“So Cute I Could Eat It Up”: Priming Effects of Cute Products on Indulgent Consumption

This article examines the extent to which consumers engage in more indulgent consumption when they are exposed to whimsically cute products and explores the process by which such products affect indulgence. Prior research on kindchenschema (baby schema) has found that exposure to cute babies or baby...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of consumer research 2014-08, Vol.41 (2), p.326-341
Main Authors: Nenkov, Gergana Y., Scott, Maura L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Brands
Cognitive psychology
Consumption
Cookies
Gift certificates
Ice cream
Infants
Information processing
Literature
Mental stimulation
Movies
Product choice
Self control
Shopping
Staplers
Studies
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Summary:This article examines the extent to which consumers engage in more indulgent consumption when they are exposed to whimsically cute products and explores the process by which such products affect indulgence. Prior research on kindchenschema (baby schema) has found that exposure to cute babies or baby animals leads to more careful behavior (see the study by Sherman, Haidt, and Coan), suggesting restraint. The present research uncovers the opposite: consumers become more indulgent in their behavior after exposure to whimsically cute products. Drawing from research on cognitive priming, kindchenschema, anthropomorphization, indulgence, and regulatory focus, this research posits that exposure to whimsically cute products primes mental representations of fun, increasing consumers’ focus on approaching self-rewards and making consumers more likely to choose indulgent options. These effects do not emerge for kindchenschema cute stimuli, since they prime mental representations of vulnerability and caretaking. Four empirical studies provide evidence for the proposed effects and their underlying process.
ISSN:0093-5301
1537-5277
DOI:10.1086/676581