Key Terms and Definitions

Chapter 9

Selective perception: the unconscious filtration process that reduces the plethora of sensory stimuli to which the individual is exposed to that small portion which becomes part of personal experience, choosing those stimuli which are rated subjectively as being of relevance. In other words it is a phenomenon whereby individuals screen out stimuli which they do not understand or do not wish to recognize. Pp232

Motivation: An inner state that activates or moves people towards goals, resulting in purposive means/ends behaviour. Pp163

Need : any physical or emotional body requirement, a lack of something useful required, or a desire for any reason (pp167). Drives and motives are also often called ‘needs’.

Hierarchy of needs: A widely used classification of needs proposed by Maslow (1943). According to Maslow’s basic theory we possess five basic needs which can be placed in a hierarchy such that as lower-order needs are satisfied we lose interest in them and concentrate upon satisfying needs at the next higher level which have become the most pressing. The five steps on the hierarchy in ascending order are: (1) physiological needs; (2) safety needs; (3) love needs; (4) esteem needs; (5) self-actualization needs.

Post-purchase dissonance: anxiety or dissonance, caused by feeling of doubt after a purchase commitment. This dissonance can be resolved by various strategies, e.g. by discussing with friends, by reading/viewing advertisements for the product etc. pp190

CAC models: Cognitive-Affective-Conative, one of the two basic attitude models (the other being EV or expectancy-value). pp19

AIDA: An acronym for Attention, Interest, Desire and Action, a hierarchy-of-effects model first proposed by Strong in 1924. pp15