic and analytic cognitions allows for a comprehensive
theoretical approach to our understanding of advertising effects. There has been a long-
standing debate (Zajonc, 1980; Lazarus, 1984) concerning the primacy of `emotion’ as
opposed to cognition’ . The perspective used in this paper reconciles the opposing viewpoints
by considering emotion as a kind of cognition as well (syncretic cognition), that is far more
complex than the usually simplistic positive ± negative conceptualizations of the construct. This
is discussed next.
A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK FOR ADVERTISING
Developmental ± interactionist theory (Buck, 1988) presents a theoretical framework for
understanding the psychological processes that are generated by advertising stimuli. According
to Buck (1988), human motivation is the potential for activation and behavior that is
inherent in a system of behavior control’ (p. 5) and emotion is the process by which
motivational potential is realized or read out when activated by challenging stimuli’ (p. 9).
Thus, emotion is a read-out mechanism that carries information about motivational systems
and is a continuous and ever-present expression of motivational states. This read out serves
three different functions and takes the following forms.
(1) Emotion I, consisting of physiological responses involving the autonomic, immune and
endocrine systems, such as heart rate changes, blood pressure, sweating, etc., which
serve the functions of adaptation and homeostasis.
(2) Emotion II, which is spontaneous expressive behaviour, such as facial expressions,
gestures, postures, etc. which serves the function of social coordination. These
responses, being accessible to others, reveal a person’s motivational ± emotional state.
(3) Emotion III, which is an immediate and direct subjective experience, though it may
also be experienced indirectly as feedback from the other read outs. This last read out is
a kind of cognition in its own right, as described below.
Buck (1988) viewed cognition simply as knowledge and de® ned it as a more or less
complex and organized internal representation of reality, acquired by means of the individual’ s
cognitive skills and through experience with reality’ (p. 6). Two types of cognition are
described of which the ® rst is syncretic cognition or `knowledge by acquaintance’ which
cannot be described, but is `known’ immediately by the person and may consist of sensations,
bodily symptoms, drives and primary affects, such as happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise
and disgust (Ekman and Friesen, 1975). This is the process of immediate and subjective
experience which James (1890) wrote about: I know the color blue when I see it, and the
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¯ avor of a pear when I taste it . . . but about the inner nature of these facts or what makes
them what they are I can say nothing at all’ (p. 22).
In contrast to syncretic cognition, which is holistic, synthetic and right brain oriented,
analytic cognition or `knowledge by description’ is sequential, analytic and left brain oriented.
While syncretic cognition is derived from a direct sensory awareness, analytic cognition results
from the interpretation of sensory data and involves judgements about phenomena. As Russell
(1912) observed, `My knowledge of a table as a physical object . . . is not direct knowledge.
Such as it is, it is obtained through acquaintance with the sense-data that make up the
appearance of the table’ (pp. 73 ± 4). Further, the immediate subjective experience of syncretic
cognition precedes analytic cognition and is also at some point transformed into analytic
cognition. To use James’s (1890) terms, syncretic cognition is the `germ and starting point’
(p. 222) of analytic cognition. However, syncretic cognition is capable of being controlled
and guided by analytic cognition. And, ® nally, analytic cognition can be symbolically
communicated, while syncretic cognition is spontaneously communicated.
Thus, communication also has two aspects ± spontaneous and symbolic. Spontaneous
communication is biologically shared, non-intentional or automatic, non-propositional,
requires only knowledge by acquaintance and is expressed through signs which make
emotional states externally accessible. Symbolic communication is socially shared, intentional,
propositional, requires knowledge by description and is based upon learned symbols, which
have only an arbitrary relationship with their referents. Therefore, two simultaneous streams
of communication are envisaged, which interact and modify one another. It must be stressed
that these are not two ends on a single continuum, but instead represent two independent yet
interactive dimensions of behaviour. However, while `pure’ spontaneous communication is
possible, pure’ symbolic communication is not. In other words, symbolic communication is
always accompanied by spontaneous communication (Buck, 1984).
It is suggested here that there are two different types of involvement outcomes. The ® rst
arises from spontaneous communication and results in syncretic cognition (knowledge by
acquaintance), while the second arises from symbolic communication and results in analytic
cognitions (knowledge by description). In terms of developmental ± interactionist theory,
involvement, in the advertising domain, can thus be viewed as the motivational potential of
an advertisement, mediated by spontaneous and symbolic communication, that activates both
an emotional read out (syncretic cognition) and an appraisal of this read out (analytic
cognition) in terms of future goal-directed behaviour.
