publications
Copies of published manuscripts available upon request.
Romero, M., Craig, A. W., Mormann, M., & Kumar, A. (Forthcoming) "Are “10-Grams of Protein” Better Than “Ten Grams of Protein”? How Digits Versus Number Words Influence Consumer Judgments", Journal of Consumer Research. Preprint
Abstract: Numerical information can be communicated using different number formats, such as digits (“5”) or number words (“five”). For example, a battery product may claim to last for “5 hours” or “five hours.” And while these two formats are used interchangeably in the marketplace, it is not clear how they influence consumer judgments and behavior. Via six experimental studies, two online ad campaigns, and one large secondary dataset analysis, we find that digits, compared to number words, positively affect consumer behavior. We refer to this phenomenon as the number format effect. We further show that the number format effect occurs because consumers feel that digits (vs. number words) are the right way to present numerical information: digits lead to a sense of feeling right that then affects consumer behavior. Finally, we show that the number format effect is amplified when credibility of the source of information is low, and attenuated when source credibility is high. The current research advances knowledge of how numerical information influences consumer judgments and behavior and carries important implications for marketers and policymakers as they communicate numerical information to consumers.Lundberg, J., Craig, A. W., & Peloza, J., (2023) “Strike while the iron is hot: Temperature affects consumers' appetite for risk,” Psychology and Marketing, 40 (12), 2653-2667. http://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21905
Abstract: Many consumer decisions – from trying a new brand to trying a new recipe – involve risk. However, although consumers’ appetite for risk has received over fifty years of investigation, the impact of situational variables (e.g., atmospherics) on consumer decision making involving risk remains relatively unexplored. To address this gap, the current work examines the influence of temperature, a ubiquitous situational influence, on consumers’ inclination toward risk. Across four studies, we find evidence for a positive relationship between temperature and risk taking, using multiple operationalizations of temperature and measurements of risk. Evidence suggests that this effect is driven by warm temperature engaging the Behavioral Activation System, which in turn heightens risk taking.Scholl, B., Craig, A. W., Chin, A. (2023) “A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Dollars: Visual Aids Promote Investor Decisions,” Journal of the Association for Consumer Research. https://doi.org/10.1086/726428
Abstract: Policymakers emphasize that fees should be an important consideration in making investment decisions that support savings, retirement and other consequential, long term financial outcomes. Nevertheless, retail investors tend to prioritize recent returns. In non-financial domains, visual aids designed with choice architecture principles help convey complex quantitative information and reduce decision biases. The current work explores how a variety of mutual fund visual aids affect investment decisions. Across three studies, including two with incentivized national samples (N = 4,588), we demonstrate that visual aids displaying mutual fund fees lower fees paid by up to 25%compared to legally compliant disclosure documents. We address important public policy implications relevant to investors and regulators.Li, W., Hardesty, D., Craig, A. W., & Song, L. (2022) “Hidden Price Promotions: Could Retailer Price Promotions Backfire?” Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 64, 102797. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102797
Abstract: Hidden-price promotions, a type of uncertain price promotion in which the final price is not revealed when consumers first encounter the product, have been recently adopted by retailers. However, current research suggests that hidden-price promotions have the potential to backfire and result in reduced consumer purchase intention. Across seven studies, we reveal that hidden-price promotions can be effective but risk increasing discount expectations, as consumers expect a large discount. Only when the discount level meets or exceeds inflated expectations does the excitement built by the promotion positively impact purchase intention. For cognitive purchases, even without providing a high discount, hidden-price promotions are as effective as traditional ones. This research provides guidelines for retailers that want to employ hidden-price promotions.Sheehan, Van Ittersum, Craig, & Romero "A packaged mindset: How elongated packages induce healthy mindsets" 2020, Appetite. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2020.104657
Abstract: Product packaging is an important instrument for marketers to draw consumer attention to specific product information and influence product perceptions. The purpose of this research is to investigate whether exposure to a product's packaging can also activate specific mindsets that, once activated, alter consumers' food perceptions. The results of three experiments demonstrate that elongated containers activate a health mindset that influences both consumers' perception of the packaged food product but also their health perceptions of subsequently encountered food. Specifically, foods in elongated containers lead consumers to think of concepts related to healthiness, which have differentiable effects on subsequent healthy and unhealthy food products.Chester, Bell, DeWall, West, Romero-Lopez, & Craig "Neural Correlates of Intertemporal Choice in Aggressive Behavior" 2019, Aggressive Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21838. Preprint.
