These days, most scientific research on unconscious processes is aimed at showing that people do not need consciousness for certain psychological processes or behaviors. Research subjects primed with the stereotype of a professor – a sort of intellectual role model – outperformed those primed with an anti-intellectual stereotype.
Priming can be used to improve intellectual test performance. But this does not mean that we obey these messages like zombies in fact, hidden messages have little effect on behavior outside the laboratory (Kunst-Wilson & Zajonc, 1980 Rensink, 2004 Nelson, 2008 Radel, Sarrazin, Legrain, & Gobancé, 2009 Loersch, Durso, & Petty, 2013).įigure 2. Research evidence shows that in laboratory settings, people can process and respond to information outside of awareness. Over the years there has been a great deal of speculation about the use of subliminal messages in advertising, rock music, and self-help audio programs. Therefore, the message is sensed, but for whatever reason, it has not been selected for processing in working or short-term memory. A message below that threshold is said to be subliminal: we receive it, but we are not consciously aware of it. A stimulus reaches a physiological threshold when it is strong enough to excite sensory receptors and send nerve impulses to the brain: this is an absolute threshold. It is also possible for us to get messages that are presented below the threshold for conscious awareness-these are called subliminal messages. Under quiet conditions, the hair cells (the receptor cells of the inner ear) can detect the tick of a clock 20 feet away (Galanter, 1962). It has been estimated that on a clear night, the most sensitive sensory cells in the back of the eye can detect a candle flame 30 miles away (Okawa & Sampath, 2007). The sensitivity of our sensory receptors can be quite amazing. Another way to think about this is by asking how dim can a light be or how soft can a sound be and still be detected half of the time. Absolute threshold refers to the minimum amount of stimulus energy that must be present for the stimulus to be detected 50% of the time. The sensitivity of a given sensory system to the relevant stimuli can be expressed as an absolute threshold. The absolute threshold for detecting light is greater than you probably imagined-the human eye can see a candle on a clear night up to 30 miles away! Judas Priest, a Nevada judge ruled that subliminal messages aren't protected by the First Amendment and do constitute an invasion of privacy.Figure 1. Subliminal advertising, because it is intended to produce information that the viewer is not aware he is receiving, has been ruled as not protected by the First Amendment.
This kind of messaging can be used to strengthen or heighten the persuasiveness of advertisements, or to convey an altogether different message entirely.
Subliminal messages are visual or auditory stimuli that the conscious mind cannot perceive, often inserted into other media such as TV commercials or songs. Simply so, what is subliminal messaging in advertising?