Thus, a low-involvement’ advertisement is one that is low in both analytic and syncretic
cognitions and a `high-involvement’ advertisement is one that is high in either or both
syncretic and analytic cognitions. Park and Young (1986) corroborated this in their
delineation of three types of involvement ± analytic cognitive, affective and low involvement.
In addition, it is suggested here that involvement may result from the combination of both
analytic and syncretic responses.
The next three sections develop hypotheses about the relationship of analytic and syncretic
cognition to the various antecedents of advertising involvement which have been suggested
by Zaichkowsky (1986): the choice of media, the nature of the product category advertised
and the advertising strategy that the advertisement adopts. These three elements, arising from
the nature of the advertisement itself, are considered as the sources of explained variance in
syncretic and analytic cognitions. The personal and situational antecedents of involvement are
not depicted as independent variables, since the attempt here is to isolate the elements that
can be manipulated within advertisements.
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MEDIA
It is postulated that print media generate a higher relative level of analytic cognition than
broadcast media, whereas broadcast media elicit higher relative levels of affective response
such as happiness, fear, etc. This is in accordance with the uses and grati® cation approach to
mass media (Katz et al., 1973) in which people are seen to use mass media to gratify different
emotional and rational needs. Thus, in general, broadcast media may be used more for
`diversion’ and entertainment, while print media may be used more for surveillance’ and
knowledge functions.
Buck (1989) argued that spontaneous cues are capable of being directly apprehended by
viewers in the electronic media, just as the emotional displays (facial expressions, gestures,
etc.) of persons are known directly by acquaintance in face to face communication.
Moreover, this process of the transfer of affective meaning does not require the intervention
of analytic cognitions. Zajonc (1980) also observed that a stimulus did not have to be
consciously noted for it to in¯ uence emotion or behaviour. Haley et al. (1984) identi® ed 510
non-verbal variables in television commercials in the areas of vocalics, proxemics, facial cues,
music, etc. and successfully related these to persuasion variables such as brand salience. Some
of these spontaneous cues, such as music, are available only in the broadcast media and this is
one reason for suggesting that, relative to print media, broadcast media emphasize syncretic
cognition.
On the other hand, Park and Young (1986) found that music in television commercials had
a distracting effect during analytic cognitive situations. The lack of such cues as music in print
media may thus encourage analytic cognitive responses, at least in comparison to broadcast
media. Further, according to Batra (1986), consumers are more active and willing to process
information in print than in broadcast, which is considered to be more intrusive’ . In keeping
with this, Jacoby and Hoyer (1990) found less miscomprehension for print advertisement than
for television advertisement. Wright (1974) showed that print media mediate analytic
cognitive responses to advertising, such as source derogation and counter-arguing. He
suggested that this is so, because print allows more opportunity to process information, since
it is spatial, while electronic media are ¯ eeting and not in the control of the viewer.
Media research on the left and right brain hemispheres also shows different effects of
broadcast and print media. Weinstein et al. (1980) found that print generates more left brain
activity than television. Krugman (1971) showed that the nature of brain wave activity was
very different in print as compared to television and he attributed this to the fact that we act
on print, while television acts on us. It is further suggested here that, in general, spontaneous
communication via broadcast media results in syncretic cognitive right brain activity, while
symbolic communication through print media results in analytic cognitive left brain activity.
Buck (1988) cited considerable evidence that the left and right hemispheres are associated
with the two different kinds of cognition. Thus, in general, an advertisement in print media
requiring linguistic ± analytic processing particularly involves the left hemisphere, while an
advertisement in broadcast media requiring a direct form of empathy with emotional
expression and an integration of sensory information involves the right hemisphere in
particular (The caveat must be provided that we are discussing the relative importance of the
systems of syncretic and analytic cognition. The left and right brain hemispheres also balance,
modify and interact with each other.)
In summary, electronic media, for example television, is a form of communication that is
inherently different from print and this is not so simply because of the additional advantage of
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the auditory channel. It is the dynamic combination of movement, colour, sound, video,
iteration, drama and the general emotional impact, expressed through spontaneous non-verbal
cues, that makes television such an effective purveyor of emotional communication. Based
upon such considerations, the following hypotheses are suggested.
