Decision Making by Low‐Literacy Consumers in the Presence of Point‐of‐Purchase Information

Low-literacy consumers face disadvantages when making product choices. This article presents the results of two studies designed to explore differences in decision-making behavior across consumer literacy levels, focusing on consumers' ability to evaluate information in print ads and product packaging. The authors demonstrate that the presence of a visual decision aid at the point of purchase can improve choice for low-literacy consumers. ********** Literacy is defined as "using printed and written information to function in society, to achieve one's goals, and to develop one's knowledge and potential" (Kirsch, Jungeblut, Jenkins, and Kolstad 1993). The National Adult Literacy Survey classifies American adults into one of five levels of literacy (Kirsch et al. 1993). People at Level 1 lack the reading proficiency to fill out basic forms or read simple instructions. People functioning at Level 2 can read enough to enter background information on a simple form and to locate easily identifiable information in text but otherwise possess only marginal literacy skills. People in the Level 1 and Level 2 literacy groups are estimated to comprehend reading-related tasks at or below a sixth-grade level (Adkins 2001). As much as 50% of the population of the United States is thought to operate at Level 1 or Level 2 literacy (Kirsch et al. 1993). In recognition of the size of the low-literacy population, a conceptual essay by Wallendorf (2001) suggests that the impact of literacy on consumer behavior needs to be explored further. Based on this recommendation, our research explores differences in decision-making behavior across consumer literacy levels. More specifically, we examine responses to point-of-purchase information that is displayed in written or visual form. This context is important due to the influence of point-of-purchase information on choice (see Cobb and Hoyer 1985; Dhar and Simonson 1992) and the amount of written information at the point of purchase (e.g., lists of features and benefits on product packages). In the context of point-of-purchase decision making, we apply existing theory to explain the choice process of low-literacy consumers and demonstrate how the presence of a visual decision aid at the point of purchase can improve choice by allowing low-literacy consumers to better use information. CONCEPTUAL BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESES The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) (Petty and Cacioppo 1981, 1984) provides a guideline describing how consumers process written information at the point of purchase. Per ELM, message elaboration is held to be high when people have the motivation and ability to engage in issue-relevant thinking. Under high elaboration conditions, consumers attend to an appeal, scrutinize and elaborate upon message arguments, and draw inferences about the merits of the arguments. This style of processing is referred to as central route processing. Conversely, when message elaboration is low, people are said to follow peripheral route processing in which evaluations of a product are based on the association of the product with positive or negative cues that are tangential to the message argument (Cacioppo and Petty 1984). Thus, ELM suggests that when elaboration is high, people evaluate persuasive appeals by considering the veracity of the claims. When elaboration is low, people are influenced primarily by stylistic aspects of the message, which are termed peripheral cues (see, for example, Alba and Hutchinson 1987). Commonly cited peripheral cues include the number of arguments presented in a message, attractive colors or pictorial scenes, and the physical attractiveness of a spokesperson in an advertisement (Petty and Cacioppo 1984; Petty 1995). Literacy is a key ability factor that should influence whether a consumer is persuaded by peripheral cues rather than message claims (Viswanathan, Rosa, and Harris 2003). The lack of reading fluency that characterizes low-literacy consumers leads their cognitive resources to be devoted to low-level reading processes (word level), leaving little room for comprehension of the overall message (Perfetti 1985). …