Time Orientation and Attitudes toward Advertising in a High-Context Culture: An Empirical Study of Macau

Each culture has its own dominant construct of time that influences the value placed on the use of time by individuals. This empirical study examines how time orientations influence attitudes toward advertising in a high-context culture of an Asian economy. Data was collected through surveys in Macau. Findings show that Macanese are more future orientated but less enthusiastic towards advertising; they switch to another channel and engage in other activities during commercial breaks. Results also show that past orientation has the strongest impact on advertising avoidance. The authors offer managerial implications for the development of effective advertising programs in this emerging market.     

Examining Polish Market Mavens and Their Attitudes Toward Advertising

Abstract

In this paper, we offer some insights about Polish consumers with varying levels of general marketplace expertise, their role in diffusing product information, and their views of advertising. Market mavens are consumers who exhibit heightened interestin and knowledge about the marketplace. Because of their interest in communicating with others about the many aspects of the marketplace, these consumers can play an integral role for companies interested in diffusing marketing information. Our study results indicate that market mavens do indeed exist in Poland and they exhibit similar characteristics to market mavens identified in the U.S. They have more favorable attitudes toward advertising than other consumers. Additionally, they consider advertising as an important source of product and social image information. Although Polish mavens are less critical of advertising being misleading and confusing, they are concerned about advertising promoting materialistic values. Our findings imply that firms doing business in Poland would be well advised to target market mavens because they pay attention to advertising, have favorable attitudes toward advertising, and like to talk about marketplace phenomena with others.     

An Investigation of People's Time Orientation,Attitudes, and Behavior Toward Advertising in an International Context

ABSTRACT

Past studies have indicated that there are cross-cultural/national differences among people's perception of time and how they use time available for them and what factors affect their time-related purchasing and consumption decisions. It is stated that each culture or subculture could have its own dominant construct of time. The present study examines time use and orientation and time attitudes toward different activities, including advertising in an emerging economy of Georgia. Study results indicate that present orientation and consciousness of future, planning orientation, time saving, realization of present in the light of past, and action orientation are salient factors channeling time orientations of Georgian consumers.     

社会化媒体中消费者生成广告的影响因素模型及作用路径

如今社会化媒体中随处可见消费者对品牌信息的评论、转发以及创作与品牌相关内容的行为,这样的行为对品牌传播产生了极大影响,它相对于传统品牌传播方式更有效。那么社会化媒体中消费者生成广告行为受到何种因素的影响,这些因素之间存在何种内在逻辑关系？本研究采用立意抽样的方式,选择活跃于社会化媒体（微博、微信、美拍）中的消费者作为研究对象,使用扎根理论的开放式编码、主轴编码与选择性编码对访谈材料进行分析,最后结合选择性编码与“故事线”的方式构建了CGA-EESM影响因素模型。该模型显示：环境、经验、刺激与动机是消费者生成广告行为的四个关键影响因素,它们之间存在错综复杂的作用路径。     

Television Advertising Avoidance: Advancing Research Methodology

New technologies have led to increased television advertising avoidance. In particular, mechanical avoidance in the form of zipping and zapping has gained momentum in recent years. Channel switching or “commercial zapping” studies employ diverse methodologies, including self reports, electronic monitoring, laboratory, and in-home observation which has led to a diversity of reported results. This article proposes advancing and standardizing the methodology to comprise a two-phase hidden observation and survey method. A number of research phases have led to the development of this method to collect both mechanical and behavioral avoidance data. The study includes a detailed outline of the hidden observation approach. The survey phase opens up the potential for the collection of viewer data that may further illuminate television advertising avoidance behavior.     

Consumer Attitudes and Preferences Concerning Shopping On-Line

Abstract

The emergence of e-commerce is having a substantial impact on consumer purchasing behavior. Yet, the rate of consumers' acceptance of e-commerce has been slower than many predicted. Using the view of consumption as an institution, this study examines consumers' preferences for shopping on-line. Analysis of data collected from focus groups and surveys suggests consumers perceive relative advantages and disadvantages of shopping on-line vs. shopping in traditional stores. In addition, the results suggest consumers have substantive reservations about shopping on-line which may be adversely affecting the acceptance rate of this new channel. Study limitations and suggestions for future research are also presented.     

Differential Effects of Chinese Women's Sexual Self-Schema on Responses to Sex Appeal in Advertising

Despite the increased use of sex appeal in advertising, little is known about the influence of individual personality differences on responses to sexual information. This study examines the effects of the “sexual self-schema” personality trait on Chinese women's responses to advertisements using sex appeal. Regardless of the type of sexual information used, attitudes toward these advertisements mediate the effect of sexual self-schema on the purchase intentions of women with lower sexual self-schema while this mediating effect was not observed in women with higher sexual self-schema. The theoretical and practical implications of sex appeal in advertising for Chinese women are discussed.     