H1: Broadcast advertisements will produce more syncretic cognitive response than print
advertisements.
H2: Print advertisements will produce more analytic cognitive response than broadcast
advertisements.
PRODUCT CATEGORY
Recall that Buck (1988) discussed two separate systems of knowledge. Knowledge by
acquaintance is an immediate and subjective emotional experience known directly by the
individual and it cannot be described. This is the process that Bertrand Russell described as
`direct sensory awareness without the intermediary of any process of inference or any
knowledge of truths’ (in Buck 1988, p. 398). In contrast, knowledge by description is indirect
and involves the interpretation of sense data resulting in cognitive judgements about
phenomena.
On the level of product categories, we can, therefore, also conceive of two types of
consumer knowledge ± one that is acquired by direct sensory experience with the product
and another that is ratiocinative and involves analysis and judgement. The ® rst may be
described here as the syncretic value of a product which cannot be described but is known
directly through immediate and subjective experience with the product and that results in a
sensation of affect. The second, is the analytic value of the product which can be described in
terms of judgements concerning the functional attributes of the product.
Thus, certain products may be viewed by consumers to be high in syncretic value,
irrespective of the brand that is purchased. In general, this would apply to parity products
such as beer, chocolate, liquor, sodas, etc., where brand differences are imperceptible to most
consumers but where the affective component is high. On the other hand, certain products
may be viewed as high in analytic value since they are risky, in the sense that consumers
realize that signi® cant differences exist between brands and that the wrong brand could bring
about deleterious consequences. Such perceived risk is a function of the perceived quality
differences between brands (Bettman, 1973) and leads to active information search and
evaluation. In addition, for certain product classes consumers may process information in both
highly analytic and syncretic ways and for other categories the evaluation may be low in both
as well.
The choice of syncretic and analytic values as the two substantive dimensions of product
involvement is well vindicated by past research. Preston (1970) demonstrated that the
perceived differences in the products advertised in magazines and television could account for
high and low involvement effects. Robertson (1976) viewed commitment’ to be a function
of `perceived distinguishing attributes among brands and the salience of these attributes’
(p. 23). Bowen and Chaffee (1974) considered the involvement with a product to increase
with the `number of pertinent distinctions’ (p. 615) between brands. Zaichkowsky (1985)
found a positive relationship between the perceived differences between brands and the level
of product involvement. She also argued that product involvement is largely a function of
analytic criteria such as brand differentiation (Zaichkowsky, 1986).
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On the other hand, Holbrook and Hirschman (1982) argued that consumers may use
`hedonistic’ criteria in their choice and evaluation of products which improve self-concept,
provide entertainment, gratify the senses and provide relief from pain and anxiety. In
presenting an alternative to the usual information-based perspective on consumer behaviour,
Holbrook and Hirschman (1982) advocated research on the experiential aspect of human
consumption in which the emotions and feelings of enjoyment and pleasure are the outcomes.
Laurent and Kapferer (1985) found that the hedonic value of a product had a signi® cant effect
on communication variables such as exposure to advertising. In the same study, brand
differentiation was seen to be related to the extensiveness of the decision process, which was
treated as a consequence of product involvement. However, the hedonic value was not
related to the extensiveness of the decision process, thereby suggesting that the syncretic and
analytic components of product involvement have different effects and represent orthogonal
dimensions.
In sum, it is suggested that certain products are high in product involvement because they
are high in analytic value and or high in syncretic value. Consequently, the depiction of such
products in an advertisement may evoke both analytic and syncretic cognitions.
H3: Advertisements with products high in analytic value will produce greater analytic
cognition than advertisements with products low in analytic value.
H4: Advertisements with products high in syncretic value will produce greater syncretic
cognition than advertisements with products low in syncretic value.
ADVERTISING STRATEGY
Aspects of advertising strategy (the content and form elements within the advertisement itself)
may account for syncretic and analytic responses. For example, Preston (1968) differ-
entiated between sign-relevant’ advertisements, which rely on tangible, inherent aspects of
the product and arbitrary’ advertisements, which depend on other factors such as the aspects
of the celebrity used in the advertisement. Such arbitrary advertisements were found to be
rated lower in rational appeal than sign-relevant advertisements, but higher in emotional
appeal.
