Page 73 - DMGT506_CONSUMER_BEHAVIOUR

Consumer Behaviour

Notes
Example: Examples of Grouping

Proximity Similarity Continuity

(a) (b) (c)

Closure

Individuals have a need for closure and fulfil it by organising their perceptions in a manner that
leads to form ing a com plete picture. In the event that they are exposed to a pattern of stimuli,
which in their view is incomplete, they tend to perceive it as complete by filling in the missing
pieces. This phenomenon may be the result of conscious or subconscious efforts. For example, if
a portion of a circle is left incomplete, it is mostly perceived as a complete circle and not an arc.
Because of this need for closure, individuals experience tension when some task is incomplete
and a feeling of satisfaction and relief develops with its completion.
According to James T Heimbach and Jacob Jacoby, people remember incomplete tasks better
than completed tasks because a person who begins a task develops the need to complete it and
this gets manifested in improved memory. For instance, hearing the beginning of a jingle or
message develops a need to hear the remaining part of it. If the TV commercials of Nirma or
Lifebuoy leave the jingle incomplete, familiar listeners complete it in their memory because of
the conditioning effect and need for closure. Advertisers can take advantage of need for closure
by using the sound track of a frequently shown TV commercial on radio. Audiences who are
familiar with TV commercial perceive the audio track alone as incomplete and mentally play
back the video content from memory. So far, the evidence is inconclusive to say that all incomplete
ad messages or jingles are better remembered than the completed ones.

5.1.6 Interpretation of Stimuli

Individuals, in their own unique manner, interpret the stimuli. As the old saying goes, “a person
sees what he/she expects to see,” Interpretation of stimuli by individuals is based on their
earlier experiences, plausible explanations they can assign, their motives, beliefs and interests
at the time of perception.
For a number of reasons, stimuli can often be weak or strong and may prove to be quite
ambiguous to individuals.

Example: Brief exposure, poor visibility, changing levels of illumination, low pitch,
high noise level, or constant fluctuations can create difficulties in interpreting the stimuli.

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