Journal Article Penny Wise and Pound Foolish: The Left-Digit Effect in Price Cognition Get access Manoj Thomas, Thomas Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Vicki Morwitz of Consumer Research, Volume 32, Issue 1, June 2005, Pages 54–64, https://doi.org/10.1086/429600 Published: 01 2005

Journal Article How Credit Card Payments Increase Unhealthy Food Purchases: Visceral Regulation of Vices Get access Manoj Thomas, Thomas Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Kalpesh Kaushik Desai, Desai Satheeshkumar Seenivasan Consumer Research, Volume 38, Issue 1, 1 June 2011, Pages 126–139, https://doi.org/10.1086/657331 Published: 06 October 2010

Conspicuous consumption has often been decried as immoral by many philosophers and scholars, yet it is ubiquitous widely embraced. This research sheds light on the apparent paradox proposing that perceived morality of conspicuous malleable, contingent upon how different moral lenses highlight characteristics embedded in behavior. Utilizing Moral Foundations Theory, we demonstrate individualizing values (i.e., equality welfare) make people focus self-enhancing consumption, making seem morally...

We examine two questions: Does the roundness or precision of prices bias magnitude judgments? If so, do these biased judgments affect buyer behavior? Results from five studies suggest that buyers underestimate magnitudes precise prices. term this effect. The first three are laboratory experiments designed to test existence effect and underlying psychological processes. In Study 1, we find judged be smaller than round similar magnitudes. For example, participants in experiment incorrectly...

Journal Article Will I Spend More in 12 Months or a Year? The Effect of Ease Estimation and Confidence on Budget Estimates Get access Gülden Ülkümen, Ülkümen Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Manoj Thomas, Thomas Vicki G. Morwitz Consumer Research, Volume 35, Issue 2, August 2008, Pages 245–256, https://doi.org/10.1086/587627 Published: 13 March 2008

Consumers’ judgments of the magnitude numerical differences are influenced by ease mental computations. The results from a set experiments show that computation can affect price differences, discount magnitudes, and brand choices. Participants seem to believe it is easier judge size larger difference than smaller difference. In absence appropriate corrective steps, this naive belief lead systematic biases in judgments. For example, when presented with two pairs numbers, participants...

Abstract Psychological distance can reduce the subjective experience of difficulty caused by task complexity and anxiety. Four experiments were conducted to test several related hypotheses. was altered activating a construal mind-set varying bodily from given task. Activating an abstract reduced feeling difficulty. A direct manipulation produced same effect: participants found be less difficult when they distanced themselves leaning back in their seats. The not only identify psychological as...

When do internal reference prices differ from articulated price expectations? The authors propose that the depends not only on magnitude of expected but also confidence associated with this expectation. Four experiments delineate effects expectation and price. In Experiments 1 2, manipulate repetition examine repetition-induced judgments. 3 4, they directly to investigate its results all four suggest consumers less have higher than more confident consumers, even when in their expectations....

It has been widely documented that fluency (ease of information processing) increases positive evaluation. We proposed and demonstrated in three studies this was not the case when people construed objects abstractly rather than concretely. Specifically, we found priming to think mitigated effect on subsequent evaluative judgments (Studies 1 2). However, feelings such as were understood be signals value, increased liking primed (Study 3). These results suggest abstract thinking helps...

Consumers’ price evaluations are influenced by the left-digit bias, wherein consumers judge difference between $4.00 and $2.99 to be larger than that $4.01 $3.00, even though numeric differences identical. This research examines when why more likely fall prey bias. The authors propose bias is stronger in stimulus-based evaluations, people see focal reference side side, weaker memory-based have retrieve at least one from memory. because tend rely on perceptual representations of prices...

Some retailers use stars, while others Arabic numerals to present product ratings. Do consumers evaluate ratings differently depending on the format? Which format more accurately represents true magnitude of ratings? Across 12 experiments, we find that neither is veridical. Consumers overestimate fractional star (e.g., ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆) and underestimate 3.5). The overestimation graphical arises from visual-completion effect: when visual system perceives an incomplete image a star, it instinctively...

Different framing of the same duration (one year, 12 months, 365 days) can influence consumers’ impressions subjective duration, thereby affecting their judgments and decisions. The authors propose that, ironically, self-relevance amplifies this effect. Consumers for whom a particular self-improvement domain is personally relevant are less likely to adopt one-year plan as compared with 12-month because they perceive it longer more difficult. This bias manifest in consumers who report that...

Abstract Ramos et al. ( Journal of Consumer Psychology , 2024) explain the Moral Foundations Theory (MFT) and discuss its applicability to marketing persuasion, consumer emotions, prosocial behavior. We concur with but suggest that scope for MFT in behavior is much broader – it can be used investigate heterogeneity consumers' moral utility. Specifically, we how product preferences, financial choices, reactions brand activism, market regulation. conclude by discussing three important...

Numeric ratings for products can be presented using a bigger-is-better format (1 = bad, 5 good) or smaller-is-better with reversed rating poles good, bad). Seven experiments document how implicit memory the format—where larger numbers typically connote something is better—can systematically bias consumers' judgments without their awareness. This polarity effect result of proactive interference from culturally determined numerical associations in and results consumer that are less sensitive...

Although humans are hard-wired to pursue sensory pleasure, they show considerable heterogeneity in their moral evaluations of pleasure. In some societies, pleasure is pursued without any inhibition, but other it considered be immoral and actively suppressed. This research investigates the motives behind suppression consumption. Is consumption caused by motive promote social justice or order? We test these two competing accounts through country-level archival data seven preregistered...

Consumer payments elicited on slider scales can be systematically different from those through text boxes because of the end point assimilation effect. When people use to make payments, they evaluate monetary values relative starting response range. In contrast, when scales, as well Consequently, tend assimilated toward This scale effect varies for ascending and descending payment formats. For formats (e.g., eBay bids), elicit higher than boxes. But Priceline lower research not only...

Previous articleNext article FreeBehavioral PricingWhy Do Cashless Payments Increase Unhealthy Consumption? The Decision-Risk Inattention HypothesisJoowon Park, Clarence Lee, and Manoj ThomasJoowon ThomasAbstractFull TextPDFSupplemental Material Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmailQR Code SectionsMoreAbstractWhy do shoppers spend more money on unhealthy food when they make cashless payments? We propose that negative...

Analysis of actual transactions in a grocery store shows that households enrolled the U.S. government's Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) purchase more unhealthy hedonic food, compared with do not receive SNAP benefits. purchased food regardless whether they used government funds or cash to pay for their purchases. Three follow-up simulated shopping studies were designed understand mechanisms underlying this consumption pattern by households. households, benefits, reported...

Does explicit recall help or hurt memory-based comparisons? It is often assumed that attempting to information from memory should facilitate—or at least not disrupt—memory-based comparisons. Using the domain of price comparisons, authors demonstrate comparisons are less accurate when consumers first attempt past versus they do try so. Attempting—and failing at—explicit focuses attention on metacognitive experience, resulting in a feeling-of-not-knowing, which then blocks implicit people...

The goal of this research is to study why consumers might fail experience regret after unhealthy consumption. Specifically, we examine how anticipated before the consumption and experienced differ. We find that immediate postconsumption tends be less intense than regret. additionally delayed These effects are stronger for people with self-control goals. results suggest "cold" assessments based on discrepancy between goals behaviors, whereas a "hot" emotional experience. Negative arousal...