In all, three broad classes of theories of advertising strategy have been identi® ed: systematic,
heuristic and affective (Pechmann and Stewart, 1989). Affective theories can be further
divided into theories of classical conditioning, vicarious learning and product-induced affect.
These ® ve theories of advertising strategy will be discussed next in this paper and their
relationships to analytic and syncretic cognitions will be examined. The research expectations
for these relationships, along with the theoretical justi® cations, are outlined below.
System atic learning
Systematic learning theories, under the traditional information-processing paradigm in
consumer behaviour (Bettman, 1979), view the consumer as an active processor of
information. This is also consistent with the central route to attitude change, described by
Petty and Cacioppo (1986). The recipient of a persuasive message goes through the process of
attention, comprehension of the message, then rehearsal of the message which produces a
suitable conclusion (yielding) and, ® nally, retention of the message in the memory. In order
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for an attitude change to take place, a reward or incentive must be contained in the message
which outweighs the rewards of holding onto the old attitude. Thus, it is the verbal content
of the message or symbolic communication, as described earlier, which is the primary
determinant of an attitude change. Thus, the generation of analytic cognition is particularly
relevant to message elements in advertisements, which present product information in a
favourable way. Lavidge and Steiner (1961) proposed a hierarchy of advertising effects in
which the attitude formation for a brand starts with beliefs, leads to overall evaluation and,
® nally, leads to behaviour. In addition, according to Fishbein and Ajzen (1975), a person’s
attitude is a function of his or her salient beliefs. This process of the creation of beliefs and
judgements about brands on the basis of symbolic advertising communication is also the
process of knowledge by description, which produces analytic cognition. Thus, we posit the
following hypothesis.
H5: Advertisements high in systematic learning strategies will produce greater analytic
cognitive response than advertisements low in systematic learning strategies.
Heuristic learning
According to Chaiken (1980), people process information in both systematic and heuristic
ways. While systematic processing involves thoughtful, `mindful’ analysis of the content of the
advertisement, heuristic processing involves the use of simple heuristic cues (buying the most
popular brand, buying the brand advertised by a celebrity, etc.) in order to arrive at a
conclusion (brand preferences, etc.).
Spontaneous affective cues may elicit heuristic processing and generate syncretic cognition.
Ray and Batra (1983) stated that emotion-laden stimuli in advertisements may create better
message acceptance, since in a positive affective state, people tend to make speedier, less
complex judgements. The use of visual, sensory, non-verbal imagery may discourage counter-
argument and analytic cognitions and facilitate persuasion via affective heuristic cues which
generate syncretic cognitions. Further, Pechmann and Stewart (1989) treated heuristic
processing as the antithesis of analytic processing, since this process is used when consumers
wish to avoid detailed consideration of the merits of a brand. Consistent with this, the
following hypothesis is suggested.
H6: Advertisements high in heuristic learning strategies will produce greater syncretic
cognitive response than advertisements high in systematic learning strategies.
Classica l conditioning
Pavlov (1927) and others (Watson and Rayner, 1920) in their classic experiments
demonstrated that if two dissimilar objects are repetitively associated together in close
contiguity to each other, the emotional response originally elicited by the unconditioned
stimulus can, over time, be elicited by the conditioned stimulus alone. Thus, in classical
conditioning strategies, a common device is the subtle use of symbols and iconic imagery. Yet
this is different from symbolic communication, as discussed earlier, since it is not a linguistic
process and there are no formal rules involved. The consumer knows without `knowing’ .
This is the process of spontaneous communication, which results in syncretic cognition
through the use of spontaneous cues in the advertisement. Persuasion here is almost on a
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subliminal level and the attempt is to create involvement with the advertisement by using
affect-laden symbols such as trade characters. When asked, consumers are likely to say that
they purchase items such as fabric softeners for reasons of familiarity, a sale, etc. or that they
buy the ® rst brand they can ® nd. The real reason may well be a powerful symbol such as the
teddy bear used to advertise the Snuggle brand of fabric softener in the US. Repeated pairings
of a brand with a favourable affective symbol, over time, transfers the affect to the brand
itself.