Fish Consumers: Environmental Attitudes and Purchasing Behavior

The objective of this study was to expand on the limited awareness of the U.S. fish consumer. Measures were tested through a Web-based national survey. The final survey consisted of 40 questions, including environmental awareness, food neophobia, fish consumption, reasons for consuming fish, and demographic variables. Correlations and t tests were used to analyze relationships between eating fish in restaurants and other variables. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to segment respondents into two groups based on their environmental awareness and neophylic/neophobic attitudes. EcoFish consumers were more likely to be male, eat fish for health and the environment, and eat fish at restaurants significantly more than the Indifferent Fish consumers. Restaurants can use these results to market to eco-friendly, health-conscious fish consumers.     

An Exploration of Consumer Attitudes and Purchasing Patterns in Fair Trade Coffee and Tea

This study aims to understand the consistency between attitudes toward ethical brands and consistency with the respondents’ recent purchase behavior. A study of 202 respondents was carried out in order to observe consistency between claimed ethical attitudes and self-reported purchase behavior across three product categories. Panel data (n = 8000) was utilized to provide a large sample on which a duplication of purchase analysis could be conducted. Results suggest many consumers claim to have ethical attitudes, but their reported purchases suggest their behavior is not consistent. Consumers who purchase fair trade brands are just as likely to purchase other, non–fair trade brands.     

Young People's Attitudes Towards British Political Advertising: Nurturing or Impeding Voter Engagement?

SUMMARY

This article presents findings from a national survey of ‘potential’ first time voters at the 2001 British General Election–specifically their attitudes towards the print advertising used by the main political parties during this election. In analysing the data, the authors were particularly interested in examining the claim that political advertising contributes to a sense of malaise–most acutely apparent among young people. While we found high levels of claimed advertising awareness, this was coupled with largely unfavourable attitudes towards most of the print advertising used in the election. Despite these judgements, most young people considered the advertising to be at least as persuasive as its commercial cousins. Not surprisingly the evidence provides a mixed picture in terms of the role political advertising plays in the political dispositions of young people. As a familiar discourse advertising offers the political classes an entry point to establish a dialogue with young sections of the electorate. However, for many young people, political advertising appears to help reinforce their predilection about politics being something one naturally distrusts.     

Culture,Perceived Value,and Advertising Acceptance: A Cross-Cultural Study on Mobile Advertising

Abstract

Adverting standardization has been widely discussed since 1990s. Recently, this discussion has been extended to mobile advertising. When it comes to adopt a standardization or localization strategy, it is important that marketers understand how mobile advertising is perceived in different markets. This study examines the impacts of four perceived values of mobile advertising on young Australian and Chinese consumers’ acceptance of mobile advertising. The findings suggest that perceived functional value have the most positive effect on mobile advertising acceptance, followed by credibility and interactivity value. Further analyses reveal that culture moderates the relationships between perceived values and advertising acceptance.     

Responses Toward Corporate Crisis and Corporate Advertising

This article investigates how individual differences affect consumer responses to corporate advertising during a corporate crisis. Study 1, based on qualitative data, showed brand ownership, involvement with the crisis, and news media exposure were important factors in understanding consumer response toward the crisis and the company. Study 2, a survey, empirically demonstrated that prior attitude toward the company was the most critical factor affecting advertising-related behaviors. The study further suggested consumers of the brand were more likely to view the company favorably, to know more about the company, and to be more involved in their following of the crisis.     

Advertising in English in Nonnative English-Speaking Markets: The Effect of Language and Self-Referencing in Advertising in Romania on Ad Attitudes

As a potent symbol of globalization, English has become one of the most popular foreign languages used in advertising in many nonnative English-speaking markets. This study aims to explore the effect of language used in advertising (English versus local) and self-referencing on consumers' ad attitudes in Romania, a country where the population is not necessarily speaking English fluently. The results indicate that multinational brands benefit from using English in advertising, whether a high or a low level of self-referencing is used. For local brands, different language formats do not vary in their advertising effectiveness. However, if English is to be used to advertise a local brand to give a “modern” flavor to the product, a high self-referencing format should be used.     

Power and responsibility: Advertising self-regulation and consumer protection in a digital world

While advertising self-regulation is generally considered effective in a closed, largely country-based system, the digital world in which we now live is an open and global system. This raises challenges for consumer protection from national regulators trying to enforce compliance from global media platforms, advertisers, and consumers. Applying the power-responsibility equilibrium, this study explores who has the power and who has the responsibility for advertising self-regulation in a digital world. In doing so, it takes an ethnographic approach, eliciting insights from 18 key stakeholders in the self-regulatory process, across the three geographical areas of Europe, United States, and Asia-Pacific. The findings highlight the need for more collaboration and alignment of self-regulatory systems and build a framework for action through embedding responsibility, aligning standards, initiating processes, and improving outcomes. Six recommendations are offered to restore the balance of power and responsibility.     

