Read the article summary below and provide constructive criticism and comments. Comments could be related to any part of the article summary. Minimum (150,words) Purpose of the study The purpose of this study was to see if consumers really are less likely to purchase a product if it has been touched by another consumer. Main Theory(ies) used in study Social Impact Theory - the presence or action of a real, implied, or imagined social presence affects a target The Law of Contagion - when contact has been made between a source and a recipient, the source continues to influence the recipient indefinitely Summary of Relevant Previous Research The main two studied referenced throughout the Study are shown below. Paco Underhill in a book called "Why We Buy" said that it is extremely common for consumers to want to touch a display product and interact with it. Often consumers will open a product, and familiarize themselves with it, but if they decide to buy, will grab a fresh unopened version toward the back of the display. "Once in Contact, Always in Contact: contagious Essence and Conceptions of Purification in American and Hindu Indian Children" - Hejmadi, Rozin, Siegal, 2004 Kids consider juice contaminated after being in contact with another liquid even after juice is purified back to it's original pure form Both of these sources find that consumers do not like items that have been touched by other consumers. Once any contact has been made, a consumer will deem it contaminated and dislike the item. Method of collecting data Study One 70 participants were told they would each have to go in to the book store at different times and be assigned different tasks randomly by picking an envelope from a stack, however, each participant actually had the exact same task. This task was to go in to the book store and talk to a sales associate find the specific t shirt as shown in their envelope and try it on. Once the participant was on their way to the bookstore the "sales associate" would be notified via text that they were on their way. Upon arrival the participant would show the photo of the shirt and ask to find it, and the sales associate would respond saying, "we only have one left in stock", " In the close condition, the sales associate finished the sentence with "and someone is trying it on." The sales associate then took the participant over to the dressing room to wait, and a couple of seconds later, a second confederate, who assumed the role of another shop- per (same gender as the participant), exited the dressing room, leaving the T-shirt in the room. In the medium condition, the sales associate completed the sentence with "and it is over here on the return rack" and then took the participant to a return rack located near the dressing room. In the far condition, the sales associate finished the sentence with "and it is just over here on the rack" and took the participant to a regular display rack located a few feet away from the return rack. It is important to not that all shirts in each situation were in the same condition and were not contaminated. After these tasks were completed, participants rated how likely they were to buy the shirt. Study Two Very similar to Study 1, however there are 90 participants now. As well, there was no longer close proximity, only medium and far. In the medium proximity, the sales associate mentions that the t shirt had just been tried on, and in the far proximity, the sales associate mentions that the t shirt had not been tried on for a few days. There was also a control group where they find the t shirt on a regular rack. After this was completed, participants were asked how long they thought the shirt was in the location where they found it. Study Three In study three, they wanted to increase the amount of contact points the shirt would be perceived to have had. There 104 participants now. Study three was very similar to study two with a few tweaks. Firstly, the sales associate will now specify that many people have tried on the shirt. After the activity, participants will be asked how many other people had tried on/used the exact same product as them. As well, they will be asked how much they will be willing to pay for the shirt. Sample Major findings Study One With the ratings of the shirt from the first study, they found that when consumers receive a signal that their product has been touched by other consumers (mentioning the return rack, saying that it is being tried on), their ratings and likeliness to buy said article of clothing decrease. Study Two It was found that participants evaluation of the length of time a product had been in the location where they found it in was lower when it was mentioned it was just tried on and higher when on the returns rack. Study Three It was found that when customers thought only one person had touched the product, they rated it higher than when they thought multiple people had come in to contact with the product. Participants were willing to pay more when the shirt was on the regular rack ($20) than when it was on the return rack ($11.85). As well, if it was perceived only one person had touched it they were willing to pay more ($16.18) than when it was perceived that multiple people head touched it ($11.72). Please No copypaste otherwise i will give thumps down and no repeat one sentence over and over again