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ABSTRACT
The objectives of this study are (a) to examine the impact of religion on consumers' perceptions of controversial advertising, on their perceptions of the protective and restrictive social effects of controversial advertising regulations, and on their perceptions of the restrictiveness of the regulations; and (b) to determine the moderating effect of religion on the influence of independent variables (consumers' perceptions of controversial advertising, and of the protective and restrictive social effects of regulations on controversial advertising) on a dependent variable (consumers' perceptions of regulations governing controversial advertising). According to cross-sectional survey data collected from 1,402 university students in 11 countries throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia, Islamic followers were most easily offended by controversial advertising and generally found the current regulations not strict enough to address their sensitivities; Christians' and Hindus' found the regulations to fit with their more liberal attitudes toward controversial advertising, while Buddhists/Taoists and nonbelievers perceived the current regulations to be overly strict. These findings suggest that regulatory bodies should institute regulations consistent with the sensibilities of the religious profile of the population in the locale in which they operate.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Zehua Wang
Authors of this study are adherents of Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and nonbelief/rationalism.
Zehua Wang completed her Masters in Management in the Faculty of Management at the University of Lethbridge, Canada.
Sameer Deshpande
Sameer Deshpande is an associate professor of marketing in the Faculty of Management at the University of Lethbridge, Canada. Prior to joining the University of Lethbridge, he earned his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. Sameer specializes in social marketing research. He applies marketing principles to address social problems in public health, environment, and injury prevention. He has published several journal articles and book chapters. He has authored Social Marketing in India and co-edits Social Marketing Quarterly
David S. Waller
David S. Waller is a Senior Lecturer in the Marketing Discipline Group, University of Technology Sydney. He has over 20 years' experience teaching marketing subjects at several universities in Australia. His research has included projects on marketing communications, advertising agency-client relationships; controversial advertising; international advertising; marketing ethics; and marketing education. He has published over 60 refereed journal articles, and has authored/co-authored several textbooks and workbooks that have been used in countries in the Asia–Pacific region.
B. Zafer Erdogan
B. Zafer Erdogan is Professor of Marketing, Anadolu University, Turkey. He is member of Turkish Academy of Sciences. He has published widely in highly rated journals including Journal of Advertising Research, Industrial Journal of Marketing, Journal of Marketing Management and European Journal of Marketing. His research interest includes marketing theory, celebrity endorsement, advertising complaining behavior, social marketing, and developments in marketing communications. He serves on editorial boards of many academic journals such as Journal of Marketing Communications, Journal of Customer Behaviour and Social Business.