Another Look at Subliminal Perception

Subliminal perception aroused intense interest from marketing people as well as the general public in the late 1950s, but interest in the subject has since subsided and empirical research virtually does not exist. If it is a reliable effect, subliminal perception still has possible use in formulatin...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of advertising research 1979-02, Vol.19 (1), p.55-57
Main Author: Saegert, Joel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Consumer behavior
Marketing
Perceptions
Psychological aspects
Subliminal perception
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Subliminal perception aroused intense interest from marketing people as well as the general public in the late 1950s, but interest in the subject has since subsided and empirical research virtually does not exist. If it is a reliable effect, subliminal perception still has possible use in formulating advertising strategy. Recent psychological research on subliminal stimuli includes work by L. H. Silverman. Silverman uses the technique of tachistoscopic presentation of subthreshold stimuli to demonstrate support for Freudian psychoanalytic theory. His studies have demonstrated behavioral changes as a result of subliminal stimuli. Because Silverman's subjects were pathological or were prone to exhibit this behavior, critics argue that his results would not apply to a "normal" population. Others argue that even though advertising is directed at large numbers of people, it is only perceived by a small subset and eventually will be responded to by those whose needs can be satisfied by the product being advertised.
ISSN:0021-8499
1740-1909