Children perceptions of emotional and rational appeals in social advertisements

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to understand the impact of rational and emotional appeals on children’s attitude towards two public service announcements (PSAs) that promoted eating fruits and vegetables. Design/methodology/approach A mixed-methods study was conducted with children aged 8 to 11. A convergent parallel design was selected that comprised a questionnaire for the quantitative approach and a semi-structured focus group for the qualitative approach. Findings The results from the quantitative and qualitative phases converged, showing that both components (i.e. emotional and rational) play a significant role in children’s preference towards an advertisement, but the emotional component appeared to be the preeminent. Research limitations/implications Future studies should use other social subjects and children of different age brackets from various countries to test whether they continue to prefer emotional appeals in advertising. Practical implications An understanding of which elements children prefer in PSAs will enable advertising campaigns and social marketing strategies with targeted approaches that respect children’s tastes to be planned. Social implications A properly designed social advertisement could have important effects on disseminating useful information, changing or preventing unhealthy habits and adopting good practices in children. Originality/value Few studies have examined the effectiveness of PSAs, especially those targeted at children. This paper contributes to extend concepts from the commercial field of advertising directed to children to the field of social advertising. To date, this field has received little attention.

Testing Model of Purchase Intention for Fast Food in Mexico: How do Consumers React to Food Values, Positive Anticipated Emotions, Attitude toward the Brand, and Attitude toward Eating Hamburgers?

“…In this case, the model provides information on the importance of the product and the brand and towards launch, modifications and valuations of products and brands. The consumer’s decisions are based on some level of rational or emotional effect [15,16].…”

The prevalence of emotional and rational tone in social advertising appeals

“…Emotional appeals are reported as more effective (Parkinson, Russell-Bennett, & Previte, 2018), particularly in the case of children (Nicolini et al, 2017). Appeals aimed at producing threat and fear are very popular in social marketing (Brennan & Binney, 2010) and provoke reactions, both positive and negative (Gomes & Casais, 2018).…”

“…Based on the appeals used in the advertisements, the target audience pays more or less attention to the ad and its message and develops different responses to the given social recommendation (Helmig & Thaler, 2010). One of the aspects that makes social advertising campaigns more effective in persuading the target audience to abandon risky behaviours or adopt desired behaviours is the tone of the appeals used (Nicolini, Cassia, & Bellotto, 2017). Social advertising appeals may use an emotional or a rational tone (Noble, Pomering, & Johnson, 2014).…”

The influence of PSA's likeability on children’s intentions to eat healthy food

“…Unfortunately, most studies have mainly measured attitude toward advertising among adults and only a few recent studies have analysed the children's attitude toward advertising (Chan & McNeal, 2004;D'Alessio et al, 2009;Derbaix & Pecheux, 2003;Ghani & Zain, 2004;Gulla & Purohit, 2013;Nicolini et al, 2017;Priya et al, 2010).…”

“…If children find the advertisement's message interesting (or uninteresting), their response is primarily an emotional one (Derbaix & Bree, 1997). Emotional and rational components play a significant role in children's preference for an advertisement but the emotional component appears to be preeminent (Nicolini et al, 2017). Conversely, adults often watch a commercial to search for information and their reactions (i.e., cognitive or emotional) depend on multiple factors such as their age, the product advertised (i.e., product vs service), and their interests (Ruiz & Sicilia, 2004;Yoo & MacInnis, 2005).…”