Abstract: People often have to make decisions between immediate rewards and more long-term goals. Such intertemporal judgments are often investigated in the context of monetary choice or drug use, yet not in regards to aggressive behavior. We combined a novel intertemporal aggression paradigm with functional neuroimaging to examine the role of temporal delay in aggressive behavior and the neural correlates thereof. Sixty-one participants (aged 18-22; 37 females) exhibited substantial variability in the extent to which they selected immediate acts of lesser aggression versus delayed acts of greater aggression against a same-sex opponent. Choosing delayed-yet-more-severe aggression was increased by provocation and associated with greater self-control. Preferences for delayed aggression were associated with greater activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) during such choices, and reduced functional connectivity between the VMPFC and brain regions implicated in motor impulsivity. Preferences for immediate aggression were associated with reduced functional connectivity between the VMPFC and the frontoparietal control network. Dispositionally-aggressive participants exhibited reduced VMPFC activity, which partially explained and suppressed their preferences for delayed aggression. Blunted VMPFC activity may thus be a neural mechanism that promotes reactive aggression towards provocateurs among dispositionally-aggressive individuals. These findings demonstrate the utility of an intertemporal framework for investigating aggression and provide further evidence for the similar underlying neurobiology between aggression and other rewarding behaviors. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21838Romero, M., Craig, A. W., & Kumar, A. (2019) ““Mapping Time: How the Spatial Representation of Time Influences Intertemporal Choices”” Journal of Marketing Research, 56 (4), 620-636.
Supplemental Material
Abstract: Cognitive linguistic studies have found that people perceive time to be intertwined with space. Western consumers, in particular, visualize time on a horizontal spatial axis with past events on the left and future events on the right. Underexplored, however, is whether and how space-time associations influence future time related judgments and decisions. For instance, can spatial location cues impact intertemporal decisions? Integrating cognitive linguistics, time psychology, and intertemporal choice, the authors demonstrate across five studies that when choices are displayed horizontally, vs. vertically, consumers more steeply discount future outcomes. Furthermore, this effect is serially mediated by attention to time and anticipated duration estimates. Specifically, the authors propose and demonstrate that horizontal (vs. vertical) temporal displays enhance the amount of attention devoted to considering the time delay and leads consumers to overestimate how long it will take to receive benefits. This research has important implications for consumers who want to forego immediate gratification and for firms that need to manage consumers’ time perceptions. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0022243719827967
Li, W., Hardesty, D., & Craig, A. (2018) “Comparing Apples with Oranges: The Impact of Dynamic Bundling on Price Fairness Perceptions” Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 40 (January), 204-212. Link.
Romero, M. & Craig, A. W. (2017) “Costly Curves: How Human-Like Shapes Can Increase Spending,” Journal of Consumer Research, 44 (1) 80-98. Link.
Supplemental Material
Besharat, A., Varki, S., & Craig, A. W. (2015) “Keeping Consumers in the Red: Hedonic Debt Prioritization Within Multiple Debt Accounts,” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 25 (2), 311-316. Link.
Craig, A. W., Komarova, Y., Wood, S., & Vendemia, J. M. C. (2012) “Suspicious Minds: An fMRI Investigation of Deception Detection Processes in the Marketplace.” Journal of Marketing Research, 49 (June), 361-372. Link.
Hockett, J., Saucier, D., Hoffman, B., Smith, S., Craig, A. (2009) “Oppression through acceptance? Predicting rape myth acceptance and attitudes toward rape victims,” Violence Against Women, 15 (8), 877-897.
Delvecchio, D., & Craig, A. W. (2008) “Mode Matters: An Exemplar Prototype Hybrid (EPH) Model of Reference Price Formation,” Journal of Product and Brand Management, 17 (4), 272 – 279.