CONTEXT IS KEY - THE EFFECT OF PROGRAM-INDUCED MOOD ON THOUGHTS ABOUTTHE AD

Prior research has shown that the context in which a commercial messag e is presented can have important effects on how the message is proces sed and its success in the marketplace. The authors examine the impact of context-induced moods on the processing of embedded television adv ertisements. Mood was manipulated naturally by varying the program con text in which the stimulus ads were embedded, anal its effects on ad p rocessing were observed. The results indicate that ads placed in progr ams that induce negative moods are processed less systematically than ones placed in, programs that put viewers in positive moods. Moreover, mood was found to influence attitudes toward the advertisements both by affecting the number of cognitions the audience generates about the ads and by modifying the effect of those cognitions on A(ad).