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As mentioned before, stimulusschema incongruity is a useful framework for examing consumer response to sex role portrayals in advertising. However, incongruity is unlikely to
perfectly correlate with consumer emotional response. A strong
correlation may occur, for example, when the emotion evoked
is surprise {Meyer, Rudolph, and Schutzwohl 1991). In such
cases, consumers may have no well-formed a priori attitudes
toward the sex role portrayal issue due to lack of awareness.
Alternatively, an advertisement might elicit strong emotional
reactions of approval or disapproval when consumers are more
aware and prejudiced toward the sex role portrayal issue. Eor
example, consumers with a strong negative attitude toward
stereotyped role portrayals in advertising may exhibit strong
emotions of disapproval when shown a portrayal incongruenr
with their self-schema and beliefs. Thus, an advertisement
might generate different emotions depending on consumers'
prior exposure and prejudices. The effect of incongruity is
likely to be magnified as prejudices increase.
Strong support for this proposition is provided by past research indicating that neglecting differences in consumer
prejudices could bias consumer evaluarions (Haddock and
Zanna 1993; Lysonski and PoUay 199{)) and that a priori attitudes correlate with diminished effectiveness of a particular
ad {Bhat, Leigh, and Wardlow 1998). A series of studies examined consumer general perception of sex role portrayals in
advertising and reported stereotypes being reflected. Women
were found to be primarily depicted in conformity with traditional gender roles, relationships, and situations {Ferguson,
Kreshel, and Tinkham 1990; Wiles, Wiles, and Tjernlund
1995). Similarly, stereotypes were reported for the portrayals
of men. Most male models were shown in conformity with
traditional gender roles {e.g., as businessmen, sportsmen, authority and father figures) (Kolber and Albanese 1996;
Wolheter and Lammers 1980).
In their landmark study, Lundstrom and Sciglimpaglia
{1977) introduced a scale for measuring respondents' general
attitudes toward sex role portrayals in advertising. The instrument was employed in subsequent studies and generally
was found to be useful for assessing overall issue awareness
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FIGURE 1
Study Variables and Expected Linkages
Consumer
Prejudices
Emotions
Disappntval
iPREJ)
Role Inicongruity
(Rl)
HI
H2
r
Approval
Surprise
H3
H3
Attitude
Toward the Ad
Attitude
w Toward the Brand
(^aa)
cause magazine ads were commonly used to promote the selected service.
Past research (Linville and Carlston 1994) suggests that a
person's self-concept is accessed through the social situation,
which is defmed as the (1) physical aspects of the situation
(e.g., places) and (2) social surroutidings (e.g., other people
present in the situation, their traits, and their roles). In addition, sex role portrayal researchers frequently employed the
setting as a nonverbal cue for conveying sex roles (Belkaoui
and Belkaoui 1976; Wagner and Banos 1973). This praxis
acknowledges that nonverbal cues are fundamental in understanding interpersonal interactions and are frequently being
used in the information processing of social interaction between men and women (Burgoon 1994). Accordingly, role
portrayal was manipulated in this study by modifying the
characterization and setting of the models relative to each
other.
Following the guidelines on selecting pictorial ad elements
(Phillips 1997), a total of six storyboards were created, three
in an occupational setting and three in a nonoccupational setting, with four different sex role schemes each. A panel of
local independent judges (marketing faculty, ad professionals, target audience members) then rated the pretest ads on
their ability to capture a range of responses to sex role portrayals. Eight advertisements within the two storyboards that
generated a wide range of responses were used as the ad stimuli
in this study (see Appendix). In the occupational setting, the
two models were placed in an office with "the boss" sitting to
the left at his or her desk while talking on a cell phone and
"the secretary" serving coffee from the right. In the nonoccupational setting, the two models were in a house that was
being renovated. While "the leader" was talking on the cell
phone, "the follower" was sweeping the floor. The ad copy,
size, and layout were made identical to control for potential
confounds. Text was limited to the brand's logo and a single
catchphrase to enhance realism and minimize text as a confound. For the occupational setting the catchphrase was "You
want reliable employees-" You definitely want our service,"
and for the nonoccupational setting it was "Your partner may
dump youOur signal will stay with you."
