The teasing effect: An underappreciated benefit of creating and resolving an uncertainty
Ruan, Hsee and Lu, Journal of Marketing Research 55(4), 2018, 556-570. Seven studies find that setting up and resolving an uncertainty can produce a more positive overall experience; people given the choice preferred receiving all the information at once. Trivia readers enjoyed the material more when some facts were withheld and revealed later. The authors attribute the effect to curiosity and report that a create-then-resolve structure in an advertisement improved attitudes and willingness to try the product.
Ruan, Hsee and Lu, Journal of Marketing Research 55(4), 2018, 556-570. Seven studies find that setting up and resolving an uncertainty can produce a more positive overall experience; people given the choice preferred receiving all the information at once. Trivia readers enjoyed the material more when some facts were withheld and revealed later. The authors attribute the effect to curiosity and report that a create-then-resolve structure in an advertisement improved attitudes and willingness to try the product.
Written from the abstract, read at OpenAlex record 2026-11-04.
What our sources record
Recorded when this source was checked, figures included, with page references and quotation marks removed.
Ruan, B., Hsee, C. K., & Lu, Z. Y. (2018). The teasing effect: An underappreciated benefit of creating and resolving an uncertainty. Journal of Marketing Research, 55(4), 556-570. doi:10.1509/jmr.15.0346 https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.15.0346