HIV/Aids marketing communication and the role of fear, efficacy, and cultural characteristics in promoting social change

Abstract

The HIV/Aids pandemic is a major concern in Africa, and South Africa's major marketing communication campaigns do not seem to be producing the expected results. This study investigates whether the use of fear appeal marketing communication increases the likelihood of adopting appropriate social behaviour, and if different cultural or racial groups vary in their perception of different fear appeals, namely high, medium, and low fear, pertaining to HIV/Aids marketing communication. The role of fear and efficacy beliefs is analysed by using experimental research techniques to ascertain the influence of different levels of fear appeals. The findings indicate differences amongst cultural or racial groups pertaining to levels of fear and efficacy experienced after exposure to high fear appeals compared with lower fear appeals.

Too Drunk to Consent? Exploring the Contestations and Disruptions in Male-Focused Sexual Violence Prevention Interventions

“…They are frequently used in relation to substance abuse (Wolburg, 2006), dangerous and/or drink driving (Rossiter and Thornton, 2004), unsafe sex and the contraction of sexually transmitted infections (Terblanche-Smit and Terblanche, 2011). They can, however, be critiqued as being overly individualistic and obscuring the wider social structures which are causative of 'problematic' behaviour.…”

Examining the Effectiveness of Fear Appeals in Prompting Help-Seeking: The Case of At-Risk Gamblers

“…For instance, elicited fear is not always directly linked to attitudes and intentions (Cauberghea, De Pelsmacker, Janssensc, & Densb, ), and response efficacy and self‐efficacy do not necessarily act as moderating variables in the fear–behavioral intent relationship (Terblanche‐Smit & Terblanche, ). With regards to the perceived threat construct, elicited fear was linked only with perceived susceptibility (PS), but not with the perceived severity of a threat in a smoking (Arthur & Quester, ), or HIV/AIDS context (Terblanche‐Smit & Terblanche, ). Similarly, prior studies in the gambling context showed that only a higher level of PS, but not perceived severity, led to higher levels of fear in respondents (Munoz et al., ; Muñoz et al., ).…”

“…Careful consideration of consumer individual difference characteristics is encouraged before channeling emotional appeals to different segments of a population (Terblanche‐Smit & Terblanche, ). To date, however, only a limited number of studies have addressed the role of individual characteristics in explaining the effects of fear appeals in the gambling context (Munoz et al., ; Muñoz et al., ).…”

Perceptions of a drug prevention public service announcement campaign among street-involved youth in Vancouver, Canada: a qualitative study

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