Haseeb Shabbir

The Use of Humor to Mask Deceptive Advertising: It's No Laughing Matter

The primary aim of this study was to investigate the use of humor as a masking device for deceptive advertising claims. Content analysis on a total of 238 ads assessed whether humor was used to mask any deceptive claims. Deceptive claims were found in 73.5% of humorous ads, and 74.5% of these were masked by humor. The relationship between various forms of deceptive claims and humor types used was also assessed to determine whether specific humor types masked particular types of deceptive claims. It appears that all types of humor are used to mask the various types of deceptive claims investigated. Furthermore, specific types of humor are used to mask particular types of deceptive claims.

Relationship quality and giving behaviour in the UK fundraising sector

Purpose – The current study aims to examine the extent to which donor religiosity and self‐construal encourage the development of donor‐perceived relationship quality and intention to give in the future. Donor‐perceived relationship quality is conceptualised as a higher‐order construct composed of trust, commitment, and satisfaction.Design/methodology/approach – The study employed a personally administered structured questionnaire to collect data. A total of 227 completed questionnaires was analysed. Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to assess the measurement properties of the study constructs. Structural equation modelling using a full estimation approach was performed to test the proposed research model.Findings – The study results indicate that religiosity and self‐construal are important contributors of relationship quality, while religiosity and relationship quality have a direct impact on intention toward future giving.Research limitations/implications – The study findings provide practition...

Corporate Image: A Service Recovery Perspective

This article explores direct and indirect antecedents that contribute to corporate image formation in a service recovery context. Two studies were carried out in Egypt. Study 1 comprises 29 semistructured interviews with complainants of mobile phone network service providers in Egypt. Study 2 encompasses a mail survey of another 437 complainants. Findings reveal the importance of perceived justice, namely, interactional justice, in corporate image formation, as well as the mediating role of satisfaction with service recovery in the perceived justice-corporate image relationship. Results also reveal two empirical relationships: problem solving as a determinant of distributive justice and follow-up as a driver of procedural justice. Accordingly, this study contributes to the service field by providing the first empirical evaluation of new direct and indirect antecedents of corporate image formation in a service recovery context. Managerial recommendations are provided that encourage service practitioners to emphasize perceived justice and satisfaction with a service recovery process to enhance the company’s image. Additionally, companies should invest in implementing problem solving and follow-up as service recovery strategies since both significantly enhance perceived justice.

The Ethical Aspects of Direct to Consumer Advertising of Prescription Drugs in the United Kingdom: Physician versus Consumer Views

ABSTRACT This article reports the findings of two surveys examining U.K. physician and consumer attitudes to the introduction of direct to consumer advertising (DTCA), and its likely impact, if implemented, in the strategically important U.K. prescription drug market. The findings, in general, suggest that neither physicians nor consumers are positively disposed to the advertising of prescriptions drugs, although significant differences in attitudes toward such policies emerged between the two groups based upon “ethics and approval levels,” “ethics-related impacts,” and the “impact of unbranded disease awareness campaigns.” The findings for consumers and physicians do not at present support the extension of DTCA in the United Kingdom, but are supportive of a continuation of unbranded “disease awareness” campaigns. Guidance for practitioners within the established U.S. DTCA marketplace is also provided.

Anti-child-abuse ads: believability and willingness-to-act

Purpose – Given their expense, the psycho-dynamic they induce among many viewers, and the lack of empirical evidence for their efficacy, studies to assess anti-child-abuse ad campaigns are warranted. As a preliminary foray into this research domain, this study explores a dual-process model for a single ad from the NSPCCs FULL STOP campaign. Specifically, it examines whether ad believability relates more strongly to an emotional or a cognitive response and which type of response is the strongest mediator on “willingness to act against child abuse”. Design/methodology/approach – A convenience sample of 242 students enrolled in postgraduate business and management studies at a large university in the UK responded to a structured questionnaire posted online. Findings – Except for H3, the hypothesised relationships are significant and in the expected direction. Specifically, ad believability relates negatively related to self-esteem (H1), self-esteem relates positively to “willingness to act against child abu...

The Social Marketing of Giving

Abstract Despite significant government efforts to bolster individual philanthropy, giving by individuals (as a percentage of household income) has remained remarkably static and participation in many western countries is declining. This article explores the role that governments might play in facilitating growth, from a social marketing perspective. Drawing on research from multiple domains this article proposes an easily accessible and actionable framework (1) to inform public policy and (2) to guide further impactful academic research, with the objective of increasing both participation in, and the monetary value of, individual giving.