Music is a spontaneous cue in classical conditioning strategies and Gorn (1982) found that
positive attitudes towards a product could develop as a result of the association of the product
with music that had a positive effect on the listener. Hearing liked or disliked music directly
affected product choice in his experiment. Gorn (1982) argued that the positive emotions
generated by music become associated with the advertised product through classical
conditioning. The liking for the advertisement becomes conditioned to the brand itself and
becomes part of the brand. This can take place in the total absence of analytic cognitions or
beliefs, since product information was kept at a minimal level in the experiment.
Mitchell and Olsen (1981) also found that the same conditioning effect appears to
determine attitudes when non-verbal (visual) information, other than music, is presented.
They exposed subjects to facial tissue advertisements that contained either a verbal claim or
visual information. Individuals were seen to develop perceptions of the brands based solely on
visual, non-verbal information. Mitchell and Olsen (1981) interpreted this as the classical
conditioning effect of pairing an unknown brand with a visual stimulus.
Classical conditioning strategies may include verbal appeals as well as non-verbal ones.
Chaudhuri and Watt (1995) showed that family appeals generate affective responses. Similarly,
the judicious, functional use of sex appeals has been advocated by Richmond and Hartman
(1982) and humorous appeals have been related directly to behaviour and choice by Nelson
(1987). Appeals to nostalgia, adventure and patriotism are common in advertising, even
though such appeals do not always adhere logically to the product advertised. However, the
affect evoked by the appeal, over time, comes to be associated with the brand.
In consonance with the above, the following hypothesis is postulated.
H7: Advertisements high in classical conditioning strategies will produce greater syncretic
cognitive response than advertisements high in systematic learning strategies.
Vicarious learning
Pechmann and Stewart (1989) described the process of vicarious learning through advertising.
Advertisements that portray a reward or punishment for an actor due to use or non-use of a
particular brand arouse identi® cation and emotion. The point is that consumers construct
beliefs, rules about which brands products to use, based on emotional communication. The
rewards punishments meted out to the model in the advertisement are exempli® ed in the
model’s expressive behaviour such as facial expressions, etc. The process of observing
(decoding) such emotional expression results in arousal and a vicarious sharing of the same
subjective experience as undergone by the model in the advertisement. The consumer comes
to associate the brand with the emotion generated (for example, happiness) and sees the brand
as the social instrument that obtains rewards and stops punishment.
Buck (1989) also argued that spontaneous emotional communication is responsible for the
emotional education of people in that it provides an understanding of the internal
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environment of feelings and desires. Such communication is suf® cient in itself (i.e., it does
not require analytic cognitions) to in¯ uence behaviour, since the expressive displays of social
models are directly accessible to the audience via the process of knowledge by acquaintance.
It is suggested that humans are biologically constructed to receive certain emotional displays
and to understand their meanings directly and without the need for analytic cognitive
processing. Buck (1989) cited considerable evidence to demonstrate that expressive displays
have direct effects that are independent of more cognitive attitudinal preferences.
Accordingly, it is suggested that spontaneous non-verbal cues, such as the facial expressions
of advertising models, represent vicarious learning strategies that result in syncretic cognitions
concerning the emotional bene® ts of advertised brands.
H8: Advertisements high in vicarious learning strategies will produce greater syncretic
cognitive response than advertisements high in systematic learning strategies.
Product-induced affect
Strategies of product-induced affect are different from classical conditioning strategies that
derive an advertisement-induced affect. The effect in the latter strategy comprises affect
derived from the presentational elements of the advertisement itself, instead of affect
depicted in the advertisement as derived from the product itself. Certain products such as
cigarettes, alcoholic beverages and sodas are low in analytic value but can still be considered
to be high in involvement since they are high in syncretic value. The advertising of such
products elicits a product-induced affect by delineating the pleasure that can be derived from
or the displeasure that can be removed by the advertised product (Chaudhuri, 1993; MacInnis
and Stayman, 1993). Involvement here is increased by the use of emotional treatments, which
enhance the perceived value of the product. For instance, advertisements today for certain
types of products, such as pharmaceuticals, gain their effect by depicting pain and then
suggesting relief from the pain through the use of the advertised brand. It has also been
suggested earlier that certain products such as motor vehicles, airlines and personal computers,
are high in analytic value and high in affective value. The advertising of such products
emphasizes systematic learning and also elicits syncretic cognition by delineating, for example,
the enjoyment that can be derived from the advertised product. In addition, advertisements
for such products may use classical conditioning strategies to derive an advertisement-induced
affect’ .
