Influence of Adv

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The influence of religion on attitudes towards the advertising of controversial products

Kim Shyan Fam

Department of Marketing and International Management, University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand

The influence of religion

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Received March 2002 Revised July 2002; September 2002

David S. Waller

School of Marketing, University of Technology, Sydney, NSW, Australia

B. Zafer Erdogan

Bilecik School of Economics and Business Administration, Dumlupinar University, Bilecik, Turkey

Keywords Religion, Advertising, Advertising standards, Advertising effectiveness, Consumer attitudes Abstract In a constantly changing and increasingly globalized world, religion still plays a significant role in influencing social and consumer behavior. This study will analyze what influence religion and intensity of belief has on attitudes towards the advertising of particular controversial products and services. A questionnaire was distributed to 1,393 people across six different countries and resulting in samples of four main religious groups. The results indicated some statistically significant differences between the groups, which can have important implications for global marketers.

Introduction Religious beliefs play a significant part in sculpting social behaviour. Differences in religious affiliations tend to influence the way people live, the choices they make, what they eat and whom they associate with. According to Hirschman (1983), the religious affiliations of Catholics, Protestants and Jews significantly shaped their attitudes towards dancing, magazines, restaurants and political ideas. There is also a strong relationship between religious persons and greater concern for moral standards (Wiebe and Fleck, 1980), being conservative (Barton and Vaughan,...