Similarity: A Conceptual Clarification and Examination of the Influence on Cognitive Processes from a Grounded Perspective: An Abstract

To deal with uncertainty when purchasing over the internet, online shoppers use their experiences with offline purchases as a point of comparison between the virtual and physical representation of the targeted product. Therefore, the perceived similarity between these two experiences is likely to influence online shopping outcomes (Racat and Capelli 2016; Xu et al. 2013). Thus, our study aims to further develop the concept of similarity and investigate its influences on cognitive processes such as mental imagery and memorization. Research has investigated similarity from two differing perspectives, namely as either a global phenomenon or as a component of cognitive processes (i.e. categorizations, memory process, decision-making, etc.) (Bezes and Mercanti-Guerin 2016; Sagi et al. 2012). Another stream of research in psychology has emerged focused on cognitive processes, considering the senses and perception as well as the situation (i.e. Tversky’s context) as initiating mental activities leading to behaviors (Barsalou 1999; Borghi and Pecher 2012; Erle and Topolinski 2017; Fischer 2012; Meier et al. 2012). Indeed, psychologists have dug into information processing through perception of objects with the use of senses and determined that each sense is an expert system, in particular tactile and visual senses, for acknowledging different elements of an object and tend to be more accurate and faster when used consistently (e.g. texture for touch, shape for vision) (Klatzky et al. 1985; Lederman and Klatzky 1987). Based on these findings, the concept of similarity might also be reconsidered as the attention depends on the accuracy of the sense to consider the object, for which the attention is driven by the stimuli properties. Thus, we extent the current understanding of similarity by considering the effect of sensory similarity on mental imagery and memorization. We define sensory similarity as the extent to which an indirect sensory experience of a product mimics a direct sensory experience of it. Based on grounded cognition theories, the concept of sensory similarity considers the overall process of similarity judgement including literal and relational similarity during information acquisition such as the relational and literal similarities require mental analysis to make a differentiation between two objects while the sensations of a product perceived through one environment or another has already been “categorized” by one’s sensory perception.