Conditions and Consequences of Spontaneous Inference Generation: A Concurrent Protocol Approach

Abstract The significant role of inferences in brand evaluation is now widely recognized but the occurrence of spontaneous inferences is still open to question. This study provides evidence, based upon concurrent protocol analysis, for some of the conditions under which spontaneous inferences are likely to occur. The effects of prior knowledge, message type, and processing goal on the occurrence of spontaneous inferences were investigated. High knowledge subjects made spontaneous inferences for all message types. Low knowledge subjects drew an inference only when the message was presented in logical form. Inferential beliefs and brand attitudes were stronger and more favorable when high knowledge subjects generated spontaneous inferences from the logically structured message than those established by explicitly presented information. Protocol data revealed several different inference processes and these processes differed for high versus low knowledge subjects.