The implications for advertisers is clear. For high-involvement products (high in syncretic
value) the advertisements should show the affect that can be derived from the product, while
for low-involvement products, the advertisements should produce advertisement-induced
affect from the presentational elements in the advertisement, since such products lack the
inherent motivational potential to produce an affect. In either case, spontaneous
communication is always relevant.
For product-induced affect strategies, the following hypothesis is stated.
H9: Advertisements high in product-induced affect strategies will produce greater syncretic
cognitive response than advertisements high in systematic learning strategies.
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ADVERTISING DIFFERENTIATION MATRIX
In accordance with the rationale provided earlier, Fig. 1. presents an advertising
differentiation matrix’ that uses the involvement outcomes of analytic and syncretic
responses to categorize products into four classes. However, the general implication,
for advertising strategy, that derives from this conceptual approach, is that affective
advertising strategies are viable for all product categories. For instance, advertisement-
induced affect (classical conditioning) can be used in all four classes. In addition, vicarious
learning and product-induced affect strategies can be used for all products that are high in
syncretic value.
1. Products: High in syncreticvalue and high in analyticvalue (automobiles, airlines,televisions)
Strategies:- Brand differentiationusing print media- Product-induced affectusing broadcast media- Advertisement-induced affectusing broadcast media- Vicarious learningusing broadcast media
2. Products: Low in syncreticvalue but high in analyticvalue (banks, appliances,industrial products)
Strategies:- Brand differentiationusing print media- Advertisement-induced affectusing broadcast media
4. Products: High in syncreticvalue but low in analyticvalue (chocolate, beer, sodas,yogurt)
Strategies:- Product-induced affectusing broadcast media- Advertisement-induced affectusing broadcast media- Vicarious learningusing broadcast media- Heuristic learningusing broadcast media
3. Products: Low in syncreticvalue and low in analyticvalue (tissues, detergents,fabric softeners)
Strategies:- Advertisement-induced affectusing broadcast media- Heuristic learningusing broadcast media
SYNCRETICCOGNITION
HIGH LOW
ANALYTICCOGNITION
HIGH
LOW
FIGURE 1. Advertising differentiation matrix.
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Quadrant 1
Certain products, such as motor vehicles, airlines and televisions are high in syncretic value
and analytic value. The advertising of such products emphasizes systematic learning via print
media in order to engender analytic cognitions and also elicits product-induced affect by
delineating, via broadcast media, the enjoyment that can be derived from the advertised
product. Alternatively, vicarious learning strategies in broadcast media may be used in order
to depict the social rewards of using the correct brand. In addition, advertisements for such
products can use classical conditioning strategies to derive an advertisement-induced affect.
Thus, brand information and an advertisement-induced affect both serve to differentiate the
advertised brand from competition. An obvious failing of the Foote, Cone and Belding (FCB)
grid (Vaughn, 1980, 1986) is its contention that products such as motor vehicles are
purchased solely on thinking’ . A cursory look at car advertisements on television will reveal
the insistent use of feeling’ techniques for such product categories.
Quadrant 2
Industrial products, services such as banking and household appliances are low in syncretic value
and high in analytic value. The advertising of such products emphasizes systematic learning via
the print media. In addition, advertisements for such products can use classical conditioning
strategies, through symbols, etc., to derive an advertisement-induced affect and thereby
differentiate the advertised brand. The attempt is to generate syncretic value through the
advertisements for a product which otherwise possesses very little inherent affective potential.
Quadrant 3
The FCB grid does not accommodate products that may be low in both thinking and feeling,
but certain products, such as tissues, fabric softeners and detergents are low in syncretic value
and low in analytic value. Advertisements for such products use heuristic learning strategies
(the use of celebrities, etc.) which provide consumers with easy decision rules for choosing
between brands in a low-involvement product category. Furthermore, classical conditioning
strategies are used, in particular through the broadcast media, to derive an advertisement-
induced affect, thereby differentiating the brand from competition.
