How far is too far? the antecedents of offensive advertising in modern China

  • Gerard P PRENDERGAST*
  • , Wah Leung Cheung
  • , Douglas West
  • *Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

    26 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Previous research has classified offensive advertising into matter (offensive products and services) and manner (offensive execution). This study was designed to (1) develop a more comprehensive schedule of offensive advertising and (2) identify the psychological predictors of taking offense. A survey conducted in Hong Kong and Shanghai showed that offensive advertising could be classified into three categories: advertisements dealing with offensive sexual matter, advertisements for offensive nonsexual matter, and advertisements displaying an offensive manner. Of these categories, manner was perceived as the most offensive. Self-esteem and susceptibility to interpersonal influence both were significant in predicting the level of offensiveness for all three types of offensive advertising.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)484-495
    Number of pages12
    JournalJournal of Advertising Research
    Volume48
    Issue number4
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2008

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