False fame, perceptual clarity, or persuasion? Flexible fluency attribution in spokesperson familiarity effects

Familiar people are especially persuasive spokespersons. Here, a fluency attribution model of spokesperson familiarity was tested. Specifically, it was hypothesized that repeated exposure to a spokesperson would create fluency that, in a persuasive context, could be attributed to the persuasive message or to another fluency-relevant cue (e.g., the fame of the spokesperson). In three experiments a woman's photo was repeatedly presented, and subsequently accompanied a persuasive message. Consistent with hypotheses, inflated ratings of the message followed repeated spokesperson exposure (compared to a no exposure control) but only when inflated ratings of the spokesperson (fame) or her photo (perceptual clarity) were not observed. Discussion focuses on implications for familiarity theories and on guidelines for maximizing the influence of familiar spokespersons.