Denise E. DeLorme

Moviegoers' Experiences and Interpretations of Brands in Films Revisited

Abstract The article provides further phenomenological understanding of how brand props are interpreted within the everyday lived experience of the movie audience. Building on previous focus group research and on the grounded theory perspective of social science, the authors gathered first-person audiotaped accounts of experiences with brand props as interpreted in relation to movies, movieviewing, and social experience. Eight focus groups and 30 depth interviews of nonstudent movieviewers who differed in age bracket and moviegoing frequency were conducted. Constant comparative analysis uncovered three themes related to movie centrality and four themes related to consumption-specific aspects of everyday life. The findings reveal that regardless of age or moviegoing frequency, the informants were active participants in the viewing experience and actively interpreted brands encountered in movies. However, to the older moviegoers brands in movies symbolized social change whereas to the younger informants, th...

Journalists’ hostility toward public relations: an historical analysis

Abstract Journalists seem to treat public relations and its practitioners with contempt. However, this tension is complex and no studies have investigated the problem’s historic roots. Thus, this paper explores the perspective of “early insiders” through an historical analysis of autobiographies, biographies, and magazine articles written by and about early US newspaper reporters and editors. Results revealed six interrelated factors that contributed to the origins, persistence, and contradictions surrounding the hostility. The paper concludes with practical implications and future research directions.

The Third-Person Effect and its Influence on Behavioral Outcomes in a Product Advertising Context:: The Case of Direct-to-Consumer Prescription Drug Advertising

This study explored the third-person effect in the context of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising. A survey of 264 adults examined perceptions of DTC ad effects and their relationship to support for DTC ad regulation. Results support the third-person-effect perceptual component. The study revealed that for DTC advertising, the third-person effect operates in a multidimensional fashion through four factors (Negative DTC Ad Effects, Learning and Involvement, Patient/Provider Interaction, and Distrust of DTC Ad Information) and that negative content-based third-person effects were greater than positive effects. However, the current study showed weak support for the third-person effect behavioral component. Only perceived self-effect for Distrust of DTC Ad Information and attitude toward DTC advertising were significant predictors of regulatory support. The findings are discussed in relation to existing theoretical work, and future research recommendations are provided.

The Information Utility of DTC Prescription Drug Advertising

This study examined consumer perceptions of the information utility of direct-to-consumer advertising, focusing particularly on how older consumers respond to this unique form of advertising. Consumers are neutral, not positive, about the information utility of DTC ads, but perceptions vary by demographic and predispositional variables. Older consumers are less negative and see more usefulness in DTC advertising than younger consumers, especially in terms of its ability to prepare them to ask intelligent questions of their doctors. Regardless of age, however, perceptions of DTC advertising utility were positively associated with health care decision-making behavior, indicating that DTC advertising has value as an educational tool and plays a beneficial role in motivating preventive health care decisions.

The state of public research on over‐the‐counter drug advertising

Purpose – The over‐the‐counter (OTC) drug market is highly competitive, and consumer advertising is a prominent influence in OTC drug purchase and consumption. Given current marketplace conditions, it is important to summarize OTC drug advertising research. This paper aims to review the state of the public research literature on OTC drug advertising and provide a research agenda derived from the findings.Design/methodology/approach – A literature review was conducted to identify the key themes in OTC drug advertising research and secondary data were collected about the regulation, nature, functions, and scope of OTC drug advertising.Findings – Most pharmaceutical advertising studies have focused on prescription drugs, including the majority of direct‐to‐consumer advertising investigations. OTC drug advertising has received considerably less empirical attention. Since the mid‐1970s, only 24 OTC drug advertising studies have appeared sporadically in the literature. The cumulative findings are interesting an...

Direct-to-Consumer Advertising Skepticism and the Use and Perceived Usefulness of Prescription Drug Information Sources

This study investigates advertising skepticism in the context of consumers’ prescription drug information seeking behavior. Results of a telephone survey found that: (a) the overall level of direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) skepticism among consumers was neutral; (b) DTCA skepticism was unrelated to age, positively related to education and income, and varied by race; (c) however, when all the antecedent variables were considered concurrently, only education emerged as a significant predictor (consumers with higher education were more skeptical of DTCA); (d) DTCA skepticism was not significantly related to perceived importance of prescription drug information; (e) DTCA skepticism was not associated with use of advertising and interpersonal sources of prescription drug information; and (f) DTCA skepticism was negatively related to perceived usefulness of advertising sources but unrelated to perceived usefulness of professional interpersonal sources (i.e., physicians and pharmacists). The article concludes with a discussion of findings and directions for future research.

Source Selection in Prescription Drug Information Seeking and Influencing Factors: Applying the Comprehensive Model of Information Seeking in an American Context

This study investigates source selection in prescription drug information seeking and influencing factors on selection and seeking behaviors applying a modified Comprehensive Model of Information Seeking in an American context. Survey results suggest consumers engage in prescription drug information search before and after visiting a doctor, but search is not extensive. Consumers turn to the Internet, pharmacists, and doctors most frequently for prescription drug information. Information-seeking behaviors are rather universal across demographic and health-related characteristics; however, higher income consumers are more likely to search. Although our study shows some support for the modified Comprehensive Model of Information Seeking, the results indicate influencing factors vary by information source types examined, suggesting the model is more complex than predicted. The study advances research on health communication, information-seeking behaviors, and prescription drug decision making.

Ethics and the internet issues associated with qualitative research

This paper examines the need for standards to resolve ethical conflicts related to qualitative, on-line research. Practitioners working in the area of qualitative research gauged the breadth and depth of this need. Those practitioners identified several key ethical issues associated with qualitative on-line research, and felt that there should be a common ethics code to cover issues related to Internet research. They also identified challenges associated with the professions acceptance of a unified code. The paper concludes by offering guidance in developing and implementing such a code.

Evaluation, Use, and Usefulness of Prescription Drug Information Sources Among Anglo and Hispanic Americans

This survey was conducted to determine and compare how Anglo and Hispanic Americans evaluate and use interpersonal, advertising, and mediated sources of prescription drug information. Findings suggest the following: (1) Hispanics rely on doctors, Internet advertising sources, and direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA), while Anglos frequently use health-related websites and health care professionals; (2) Anglos are more likely to use health-related websites such as WebMD, although Anglos and Hispanics do not appear significantly different in Internet source usefulness evaluation; (3) Hispanics rely on television (TV) and DTC TV advertising more than Anglos, and this tendency is stronger for strong than weak Hispanic identifiers; (4) Hispanics evaluate TV news stories and TV advertising as more useful than Anglos; (5) Hispanics evaluate DTCA more positively and with less skepticism than Anglos; and (6) Hispanic ethnic identification level is positively related to preferences for Spanish-language media and health care professionals.

Dietary supplement advertising in the US: A review and research agenda

Dietary supplement advertising is an important, yet neglected, advertising research subject. This article overviews the US dietary supplement industry, describes advertising practices for dietary supplement products, and reviews the existing research on the topic. Based on the literature review, we offer a research agenda for advertising researchers around the world to stimulate and guide future investigations of dietary supplement advertising.