Ambient fragrances and purchase intention according to electroencephalography: Pioneering research in Neuromarketing in Venezuelan Academia

Abstract

Academic research in neuromarketing is an emerging interdiscipline in Venezuela that combines techniques from neuroscience, marketing and psychology to better understand consumer preferences and possible purchase intentions. This work sought to validate whether frontal alpha asymmetry can be used as a neural correlate to three olfactory stimuli (pleasant, unpleasant and neutral) from three environmental fragrances. For this purpose, the electroencephalographic frontopolar activity of four volunteer subjects was contrasted with the conscious responses of their preferences and purchase intention towards these products. Both stated preference and frontopolar activity were found to significantly predict purchase intention. However, frontopolar activity did not help determine product preference. The model found reinforces the idea that neurophysiological measurements, coupled with verbal reports, can be used as an efficient predictive model of product purchase intention. This work is the first of its kind in Venezuelan academia and opens new research possibilities in the field of neuromarketing.