Are Anti-Prostitution Advertising Campaigns Effective? An Experimental Study

Abstract

Many governments invest public funds in communication interventions and campaigns against prostitution and sexual exploitation in an attempt to change attitudes toward prostitution and eventually decrease its consumption. Despite the considerable investment that public institutions have made in campaigns against prostitution and sexual slavery, no known empirical studies have evaluated the effectiveness of such campaigns on attitudes and behavioral change. The messages of these campaigns usually center on one of two thematic focuses: Prostituted women who suffer exploitation and male consumers of prostitution. The present study examines the impact of different anti-prostitution advertisements on attitudes among male participants (N = 155 male participants). Specifically, the experiment aims to test the differential effect of these two focuses, compared to a no-advertisement control condition, on social support for prostitution, negative and incorrect beliefs about prostitutes, and family values related to prostitution. The results show that compared with the no-advertisement control condition, advertisements focused on men who use prostitutes have a significant effect on social support toward prostitution and incorrect beliefs about prostitutes, whereas advertisements focused on female prostitutes have no effect. The results have practical implications for governments and councils regarding the efficacy of this kind of public communication campaign against prostitution consumption.