Alert or oblivious? Factors underlying consumer responses to marketing stimuli

Recently published studies have introduced consumer researchers to uses of priming theory in marketing messages. A two-factor model of assimilation and contrast effects has been proposed which focuses on aspects of message context and cognitive resource differences between consumers. However, these accounts do not consider an important additional factor pertinent to the production of category-based contrast effects in response to marketing communications. This article discusses recent priming research and presents theoretical discussion in support of the putative third factor of consumer wariness for predicting judgmental outcomes of priming effects in consumer market settings. (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.