IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jbrese/v111y2020icp270-280.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effects of background complexity on consumer visual processing: An eye-tracking study

Author

Listed:
  • Wang, Qiuzhen
  • Ma, Da
  • Chen, Hanyue
  • Ye, Xuhong
  • Xu, Qing

Abstract

Product images are an important element of web design. Although many studies have been conducted on web design, the effect of the background of a product image has been ignored. This study investigates the influence of the background complexity of a product image on consumer attention, information processing, and purchase intention using eye-tracking and questionnaire methods. Furthermore, it considers the moderating effects of consumer cognitive style. The results show that product images with higher background complexity attract greater attention, but most of that attention is focused on the background. Product images with moderate background complexity best promote consumer processing of product information, thereby increasing purchase intention. In addition, consumer cognitive style moderates the effect of background complexity on that person's attention to the product textual description. Specifically, consumers with a field-dependent cognitive style are more susceptible to being influenced by background complexity.

Suggested Citation

  • Wang, Qiuzhen & Ma, Da & Chen, Hanyue & Ye, Xuhong & Xu, Qing, 2020. "Effects of background complexity on consumer visual processing: An eye-tracking study," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 270-280.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:111:y:2020:i:c:p:270-280
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.018
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296319304357
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.018?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wu, Kewen & Vassileva, Julita & Zhao, Yuxiang & Noorian, Zeinab & Waldner, Wesley & Adaji, Ifeoma, 2016. "Complexity or simplicity? Designing product pictures for advertising in online marketplaces," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 17-27.
    2. Maier, Erik & Dost, Florian, 2018. "The positive effect of contextual image backgrounds on fluency and liking," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 109-116.
    3. Mosteller, Jill & Donthu, Naveen & Eroglu, Sevgin, 2014. "The fluent online shopping experience," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(11), pages 2486-2493.
    4. Michel Wedel & Rik Pieters, 2000. "Eye Fixations on Advertisements and Memory for Brands: A Model and Findings," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(4), pages 297-312, October.
    5. Jonathan W. Palmer, 2002. "Web Site Usability, Design, and Performance Metrics," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 13(2), pages 151-167, June.
    6. Alicia L. Rihn & Chengyan Yue, 2016. "Visual Attention's Influence on Consumers’ Willingness‐to‐Pay for Processed Food Products," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(3), pages 314-328, July.
    7. Menon, R.G. Vishnu & Sigurdsson, Valdimar & Larsen, Nils Magne & Fagerstrøm, Asle & Foxall, Gordon R., 2016. "Consumer attention to price in social commerce: Eye tracking patterns in retail clothing," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 5008-5013.
    8. Janiszewski, Chris & Meyvis, Tom, 2001. "Effects of Brand Logo Complexity, Repetition, and Spacing on Processing Fluency and Judgment," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 28(1), pages 18-32, June.
    9. Lina Pilelienė & Viktorija Grigaliūnaitė, 2016. "Influence of print advertising layout complexity on visual attention," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 6(2), pages 237-251, August.
    10. Jayson Shi Jia & Baba Shiv & Sanjay Rao, 2014. "The Product-Agnosia Effect: How More Visual Impressions Affect Product Distinctiveness in Comparative Choice," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 41(2), pages 342-360.
    11. Geng Cui & Hongyan Liu & Xiaoyan Yang & Haizhong Wang, 2013. "Culture, cognitive style and consumer response to informational vs. transformational advertising among East Asians: Evidence from the PRC," Asia Pacific Business Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(1), pages 16-31, January.
    12. Chris Janiszewski & Andrew Kuo & Nader T. Tavassoli, 2013. "The Influence of Selective Attention and Inattention to Products on Subsequent Choice," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 39(6), pages 1258-1274.
    13. Shapiro, Stewart, 1999. "When an Ad's Influence Is Beyond Our Conscious Control: Perceptual and Conceptual Fluency Effects Caused by Incidental Ad Exposure," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 26(1), pages 16-36, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Baek, Eunsoo & Huang, Zhihong & Hwan (Mark) Lee, Seung, 2021. "More than what meets the eye: Understanding the effects of poly-contextual cues in online fashion retailing," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    2. Tong, Xinjia & Chen, Yuangao & Zhou, Shasha & Yang, Shuiqing, 2022. "How background visual complexity influences purchase intention in live streaming: The mediating role of emotion and the moderating role of gender," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    3. Baek, Eunsoo & Huang, Zhihong & Lee, Seojin Stacey, 2023. "Visual complexity = hedonic? Effects of visually complex packages on consumer perceptions and evaluations of products," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    4. Liu, Yan & Cao, Xinyue & Font, Xavier, 2024. "Nudge pro-environmental contagion: Residents to tourists," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    5. Li, Baoku & Nan, Yafeng & Yao, Ruoxi, 2024. "The inverted U-shaped relationship between information entropy of keyword combinations and sales of digital products: Evidence from China Tmall," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    6. Yao, Ruiqi & Qi, Guijie & Wu, Zhiqiang & Sun, Hua & Sheng, Dongfang, 2024. "Digital human calls you dear: How do customers respond to virtual streamers’ social-oriented language in e-commerce livestreaming? A stereotyping perspective," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    7. Michael Carolan, 2022. "Presences and absences in food systems depictions: a systematic visual content analysis," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(5), pages 1347-1358, October.
