Preconscious screening of incoming information is necessary because more data enters the brain from the five senses than the conscious mind can handle. DRM increases the amount of information that survives subliminal screening processes in consumers' minds. It does this by stimulating activity in the midbrain where primary emotions arise to deal with basic physiological and psychological needs. Because basic survival is the brain's first concern, incoming information is first evaluated in terms of primary emotions. The midbrain also is where adrenaline flow is prompted.
Adrenaline plays a key role in the formation of long-term memory.
Arousal of primary emotions facilitates later recall of a marketing message's content partly by stimulating the flow of adrenaline. Emotionally neutral material, such as facts concerning product features and benefits, is less memorable because it generally stimulates minimal adrenaline flow. This activates cognitive or thinking processes. With feelings providing tonal background, secondary emotions sense and further measure relevance. Reason is used to label and analyze what the secondary emotions sense and measure, but secondary emotions are preeminent in the decision process.