Measures
Attitudes
The attitudes examined were consumer prejudices, attitude
toward the ad, and brand attitude. The survey instrument for
consumer prejudice was identical to the one used in the
Lundstrom and Sciglimpaglia (1977) study and follow-up
research (Ford, LaTour, and Honeycutt 1997; Lundstrom,
White, and Chopoorian 1999; Lysonski and Pollay 1990).
Response to ten attitude statements pertaining to the general
perception of advertising role portrayals was measured using
a seven-point Likert-style scale tanging from 1 = strongly
disagree to 7 ^ strongly agree. To avoid response set problems, some items were reversed in the actual questionnaire.
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TABLE I
CFA Results for the Emotions Scale: Revised Mode)
Exogenous construct
Variable
Disapproval
t values
Angry
Contemptuous
Disgusted
Distrustful
Irritated
Revolted
Scornful
Skeptical
Uneasy
Worried
.66
.75
.65
.60
.66
.60
.79
.66
.79
.63
8.90
10.43
9.34
9.44
9.86
6.43
12.69
8.46
11.43
8.45
Approval
Curious
Envious
Excited
Interested
Involved
Stimulated
Wishful
.64
.70
.66
.68
.59
.73
.75
9.54
10.64
8.92
9.14
6.24
12.64
10.05
Surprise
Surprised
Astonished
.75
.64
9.91
9.69
Disapproval
Approval
Surprise
Disapproval
Approval
Surprise
1.000
-.661 (-5.94)
.233 (2.43)
1.000
-.129 (-1.83)
LOOO
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FIGURE 2
Alternative Models
Model 1
Emotions
Incongruity
Model 2
Consumer
Prejudices
Emotions
Incongruity
Model 3
Consumer
Prejudices
Incongruity
The fit statistics for the revised model were considered satisfactory: X'(149) - 215,p = .057,GFI = .9\d,AGFl = .898,
NFl = .891, RMSR = .073. Accordingly, the revised model
was accepted for use of the constructs disapproval, approval,
and surprise in the subsequent analysis.
RESULTS
Manipulation Check
To check the role incongruity manipulation, respondents were
asked the extent to which they either agreed or disagreed with
the following statement: "The sex roles portrayed in the advertisement are congruent with what I believe are appropriate
roles for men and women in society" (scale from 1 = strongly
disagree to 7 - strongly agree). To test the effectiveness of the
manipulation, data was analyzed by using an analysis of variance (ANOVA) model in which incongruity was the dependent variable and the setting and scheme treatments were the
independent variables. Results indicate that incongruity scores
were significantly affected by the selected sex role portrayals
(F ^ 14.843;/J ^ .001; X^= .275). Across genders, consumers
exposed to ads portraying women in roles superior to men
(stimuli 3 and 5) reported higher incongruity, whereas consumers exposed to ads featuring men in superior roles (stimuli
4 and 8) reported lower incongruity.
Emotions
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TABLE 2
Results of the Regression Analyses on Effects of Role Incongruity (ft/)
and Consumer Prejudices (PREJ) on Emotional Dimensions
R/
(Model I)
Independent variable
Dependent variable
R/ + PRE/
(Model 2)
R/ + fi/ PREy
(Model 3)
Parameters
Approval
2.435***
.045
,079
AIC
N0.43
Disapproval
1.624***
.188***
.306**
.288
82.55
2.842***
1.596***
1.588***
-.028
-.194**
-.194***
-.340**
.179
-.461***
,317
168.16
Surprise
162.15
1.428***
-.113***
.267
AIC
.137
102.15
-.029
AiC
1.282***
.185***
253***
317.87
136.39
1.953***
-.014*
1.291***
-.262**
- . 116**
,084
-,194**
389.22
,108
387.37
* p< .10.
**;>< .05.
***/- < .01.
for effects on disapproval and approval (comparatively smallest AIC and highest R\J. For surprise, a different mechanism was identified: According to the quality parameters, role
incongruity has a direct effect on surprise. These findings support H1 and H2, and are consistent with prior research (Alden,
Mukherjee, and Hoyer 2000; Garbarino and Edell 1997).
Test of H3: Effects of Role Incongruity and
Emotions on Attitude Toward the Ad
Direct and mediating effects of role incongruity were evaluated by perfotming additional regression analyses. This procedure follows Baron and Kenny (1986, p. 1177), who state,
"There is no need for hierarchical or stepwise regression or the
computation of any partial or semipartial correlations." Subjects of the evaluation were as follows: the effect of the independent variable (incongruity) on the dependent variable A
(Model 1), the effect of the mediator variable (emotions) on the
dependent variable (Model 2), and effects of the independent
variable and the mediator on the dependent variable (Model 3).