At ® rst glance, it would appear that the products in quadrants 2 and 3 could not possibly
bene® t from emotional advertising. However, advertisements for industrial products do not
only develop beliefs and advertisements for tissues do not only repeat the brand name
(Krugman, 1965). In both classes there is classical conditioning through the subtle use of
symbols. The attempt is to create involvement with the advertisement by using, for example,
puppies in an advertisement for toilet paper or a horse-drawn stagecoach in an advertisement
for a bank. Children and canine commercials accounted for one-third of the top 25 most
popular commercials of 1987 (Alsop, 1988). Affection for trade characters (Snuggle, Pillsbury
Doughboy, etc.) also translates into affection for the product.
Quadrant 4
Certain products, such as chocolate, alcoholic beverages and sodas, are high in syncretic value
but low in analytic value. The advertising of such products uses product-induced affect
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strategies, particularly via broadcast media, which present sensory information in more vivid,
lifelike and dynamic images than print and thereby produce a greater syncretic cognitive
response. Product-induced affect strategies delineate the pleasure that can be derived from the
advertised product and serve to increase the consumers’ existing involvement with these
products. Unlike the FCB grid, the matrix does not consider these categories to be low
involvement. Involvement here can also be increased by the use of other emotional
treatments, such as vicarious learning, which enhance the perceived value of the product.
Furthermore, actual differences are hard to come by in these product classes and advertising is
the real’ difference induced through classical conditioning and vicarious learning strategies.
Lastly, since such products lack analytic value at the level of brand differences, heuristic
learning strategies may be employed in order to provide consumers with relatively simple
criteria for brand choice.
FUTURE RESEARCH
The hypotheses developed in this paper could be tested empirically. A comprehensive 5 3 2
3 2 experimental design is recommended in this regard. Advertisements would have to be
constructed specially for the experiment in order to separate the effects of the various
advertising strategies. Actual advertisements from actual advertisement campaigns are not
recommended since these advertisements usually combine elements of more than one
advertisement strategy and this would prevent conclusive testing of the pure’ effects of each
of the advertisement strategies in H5 ± H9.
The ® rst factor would be advertising strategies and the ® ve levels of this factor would be
systematic learning strategies (e.g. a product comparison), heuristic learning strategies (e.g. a
testimonial), classical conditioning strategies (e.g. a humorous advertisement), vicarious learning
strategies (e.g. an advertisement with a status appeal or a reference group appeal) and product-
induced affect strategies (e.g. an advertisement that stresses the pleasure that can be derived
from the product). The second factor would be product involvement and the two levels of this
factor would be products high in syncretic value and low in analytic value (e.g. chocolate bars)
and products low in syncretic value and high in analytic value (e.g. electrical appliances).
The third factor would be media and the two levels of this factor would be broadcast (e.g.
radio) and print (e.g. magazine). In all, there would be 20 different advertisements that would
have to be constructed and ten of these would be in broadcast and the other ten in print. Of
the ten broadcast advertisements, two sets of advertisements (one set for each level of product
involvement, for example chocolate bars and electric irons) would have to be constructed and
each set would comprise ® ve advertisements, one for each of the advertising strategies. This
would need to be done for the ten print advertisements as well, making sure that these print
advertisements have the same advertising content as in the ten corresponding broadcast
advertisements. We suggest a repeated measures design in which the same subjects provide
their analytic and syncretic cognition responses to each of the 20 conditions to be tested. If
this proves to be too daunting a task, then the project could be completed in incremental
stages. For instance, ® ve chocolate bar radio advertisements could be constructed ® rst and
H5 ± H9 could be tested and so on.
However, we strongly recommend the full experimental design in spite of the fact that this
would, obviously, be an ambitious research project suitable only for a dissertation or a
monograph. There is the opportunity here for some substantive research ® ndings in the area
of advertising effects since the suggested research design allows for the testing of the
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interaction effects between the various factors. Although the hypotheses developed in this
paper allow only for the main effects of the variables of interest, it is quite feasible that two-
way and even three-way interactions would be signi® cant, in addition to the main effects that
have been discussed. For instance, it is possible that for print advertisements, but not for
broadcast advertisements, systematic learning strategies produce greater analytic cognition than
advertisements using other advertising strategies. Investigation of this and other interaction
effects, as suggested in the four quadrants of the advertising differentiation matrix, would be
possible using the suggested research design.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors thank two anonymous reviewers for their very helpful insights.
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