Merchant of Mercy, Merchant of Death: How Values Advocacy Messages Influence Jury Deliberations

Abstract

This exploratory study addresses the ability of values advocacy messages to influence target publics’ behavior beyond consumer purchase decisions. In doing so, it fills a gap in the research by extending our understanding of the persuasive premises of values advocacy messages beyond rhetorical (de)construction; consumer behavior; and the establishment of typologies, definitions, and methods of inquiry. Using focus group methodology, target audience members (n=37) of a contemporary values advocacy campaign reflect upon the messages presented in the context of jury deliberations. The findings show that focus group participants would likely reduce punitive damage judgments if exposed to values advocacy messages. The social and cultural implications exposed by participants’ comments reflect ongoing concern among critical scholars about the ability of corporations to manipulate public behavior and indicate the ethical conundrum between corporate and community speech.

Keywords:

• Values Advocacy
• Jury Deliberations
• Philip Morris
• Focus Groups

This article is drawn from data collected for her dissertation under the direction of Carl Botan. I am grateful to Patrice Buzzanell and Josh Boyd for their enduring support of this project.

This article is drawn from data collected for her dissertation under the direction of Carl Botan. I am grateful to Patrice Buzzanell and Josh Boyd for their enduring support of this project.

Acknowledgments

I also appreciate the thoughtful comments of the anonymous reviewers and Tim Sellnow in the development of this manuscript. An earlier version of this article was presented at the National Communication Association Annual Conference, Public Relations Division, November 2005.

Notes

This article is drawn from data collected for her dissertation under the direction of Carl Botan. I am grateful to Patrice Buzzanell and Josh Boyd for their enduring support of this project.

1. In 2003, Philip Morris changed its name to Altria. Altria serves as a holding company for Kraft Foods, Nabisco, and Philip Morris USA (Altria Group, 2005).

2. To protect the anonymity of participants, individual responses are identified by the focus group number (e.g., 4) followed by seat location (e.g., a).

3. The honorarium was determined by the cost of 2.5 hours of babysitting and meal cost that was likely to be incurred by participants.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Amy O'Connor

Amy O'Connor (Ph.D., Purdue University) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at North Dakota State University