Comparative Advertising, Inoculation Theory, and the Prevention of Attitude Change Among Brand

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LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School
1977
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Joseph Abramson
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College
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Abramson, Joseph, "Comparative Advertising, Inoculation Theory, and the Prevention of Attitude Change
Among Brand Loyal Consumers: a Laboratory Experiment." (1977). LSU Historical Dissertations and
Theses. 3145.
https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/3145
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University Microfilms International
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78-7536
ABRAMSON, Joseph, 1946-
COMPARATIVE ADVERTISING, INOCULATION THEORY,
AND THE PREVENTION OF ATTITUDE CHANGE
AMONG BRAND LOYAL CONSUMERS: A LABORATORY
EXPERIMENT.
The Louisiana State University and
Agricultural and Mechanical College, Ph.D., 1977
Marketing
University Microfilms International,
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106
© 1978
JOSEPH ABRAMSON
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
COMPARATIVE ADVERTISING; INOCULATION THEORY;
AND THE PREVENTION OF ATTITUDE CHANGE
AMONG BRAND LOYAL CONSUMERS: A
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT
A Dissertation
Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the
Louisiana State University and
Agricultural and Mechanical College
in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
in
The Department of Marketing
by
Joseph Abramson
B.S., Louisiana State University, 1968
M.B.A., Michigan State University, 1970
December 1977
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Too many people to name have been of great help to me during
my years of graduate work at L. S.U. Several people, however, de­
serve special recognition. I would like to thank Dr. Fred Endsley,
who has been my friend, counselor, and teacher since my under­
graduate days, and Dr. Alvin Burns, who has spent a great deal of
time on my behalf during the short time I have known him. Their help
and guidance have been invaluable to me. My thanks also go to my
aunt, M rs. Max Schenker, for all of the things she has done for me,
not the least of which was providing me a home during the first year
of my doctoral work. Finally, I would like to thank my parents. With­
out them this dissertation would never have been written. Their
support, both m oral and financial, made this undertaking possible.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
ACKNOW LEDGEMENT............................................................................................. ii
LIST OF T A B L E S ...................................................................................................... v\ii
LIST OF FIGURES be
A B STR A C T..................................................................................................................... -x
Chapter
I. INTRODUCTION TO THE S T U D Y ...................................................... 1
The Problem: Attitude Maintenance in Brand Loyal
Individuals................................................................................................. 3
The Need for This Study.................................................................... 3
The Scope of this S tud y..................................................................... 7
Preview of the D issertation............................................................. 7
II. THEORIES ABOUT THE PREVENTION OF ATTITUDE
CHANGE ........................................................................................................... 9
The Behavioral Commitment A pproach.................................. 9
The Anchoring Approach . 11
The "Inducing Resistant Cognitive States" Approach . . 12
The Prior Training A pproach...................................................... 15
The Inoculation A pproach............................................................... 16
Inoculation Theory: A R e v ie w ................................................... 28
iii
Chapter Page
Cognitive Congrulty and the Reduction of Persuasion . , 29
The Bither, Dolich, and Nell S tu d y ........................................ 36
The Szybillo and Heslin S tudy....................................................... 38
The Hunt Study.......................................................................................... 40
The Sawyer S tu d y ................................................................................ 42
The Van Dyke S tu d y ........................................................................... 44
Extensions of McGuire's Work: A S u m m a ry .................... 45
III. THE THEORETICAL MODEL AND EXPERIM ENTAL
D E S IG N ............................................................................................................. 47
The Model and Its Antecedents .................................................. 47
The Methodology..................................................................................... 54
IV. FINDINGS OF THE R E S E A R C H ....................................................... 64
Results: The Factorial Analysis of V arian ce.................... 68
Prelude to the H yp otheses............................................................ 76
Results: Hypothesis 1 ...................................................................... 76
Results; Hypothesis 2 ...................................................................... 77
Results: Hypothesis 3 ...................................................................... 82
Results; Hypothesis 4 ...................................................................... 85
Results: Hypothesis 5 ...................................................................... 88
Results: Hypothesis 6 ....................................................................... 89
Results: Hypothesis 7 ....................................................................... 90
Results: Hypothesis 8 ....................................................................... 92
iv
Chapter Page
Results: Hypothesis 9 ....................................................................... 92
Results: Hypothesis 1 0 ....................................................................... 94
Results: Hypothesis 1 1 ....................................................................... 96
Results of the Experiment: A Summary for the Whiten
and Breath Variables........................................................................... 96
Results of the Experiment: A Summary for the Decay
V a ria b le .................................................................................................... 101
Some Comments on the Shortage of Significant
D ifferences............................................................................................... 103
Limitations of the Study 106
V. SUMMARY: CONCLUSIONS, AND SUGGESTIONS FOR
FUTURE R ESEA R C H ................................................................................ 109
The Purpose of the S tudy................................................................. 109
The Need for This S tu d y ................................................................. 110
Theoretical Approaches to the Prevention of Attitude
Change......................................................................................................... 110
The Model for This Study................................................................. 112
Experimental D esign.......................................................................... 113
F in d in g s .................................................................................................... 113
Marketing Implications of this Study.......................................... 118
Suggestions for Future R esearch ............................................. 120
BIBLIOGRAPHY.............................................................................................................. 122
APPENDIX A; Concerning Brand L o ya lty.................................................. 128
v
Page
APPENDIX B: Test M aterial.............................................................................. 135
APPENDIX C: Invitational N o t e .................................................................... 150
V IT A ............................................................................................................................... 15 1
vi
LIST OF TABLES
1 POST-McGUIRE CONTRIBUTIONS TO INOCULATION
THEORY ...............................................................................................
2 EXPERIM ENTAL DATA: WHITEN
3 EXPERIM ENTAL DATA; BREATH
4 EXPERIM ENTAL DATA: DECAY
5 FACTORIAL ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE: W HITEN . .
6 FACTORIAL ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE: BREATH . .
7 FACTORIAL ANALAYSIS OF VARIANCE: DECAY . .
8 COMPARISON OF DEFENSES FOR BREATH: t-TEST
RESULTS ...............................................................................................
9 RESULTS: t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 2 AND 1
10 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 4 AND 3
11 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 6 AND 5
12 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 8 AND 7
13 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 10 AND
9 . . .
14 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 3 AND 1 .
15 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 5 AND 1
16 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 7 AND 1
17 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 9 AND 1
18 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 4 AND 2
19 RESULTS t-TEST COMPARISON FOR CELLS 6 AND 2
VII