Product Experience Is Seductive
an essay, no data, no sample, no hypothesis test. Hoch argues that trying a product leads consumers to overrate how much they have learned from it. Distinguishes two ambiguities: vagueness, which matters little when the consumer can see the lack of clarity, and openness to more than one reading, which is the one that bites. He notes that many categories show little real difference in quality. Cites Boulding, Kalra and Staelin for the claim that prior beliefs shape how new information is read, which a Bayesian updater would not do. Hoch does not cite Hoch and Ha (1986) in this paper's reference list, which was read in full; he cites Klayman and Ha (1987) instead
an essay, no data, no sample, no hypothesis test. Hoch argues that trying a product leads consumers to overrate how much they have learned from it. Distinguishes two ambiguities: vagueness, which matters little when the consumer can see the lack of clarity, and openness to more than one reading, which is the one that bites. He notes that many categories show little real difference in quality. Cites Boulding, Kalra and Staelin for the claim that prior beliefs shape how new information is read, which a Bayesian updater would not do. Hoch does not cite Hoch and Ha (1986) in this paper's reference list, which was read in full; he cites Klayman and Ha (1987) instead
Written from the full text read 2026-10-18.
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Hoch, S. J. (2002). 'Product Experience Is Seductive.' Journal of Consumer Research, 29(3), 448-454. doi:10.1086/344422.