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Unlock This CourseHave you ever wondered why you suddenly crave a certain brand of chocolate or feel drawn to a particular advert? According to psychodynamic theory, many of our decisions happen below the surface of our conscious awareness. This has led psychologists and marketers to develop ways of measuring these hidden thoughts and feelings.
Unconscious measurement refers to techniques that try to uncover thoughts, feelings and motivations that people aren't consciously aware of. It's like trying to peek into someone's mind without them knowing what you're looking for.
Key Definitions:
Freud compared the mind to an iceberg. The small tip above water represents our conscious thoughts - what we're aware of right now. The massive part underwater represents the unconscious - hidden thoughts, memories and desires that still influence our behaviour. Marketers want to tap into this hidden part to understand what really drives our purchasing decisions.
Psychologists and marketers have developed various techniques to try to measure unconscious thoughts and feelings. These methods attempt to bypass our conscious defences and reveal our true preferences.
These techniques measure bodily responses that we can't consciously control, giving clues about our unconscious reactions.
When we see something emotionally engaging, our heart rate increases and our skin conducts electricity better due to slight sweating. Marketers use these measures to see which adverts create the strongest emotional response.
Special cameras track exactly where people look and for how long. This reveals what catches our attention unconsciously, helping advertisers place products and text in the most effective positions.
fMRI scans show which parts of the brain become active when viewing products or adverts. This reveals unconscious emotional and memory responses that influence purchasing decisions.
These techniques observe what people do rather than what they say, often revealing unconscious preferences.
In blind taste tests, more people preferred Pepsi over Coca-Cola. However, when brands were revealed, preferences switched to Coca-Cola. Brain scans showed that seeing the Coca-Cola logo activated memory and emotion centres, overriding taste preferences. This demonstrates how unconscious brand associations can be more powerful than conscious sensory experiences.
The Implicit Association Test (IAT) measures how quickly people associate different concepts. Faster associations suggest stronger unconscious links. For example, if someone quickly associates a brand with "good" words, they likely have positive unconscious feelings about that brand.
Supporters of unconscious measurement argue that these techniques provide valuable insights that traditional methods miss.
When researchers ask people directly about their preferences, several problems arise that unconscious measurement can help solve.
People often give answers they think make them look good rather than their true feelings. For example, they might claim to prefer healthy foods when they actually crave junk food.
We're genuinely unaware of many factors that influence our decisions. Unconscious measurement can reveal these hidden influences that even we don't know about.
We often create logical-sounding reasons for decisions that were actually made unconsciously. Measuring unconscious responses bypasses these after-the-fact explanations.
Research using brain imaging found that McDonald's adverts activated brain regions associated with childhood memories and comfort, even in adults who consciously claimed to dislike fast food. This unconscious emotional connection helped explain why the brand remained popular despite negative conscious attitudes about fast food.
Studies suggest that unconscious measures can sometimes predict behaviour better than conscious self-reports. Brain scans of people viewing movie trailers predicted box office success more accurately than focus groups where people consciously discussed their preferences.
Critics raise several important concerns about the validity and ethics of unconscious measurement techniques.
Many researchers question whether these techniques actually measure what they claim to measure.
Just because someone's brain shows activity when viewing a product doesn't necessarily mean they'll buy it. The link between unconscious responses and actual behaviour isn't always clear or consistent.
Results from unconscious measurement techniques often vary between studies and don't always replicate. This raises questions about their scientific reliability.
Unconscious responses measured in a laboratory might not reflect how people behave in real-world shopping situations with different pressures and distractions.
People's brains and unconscious processes vary greatly. What works for measuring one person's unconscious responses might not work for another's.
The use of unconscious measurement in marketing raises important ethical questions about manipulation and consent.
In the 1950s, researcher James Vicary claimed that flashing "Drink Coca-Cola" and "Eat Popcorn" messages too quickly for conscious awareness increased sales. Although later revealed as a hoax, this sparked ongoing debates about the ethics of targeting unconscious minds. Many countries now ban subliminal advertising, but the debate continues about other forms of unconscious measurement.
If people aren't aware that their unconscious responses are being measured and used to influence them, can they truly give informed consent? This is particularly concerning when targeting children or vulnerable populations.
The debate about unconscious measurement reflects broader questions about free will, consumer protection and the ethics of psychological research.
While unconscious measurement techniques have limitations, they may provide useful insights when combined with traditional methods. The key is transparency about their limitations and ethical use of the results.
Many countries are developing regulations about neuromarketing and unconscious measurement. These aim to protect consumers while allowing legitimate research to continue.
Companies like Netflix use viewing behaviour data to unconsciously measure preferences - tracking what you watch, when you pause and what you skip. This behavioural data might be more reliable than brain scans for predicting what content you'll enjoy, while raising fewer ethical concerns about manipulation.