Mariko Morimoto

Using Psychological Reactance as the framework, this study sought to understand consumer attitudes towards two major direct marketing techniques: unsolicited commercial e-mail and postal direct mail. In particular, audience perceptions of advertising intrusiveness, perceived loss of control (as conceptualized by Psychological Reactance), and irritation regarding the direct marketing techniques were investigated. The results of this survey study (N=119) indicated that recipients perceived unsolic

This study examines the relationship between persuasion knowledge and personalized advertising-related outcomes, such as ad avoidance and attitudes toward personalized advertising. The persuasion knowledge model is used to investigate privacy concerns and information control as a mediator and moderator in this relationship, respectively. The study also examines the degrees of these personalized advertising outcomes and their variances across social media platforms. An online survey of 600 Japane

Abstract The current study examines some of the cultural influences for Asian Americans on perceived model credibility. Specifically, the effects of racial congruency and ethnic identification are examined between consumers and ad stimuli as well as the role that similarity plays in the process. The findings reveal that model-consumer racial congruency is an important consideration for enhancing source credibility. However, similarity with the model in terms of values and cultural background was

While e-mail remains a popular advertising medium for marketers, consumers' privacy concerns about the medium have become a serious issue. In this study, an online survey examined how two aspects of privacy—perceived intrusiveness and psychological reactance—influenced consumers' attitudes toward unsolicited commercial e-mail and marketing in general. The results indicate that the more intrusive an individual perceives an e-mail, the stronger their reactance will be against it, the more they wil

Abstract Using the online survey method, this study investigates how consumers regard unsolicited commercial e-mail (spam) and their possible responses. Specifically, the study closely examines the relationships among five key indicators: (a) perceived intrusiveness, (b) perceived irritation, (c) attitudes toward the advertising medium, (d) ad skepticism, and (e) ad avoidance. Also examined is the process of attitude formation concerning unsolicited commercial e-mail. The results indicate that w

ABSTRACT This study used the method of content analysis to investigate the use of models (or endorsers) from different racial/ethnic backgrounds in Japanese print advertising to enhance our knowledge about model selections in Japanese fashion advertising. Particularly, the relationships among portrayals of Western/Asian models in ads, advertisers' origin (foreign or domestic), and the magazine title (Japanese or Japanese editions of global fashion magazines) were closely examined. The results su

Purpose Based on congruency theory, this study aims to examine the effects of celebrity endorsement on endorser credibility in Japanese over-the-counter (OTC) drug advertising using multiple celebrity categories. In particular, this research explored brand–endorser congruence and endorser–consumer congruence and their roles in attitude formation. Design/methodology/approach A 3 (endorser categories: actor/actress, athlete and talent/TV personality) × 2 (endorser’s gender) factorial experimental

This study investigated the potential influence of word-of-mouth (WOM) and need-for-cognition (NFC) on consumer information search in the blogosphere. This study, in particular examined how consumers perceive corporate and consumer-generated blogs as product/brand information sources. The results of an online survey indicated that NFC and susceptibility to WOM influenced consumer’s information search process, ultimately leading to purchase intent. The findings also showed that while high NFC ind

This chapter discusses the relationship between consumer concerns over their online privacy and negative responses they may have to digital advertising using the framework of Brehm's psychological reactance theory. Consumers may feel perceived intrusiveness, irritation, and avoidance toward digital advertising. A certain degree of advertising personalization, however, has the potential to ease negative responses and may even enhance its effectiveness. The chapter also discusses the process of ho

While research on cultural variables influencing source credibility has been called for by scholars, very few studies have made attempts thus far. In this study, an experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of acculturation and in-group bias on Asian Americans’ perceived source credibility and advertising effectiveness. The results indicate that while acculturation had some effects on the subcomponents of credibility, in-group bias did not have an effect on credibility and Asian Americ

Based on the Elaboration Likelihood Model, the current study investigates information types that are cross-promoted in Japanese pharmaceutical advertising. The results from a quantitative content analysis of OTC drug brands' TV commercials broadcasted in Japan between 2014 and 2015 and their corresponding product websites (n = 150) show that Japanese OTC drug promotions feature more informational cues in the latter; cues such as price, safety, quality, components, and guarantees/warranties are p

This research explores how the level of consumers' need for cognition (NFC) is associated with celebrity endorser credibility and examines its effects on advertising-related attitudes. A 3 (endorser types: actor/actress, athlete, TV personality/<i>talent</i>) × 2 (endorser's gender) factorial experiment with 435 Japanese consumers was conducted. Concerning Japanese OTC drug advertising, lower NFC individuals perceived celebrity endorsers as more credible in comparison to higher NFC individuals.

This study examined the effects of privacy concerns, information control, and perceived benefits of personal information disclosure of Japanese consumers, on the attitudes toward disclosing personal information and the willingness to disclose information. The results of an online survey on Japanese consumers aged 20–60 (N = 1,000) confirm the moderation effect of information control and the mediation effect of perceived benefits on the relationship between privacy concerns and the attitudes towa

This study investigated the relationships between popular social media platforms in Japan, degree of ad personalisation, consumers' perceptions, and behavioural responses to personalised advertising. It also examined associations between consumers' information control and privacy concerns with the perceptual and behavioural responses. A three (degrees of ad personalisation) × four (social media platforms) factorial experiment was conducted through the manipulation of tablet PC ads in Japan (n =

This study examined the effects of personal information types and brand familiarity on Japanese consumers' perceived brand trust, privacy concerns, and anxiety about personal information disclosure to marketers. It also investigated how the cultural dimensions of Japanese consumers affect the relationships between privacy concerns, perceived brand trust, and personal information disclosure outcomes. The results of an online experiment (n = 771) showed that neither personal information requested