Is the Peak-Affect Important in Fast Processing of Visual Images in Printed Ads? : A Comparative Study on the Affect Integration Theories

This study investigates how affects elicited by visual images in print ads are integrated to form a liking for the ads. Assuming a sequential rather than simultaneous processing of still-cut images, we adopt the ‘think-aloud’ method to capture consumers' spontaneous responses to visual images. We hypothesize that not only would consumers show mixed affects toward a still-cut visual image but that they would also integrate their serial affects heuristically rather than simply averaging the affects as suggested by the compensatory hypothesis. By comparing the effects of two contradictory affect integration hypotheses (i.e., peak-affect and mood-maintenance) with compensatory integration, using a single regression model, we found that peak-negative along with mood maintenance integration of serial affects for a print ad works best in the formation of ad liking. The results also support our initial premise that people can have mixed valence even toward a still-cut ad.