The impact of fear appeal advertising on disposition formation in HIV/Aids related communication

[摘要] Research to guide marketing practitioners in social issue-related communicationremains underexplored. The increases in various social problems have causedpractitioners to return to fear appeals as motivation to influence individuals to thinkand behave in a certain way. The HIV/AIDS pandemic is a major concern worldwide,as well as in South Africa, and some marketing communication campaigns do notseem to be producing the expected results.During 2007, an alarming 33.2 million people worldwide were infected with HIV. TheAfrican continent, and specifically sub-Saharan Africa, is still hardest hit by thispandemic. The high level of new HIV infections occurring daily in South Africareflects the difficulties faced by HIV/AIDS education and prevention campaigns.Approximately 5.41 million people were living with HIV in 2006. This equates to about11 percent of the total population and approximately 1 000 AIDS deaths occur everyday. The social climate in South Africa has not been conducive to safe sexualmessages, and there is a continuing need to encourage safe sexual behaviour, andawareness of the detrimental effects of HIV/AIDS.An estimated 60 percent of all new HIV/AIDS infections in South Africa occur inpeople between the ages of 15 and 25 years, with young women being more at riskof contracting HIV/AIDS than young men. This trend implies that the impact of theHIV/AIDS epidemic will be felt extensively in the next decade. Additionally, HIV/AIDSprevention programmes for the youth are not having the intended effect to promotepartner reduction, consistent condom use and prompt treatment for sexuallytransmitted infections. These factors confirm that HIV/AIDS marketing communicationprogrammes are of central importance in slowing down the spread of the diseaseamong South African adolescents.Marketing communication is evolving to an era of tailored messages targeted atindividuals and more sophisticated segmentation of target audiences. South Africanyoung adults reside in a country with diverse racial groups and cultural backgrounds.The more knowledge about their feelings and fears about HIV/AIDS becomeavailable, the more effective marketing communication can be developed. Overallmarketing communication campaigns must be tailored to the specific needs of adolescents and the promotion of safer sexual behaviour should be at the core ofHIV/AIDS programmes, since they are embarking on their sexual lives and aretherefore open to behavioural change interventions.This study investigated whether the use of fear increases the likelihood of adoptingappropriate behaviour pertaining to HIV/AIDS. Fear, attitude towards theadvertisements, severity, susceptibility and efficacy were examined to ascertain theinfluence of fear appeals. Findings provide encouraging evidence for the persuasivepower of fear appeals. Fear appeals can be a strong motivator if accompanied byhigh efficacy messages, to improve knowledge and to influence attitudes aboutHIV/AIDS. Susceptibility to the disease among adolescents also influencesbehaviour, and the importance of individual factors, including racial characteristicsand personality, was confirmed. The empirical results of the study reveal thattogether with message factors like message content and media usage, the goal ofchanging adolescents' sexual behaviour in the midst of the HIV/AIDS pandemic canbe achieved.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University