The Daily Bulletin Archive

Dan Gaygen, assistant professor of business, presented “The Effects of Music on the Time Course and Number of Buy Decisions” at the American Marketing Association 2012 Winter Educators' Conference, held in Saint Petersburg, Florida, February 17–19.

Gaygen reported on two well-controlled laboratory experiments that directly tested the effects of tempo, key, and affective qualities of music on participants’ buying decisions. A Buy/No Buy experimental paradigm was developed that measured the time course and frequency of Buy Decisions by participants viewing photographs of models wearing articles of clothing for sale. The results indicate that Buy Decisions take longer than No Buy Decisions and that unwanted items are, on average, rejected very quickly. Exposure to music significantly reduced viewing times and Buy Decisions, though different qualities of music had no differential effects.