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This seemed to be the over-arching theme of the excellent IJMR Research Methods Forum I attended on 1^st November, and was central to the presentation given by Orlando Wood, Managing Director of BrianJuicer Labs.

In essence, eight speakers spent the day answering the question ‘Does Research Reflect Reality?’ each according to their own area of expertise. Although each speaker had a different take on the extent to which we access the truth through market research, all agreed on one central idea;

Market researchers have a tendency to overlook the fact that much of day to day consumer behaviour and decision making is carried out instinctively, without any form of conscious, effortful or analytical thought, and, as such, it is of limited use to ask consumers to examine this behaviour or decision making as if they had been conscious of it at the time.

So where do we find the answers?

It is up to the researcher to decode the consumer behaviour they examine, and to try and access the implicit, instinctive reactions and decisions that underlie that behaviour. We cannot rely on the consumer to examine their own subconscious.

Indeed, Professor Gemma Calvert, Managing Director of Neurosense, gave some very useful examples of how these implicit consumer reactions can be accessed through neuroscience.

An old problem

Although there were some exciting and compelling arguments put forward at the IJMR forum, this problem is not entirely new; researchers have come under fire for ignoring the role of the subconscious before, and have sought and found some useful solutions, both qualitatively through projective techniques, and quantitatively by measuring reaction times for example.

However, in the end it takes longer and costs more to unearth the subconscious than to examine the conscious, and unfortunately budgets and deadlines can be unforgiving. Many neuroscience techniques remain frustratingly complex, and, as such, are impractical for use in a market research context.

Therefore, researchers are constantly seeking innovative methodologies to deliver research that is efficient and cost-effective while successfully unlocking insights that lie beyond the reach of consumer consciousness.

The other side of the coin

During our search for the implicit and instinctive, we should never stop asking consumers for their own interpretations of their behaviour.

As Graham Page, Executive Vice President of Consumer Neuroscience pointed out;

It may be true that we ‘think much less than we think we think’ but this is not to say that we NEVER think.

Sometimes consumers do make careful, analytical and conscious decisions that they can accurately report. Even when this is not the case, theories from consumers can help to reveal the context of their implicit decision making.

Market research has certainly been able to reveal some extremely useful insights into consumer behaviour simply through well thought out questioning and careful deduction in the past.

I am inclined to believe that the reality of consumer motivation is shaped by both conscious and subconscious thought. After all if reality does reside entirely in the subconscious we may have some bigger questions to ask.

 

 

Tags: Does research reflect reality? We think much less than we think we think, IJMR Research Methods Forum, Neuroscience