Subliminal Messages Essay

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Subliminal Messages in Advertising: The Case For and Against Lisa Caswell Syracuse University Running Head: Subliminal Messages Subliminal messaging and subliminal perception are controversial topics in the field of psychology. Many studies have been conducted to determine if subliminal messaging does in fact work. Many people think that subliminal messages in the field of advertising are much more successful than subliminal messages for self-improvement, such as tapes sold to help the consumer lose weight, gain intelligence, or do something else to improve themselves simply by listening to a tape. Subliminal advertising can be defined as "embedding material in print, audio, or video messages so faintly that they are not consciously perceived." Rogers and Smith (1993) surveyed 400 households. When asked if they believed advertisers deliberately included subliminal messages, 61.5% responded 'yes'. A 72.2% 'yes' answer was obtained when asked if subliminal advertisements were effective. Based on these results, it can be concluded that consumers are aware of subliminal advertising, and believe it is effectively used by advertisers to influence their decisions. The term "sub-threshold effects," first popularized by Packard in 1957, preceded the popular notion of "subliminal advertising," whose originator is James Vicary. Subliminal advertising first came to the public's attention in 1957 when Jim Vicary conducted a subliminal advertising strategy of... ... middle of paper ... ...ou See Is What You Get. Journal of Marketing. 38-47. Packard, V. The Hidden Persuaders. New York: Pocket Books, 1957. Rogers, M., and. Seiler, C. A. (1994). The answer is no: a national survey of advertising industry practitioners and their clients about whether they use subliminal advertising. Journal of Advertising Research. 36-46 Rogers, M., Smith,
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