Joint Advertising and Brand Congruity: Effects on Memory and Attitudes

This research examined how brand congruity in joint advertising affects individuals’ processing of advertising messages. An experiment was conducted whereby ads promoting two congruent or incongruent brands were presented to subjects under low versus high processing load. Results showed that advertising messages for congruent brands were better remembered under both high and low processing loads. However, ads with congruent brands led to positive attitudes only when subjects’ processing resources were constrained. These findings suggest congruent brands that appear in joint ads have a clear advantage over incongruent brands. The results have both practical and theoretical implications.     

Consumer Responses to Slice-of-Life Versus Slice-of-Death Advertising Appeals: Exploring the Role of Polysemy,Branding, and Culture

Prior research has not verified the theoretical or practical value of slice-of-life and slice-of-death advertising appeals in relation to advertising and branding constructs like advertising polysemy and consumer-based brand equity. The authors make conceptual, measurement, and managerial contributions to this research issue dealing with slice of life versus death advertising appeals. Across three studies, the authors measure, evaluate, compare, and contrast slice-of-life and slice-of-death (SOL/D) advertising appeals across British and American cultures. The authors demonstrate the interrelationships of SOL/D appeals with advertising polysemy, consumer-based brand equity, cultural differences in advertising attitudes, and purchase intentions. From a measurement perspective, the authors develop and validate parsimonious measures of slice-of-life and slice-of-death (SOL/D) advertising appeals. Furthermore, they test the assumptions that underlie these appeals for United States and British customers, and investigate how the cultural characteristic of uncertainty avoidance moderates the impact of SOL/D advertising attitudes on purchase intentions. Managerially, the research demonstrates that SOL/D appeals offer value in predicting (a) consumer-based brand equity through advertising polysemy, (b) consumers’ advertising attitudes across different cultures, (c) consumers’ intentions to purchase, and (d) advertising differences and varying consumer responses in the United States and Britain.     

Sex Appeal in Advertising: What Consumers Think

This study examined consumers’ attitude toward the use of sexual content in advertisements among there different cultural groups; i.e., individualistic sample (White American), collectivistic sample (US temporal visitors from Asia), and acculturation sample (Asian immigrants). Sixty participants were asked about cultural acceptability of sexual content ads and the favorable attitude toward those ads by using Q-methodology. Asian participants reported less cultural acceptability for sexuality, than either Asian American or North American participants. The findings also revealed that North Americans are more likely to prefer the use of sexual content in advertisement than Asians. Asian-American participants agreed with North American participants in regard to sexually explicit advertising. Implications and limitations were discussed.     

Understanding Green Advertising Attitude and Behavioral Intention: An Application of the Health Belief Model

ABSTRACT

Despite the high interest in green advertising and its potential to foster sustainable consumerism, academic research in this area has been somewhat limited. The current study developed a predictor model of green advertising attitude and behavioral intention using environmental issue-focused factors that included the Health Belief Model, consumption-focused factors, and demographic factors to help understand the significant influences that shape global green advertising outcome. An online survey of 385 participants showed that a number of factors in both issue-focused (e.g., response-efficacy and ecocentric/anthropocentric attitudes) and consumption-focused (e.g., green product purchase frequency and past green product attitude) categories significantly predicted green advertising attitude and behavioral intention. Theoretical as well as practical implications of the findings will be discussed in detail.     

Advertising effects on consumer welfare: Prices paid and liking for brands selected

The effect of advertising on consumer welfare has been the subject of dispute among economists, arising largely from disagreement among scholars regarding the persuasive versus the informative role of advertising. This paper reports two experiments that explore the welfare implications of advertising effects. Experiment 1 shows that the same advertisements can either increase or decrease prices paid for selected brands, depending on the degree to which the choice situation requires brands to be recalled in order to be considered. However, an increase in prices paid caused by advertising does not necessarily imply detrimental effects on consumer welfare. Experiment 2 shows that, even under circumstances in which differentiating advertising leads consumers to select brands with higher average prices, it can provide useful information to consumers that allows them to make purchases that are more in line with their personal tastes than are the choices of consumers not exposed to the advertisements.     

Attitudes toward advertising held by the boomers and the busters: some facts and myths

In the United States one of the common perceptions of young consumers, called the baby busters or the Xers, is that they are more critical of advertising in general than the baby boomers. Unfortunately, however, little empirical evidence is available to back up this perception. This study compares the boomers and the busters in terms of their general attitude towards advertising and specific advertising beliefs. Contrary to popular press reports that busters have a more negative attitude towards advertising than baby boomers, no significant differences were found in the two groups' general attitude towards advertising and in four of five ad-belief factors. In fact, the busters were found to have more favourable beliefs about advertising's utility as a source of hedonic amusement, challenging the popular press portrayal of the busters as ‘cynical gripers’. On the other hand, consistent with the popular press reports, regression analysis showed that the busters are knowing consumers and they are perhaps more suspicious and critical of advertising hypes than the boomers. Since the findings may be relevant only in the US market, replications of the study in other countries would be an important contribution to global marketers.