[2][3] Typically, subjects are exposed to an effective prime or act of kindness, such as being given a box of candy,[3][4] and subsequently given introspective tests measuring cognitive traits like affect, memory, learning, or attention.
[example needed] Teasdale and Fogarty were the first to hypothesize that affect led to differences in learning speed and memory retrieval, on the basis of congruent valence of mood and target material via common associations.
[example needed][1] Later, it was presumed that humans store material (including affect) in memory that later acts as cues for associative networks in the presence of novel environmental stimuli.
By inducing a positive mood in others, and immunizing them against negative stimuli, it is believed that they will feel compelled to produce acts of kindness for others, propagating the effects.
Marketing researchers have capitalized on kindness priming, as corporate studies[citation needed] have shown it may increase a subject's valence toward a brand.