Product marketers should be clear in their messaging to avoid customer skepticism that makes them feel duped, according to new research. At issue in a new study was a social-cognitive construct called theory of mind, which considers how well people assess the mental states and apparent goals of others. Turns out, it affects a person’s evaluation and willingness to buy a product.

At issue in a new study, published in the Journal of Business Research, was a social-cognitive construct called theory of mind, which considers how well people assess the mental states and apparent goals of others.

Developmental psychologists link it to an ability to show empathy. In business, the study, led by former UO doctoral student Elizabeth Minton, showed it also can influence a person’s recognition of being persuaded. And that affects a person’s evaluation and willingness to buy a product, she found.

«There has been some research on adult theory of mind, particularly in understanding sales communications,» said co-author T. Bettina Cornwell, head of the Department of Marketing and a Philip H. Knight Chair at the UO. «However, there hasn’t been a lot of attention to variations of how it plays out.»

In young children, Cornwell said, theory of mind is easily seen. For them, she said, their parent’s minds and aspirations are their minds, too. If a child wants a doll for a birthday, then mom does, too. Later a child separates that thinking, realizing that mom may instead prefer perfume or dinner out.

In the project, Minton, now an associate professor of marketing at the University of Wyoming, designed four experiments in collaboration with Cornwell and Hong Yuan, the Richard P. Booth Associate Professor and Research Scholar of marketing and director of the UO’s Business Research Institute.

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