In this paper, we examine the impact of three variables on cognitive responses and persuasion--whether the information is consistent or inconsistent with one's prior preferences, whether arguments featured in the message are strong or weak, and whether pre-exposure preferences are strong or...

Experimental findings are reported which suggest that comparative ads may be as believable as noncomparative ads for search attribute claims, while noncomparative ads may be more believable for non-search attributes. Research implications of these findings related to more effective advertising...