Saturday, June 14, 2014

This Week in EID – Episode 8


We covered some very important topics on EID this week:

Monday, for example, shared some research on international business communication (or perhaps miscommunication is a better title).  I consider this topic so important because cultural misunderstanding is the source of so many of the world’s greatest challenges.  Imagine what we could do if we could communicate better !!!  Read the post and find out how/

Tuesday’s post is important because I have a few flights coming up and a better seat is something I would appreciate right away.  But seriously, this is important because of how simple the ideas are.  So many products these days are adding technological bells and whistles instead of getting down to basics and giving consumers something that covers the basic functions really well.  Give me effective, durable, and simple to use any day. 

Wednesday covered what is called the “Restoration of Freedom” effect.  The study I linked to was a really interesting take on individual differences in shopping behavior.  They looked at what happens when an item at a store is out of stock, but then “coincidentally” appears later in your visit.  How do you react?  It turns out, as with many things in life, that “it depends.” On the surface, it seems like it differentiates positive and negative people.  Are you happy that it is now available or are you mad at the bad store management?  It turns out to be a little more complicated than that.  Read the post to find out more.

Thursday returned to one of my favorite topics – priming.  As you know, priming is a very common and basic principle that something can be partially activated in your mind so that it is not a conscious thought but it makes related thoughts easier to access.  This can have powerful and insidious effects.  It can also have very positive and helpful effects.  This post is about one of the dark sides of priming.   
Check it out!