    8. Thomas Chambon & Ulysse Soulat & Jeanne Lallement & Jean-Loup Guillaume, 2023. "The effect of visual information complexity on urban mobility intention and behavior," Post-Print hal-04089291, HAL.
    9. Yuri Borgianni & Lorenzo Maccioni & Anton Dignös & Demis Basso, 2022. "A Framework to Evaluate Areas of Interest for Sustainable Products and Designs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-17, June.
    10. Voss, Kevin E. & Li, Ying Ying & Song, YoungOk Sunny, 2022. "Competing cues in brand alliance advertisements," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 476-493.
    11. Wang, Dongyi & Luo, Xin (Robert) & Hua, Ying & Benitez, Jose, 2023. "Customers’ help-seeking propensity and decisions in brands’ self-built live streaming E-Commerce: A mixed-methods and fsQCA investigation from a dual-process perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Maier, Erik & Dost, Florian, 2018. "Fluent contextual image backgrounds enhance mental imagery and evaluations of experience products," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 207-220.
    2. Maier, Erik, 2019. "Serial product evaluations online: A three-factor model of leadership, fluency and tedium during product search," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 558-579.
    3. Thomas Chambon & Ulysse Soulat & Jeanne Lallement & Jean-Loup Guillaume, 2023. "The effect of visual information complexity on urban mobility intention and behavior," Post-Print hal-04089291, HAL.
    4. Mihai Țichindelean & Monica Teodora Țichindelean & Iuliana Cetină & Gheorghe Orzan, 2021. "A Comparative Eye Tracking Study of Usability—Towards Sustainable Web Design," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-31, September.
    5. Maier, Erik & Dost, Florian, 2018. "The positive effect of contextual image backgrounds on fluency and liking," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 109-116.
    6. Kahn, Barbara E., 2017. "Using Visual Design to Improve Customer Perceptions of Online Assortments," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 93(1), pages 29-42.
    7. Sohn, Stefanie, 2017. "Consumer processing of mobile online stores: Sources and effects of processing fluency," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 137-147.
    8. Maurizio Canavari & Andreas C. Drichoutis & Jayson L. Lusk & Rodolfo M. Nayga, Jr., 2018. "How to run an experimental auction: A review of recent advances," Working Papers 2018-5, Agricultural University of Athens, Department Of Agricultural Economics.
    9. Shan, Minghui & Zhu, Zhenzhong & Song, Chunlei & Chen, Haipeng (Allan), 2023. "The effectiveness of advertising appeals: A culturally-derived power perspective," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    10. Tonia Ruppenthal, 2023. "Eye-Tracking Studies on Sustainable Food Consumption: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(23), pages 1-32, November.
    11. Mengyue Wang & Xin Li & Patrick Y. K. Chau, 2021. "Leveraging Image-Processing Techniques for Empirical Research: Feasibility and Reliability in Online Shopping Context," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 607-626, June.
    12. Yuanyuan Zhou & Qian Li & Shiyang Gong & Daniel P. Hampson & Zhicen Liu, 2023. "Looking back is better than looking forward: visualization, temporal frames, and new product evaluation in China," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(3), pages 829-856, July.
    13. Myers, Susan D. & Deitz, George D. & Huhmann, Bruce A. & Jha, Subhash & Tatara, Jennifer H., 2020. "An eye-tracking study of attention to brand-identifying content and recall of taboo advertising," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 176-186.
    14. D. Vantomme & M. Geuens & J. De Houwer & P. De Pelsmacker, 2004. "Implicit Attitudes Toward Green Consumer Behavior," Working Papers of Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University, Belgium 04/224, Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
    15. Li, Menglin & Jin, Yufang & Zhang, Jurui & Liu, Raymond, 2022. "Does shape in backgrounds matter? Effects of Shape–Taste congruence on product evaluations," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    16. Rihn, Alicia & Wei, Xuan & Khachatryan, Hayk, 2019. "Text vs. logo: Does eco-label format influence consumers’ visual attention and willingness-to-pay for fruit plants? An experimental auction approach," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    17. Ashish Agarwal & Kartik Hosanagar & Michael D. Smith, 2015. "Do Organic Results Help or Hurt Sponsored Search Performance?," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 26(4), pages 695-713, December.
    18. Alcántara-Pilar, Juan Miguel & Del Barrio-García, Salvador & Rodríguez-López, Mª Eugenia, 2018. "Does language matter? A cross-national comparison of the moderating effect of language on website information-processing," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 66-78.
    19. Northey, Gavin & Chan, Eugene Y., 2020. "Political conservatism and preference for (a)symmetric brand logos," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 149-159.
    20. Urszula Garczarek-Bąk & Andrzej Szymkowiak & Piotr Gaczek & Aneta Disterheft, 2021. "A comparative analysis of neuromarketing methods for brand purchasing predictions among young adults," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 28(2), pages 171-185, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:111:y:2020:i:c:p:270-280. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jbusres .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.