A significant, but weak, direct effect of role incongruity on
attitude toward the ad was found (Model 1). In addition, the
emotional dimensions directly infiuenced consumer attitude
toward the ad, strongly in the case of disapproval and approval (Model 2). More detailed role incongruity and approval
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TABLE 3
Evaluation of Direct and Mediating Effects of Role Incongruity (R/) and Emotions on AttitudeToward the Ad
Parameter
Model
Rl
Approval
Disapproval
Surprise
3.487***
.093***
.107
1.311***
7 1 1 ^ ^ ^
.275
.470***
-.620***
2.254***
-.093*
.159
522***
.064**
.877**
.061**
.867***
.069*
.705***
.277
-.050***
.595
-.860***
.490
3.860***
.083
1.113***
.411***
1 484***
-.863***
.486
1.352***
.075**
.527***
-.645"^
-.687***
.509
-.084^.1 13
045***
.515
* / - < .10.
**/j
<
.05.
***/> < . 0 1 .
DISCUSSION
The objective of this research was to examine effects of sex role
incongruity on consumer emotional and attitudinal response,
with consumer prejudices as a moderator variable. The findings advance advertising theory and practice in several ways.
First, role incongruity affected consumer emotional response both directly (surprise) and indirectly (approval, disapproval), with consumer prejudices moderating effects. The
fmding of significant effects is in line with past congruity
research, suggesting that stimulus-schema incongruity elicits emotions (Garbaritio and Edell 1997), particularly surprise
(Alden, Mukherjee, and Hoyer 2000). Overall, incongruity
theory was found to be a useful concept for examining consumer response to sex role portrayals in advertising. In addition, identifying linkages between sex role incongruity and
consumer emotions adds a new perspective to the existing
body of sex role portrayal literature, which has heretofore tocused on cognitive processing.
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Second, consumer prejudices were found to moderate effects of sex role incongruity on consumer emotional response,
with downstream effects extending on consumer attitudes.
The identification of consumer prejudices as a moderating
variable on advertising effectiveness is consistent with prior
research (Bhat, Leigh, and Wardlow 1998). It is interesting
to note that the moderating role could not be observed for the
surprise dimension, which appeared to be directly affected by
role incongruity. Yet this finding is consistent with the idea
thiit portrayals that were perceived as incongruent with individual beliefs elicit surprise (Alden, Mukherjee, and Hoyer
2000), an effect that does not requireand in fact precludes
the existence of consumer prejudices.
Third, the importance of emotions in the ad response process was underscored, particularly in the context of strong
consumer prejudices on an emotionally charged social issue.
Indeed, this study confirms earlier suggestions that affective
consumer responses to sex role portrayals may exist (Batra
and Ray 1986; Jaffe and Berger 1994). A variety of emotional
dimensionsapproval, disapproval, and surprisewas generated and mediated effects of role incongruity on attitude
toward the ad. The emotional response scale developed by
Bhat, Leigh, and Wardlow (1998) was found to have satisfactory properties.
Probably the most relevant implication of this study for
advertising practitioners is that disapproval had a stronger
(absolute) impact on consumer attitudes than did approval.
Accordingly, eliciting disapproving responses is relatively
more effective than eliciting positive reactions. This finding
could be exploited most beneficially in comparative advertising. Given sufficient insight into consumer prejudices, advertisers could discredit competitors" offers by employing
incongruent portrayals rather than using congruent portrayals for their client's offer. Caution is advised, however, due to
prior research indicating that incongruent information is better
remembered (Hong and Zinkhan 1995; Stangor and McMillan
1992). Clearly, more research is needed extending the role
incongruity perspective on memory.
The current study has another limitation that needs to be
mentioned. Pairs of female and male individuals were employed to portray sex roles in one occupational setting and in
one nonoccupational setting. Although the study controlled
for model gender, it did not control for model. The female
boss, secretary, leader and follower pairs were the same woman.
This was not true for the men. Not only were the male models changed, but their positioning in the nonoccupational ads
was changed with respect to the temale leader and between
the two male followers. While focusing on role incongruity
should have precluded biased results, future studies need to
control for models to exclude this potential source for study
bias.
Future research should also extend this work into other
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APPENDIX
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