Goal-Relevant Emotional Information: When Extraneous Affect Leads to Persuasion and When It Does Not

Journal of Consumer Research · 2005 · Volume 32 · Issue 3

Abstract

We investigate how extraneous or incidental emotions influence product evaluations as a function of consumers' salient goals. By manipulating specific emotions that correspond closely to two basic categories of human goals (achievement vs. protection), we extend affect-as-information theory and show that product judgments are a function not simply of the valence of extraneous emotions but also of the correspondence between specific emotions and salient goals. When consumers' achievement goals are salient, achievement-related emotions (cheerfulness and dejection) are more informative for evaluations than protection-related emotions (quiescence and agitation); the opposite is true when consumers' protection goals are salient.

Keywords

Affect/Emotions/Mood, Communication, Judgment and Decision Making, Persuasion, Experimental Design and Analysis (ANOVA)

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