The Effect of Marijuana Scenes in Anti-Marijuana Public Service Announcements on Adolescents' Evaluation of Ad Effectiveness

Abstract

This study explored the possible negative impact of a specific ad feature—marijuana scenes—on adolescents’ perception of ad effectiveness. A secondary data analysis was conducted on adolescents’ evaluations of 60 anti-marijuana public service announcements (PSAs) that were a part of national and state anti-drug campaigns directed at adolescents. The major finding of the study was that marijuana scenes in anti-marijuana PSAs negatively affected ad liking and thought valence toward the ads among adolescents who are at higher levels of risk for marijuana use. This negative impact was not reversed in the presence of strong anti-marijuana arguments. The results may be used to partially explain the lack of effectiveness of the anti-drug media campaign. It may also help us design more effective anti-marijuana PSAs by isolating adverse elements in the ads that may elicit boomerang effects in the target population. Limitations of the study and future directions were discussed.

Adolescents’ attitudes toward antimarijuana ads, usage intentions, and actual marijuana usage.

“…If so, it stands to reason that we would design ads that make use of these features to target specific audiences. Communication scholars have made some inroads into this issue (Kang, Cappella, & Fishbein, 2009; Strasser, et al, 2009; Yzer, Vohs, Luciana, Cuthbert, & MacDonald, 2011); much of this research has been concerned with receivers’ emotional responses to ads, but even in this area, much remains to be done. Yzer and colleagues (2011), for example, have shown important relations between adolescents’ affective responses to anti-drug ads and their judgments of the ads effectiveness, and Dillard and colleagues have focused considerable attention on perceived ad effectiveness as an indicator of actual ad effectiveness, which could inform researchers and practitioners in the pre-implementation phase of persuasion campaigns (Dillard, Shen, & Vail, 2007; Dillard, Weber, & Vail, 2007).…”

Perceived Message Sensation Value and Psychological Reactance: A Test of the Dominant Thought Disruption Hypothesis

“…Future research should incorporate MSV and PMSV in order to examine message effects on outcomes of interest as well as providing explanations by way of mediating psychological states (O'Keefe, 2003). We know from earlier work that placing marijuana scenes in anti-marijuana ads can reduce the effectiveness of the advocacy among high-risk adolescents (Kang, Cappella, & Fishbein, 2009). Future research should identify novel ad features and determine if novel sources have a similar effect.…”

Effects of Smoking Cues and Argument Strength of Antismoking Advertisements on Former Smokers' Self-efficacy, Attitude, and Intention to Refrain From Smoking

“…In another study, perceived ad effectiveness in no-smoking-cue condition increased as AS of antismoking ads increased, whereas in smoking-cue condition, the slope of perceived ad effectiveness was depressed, indicating that the presence of smoking cues undermines the message effectiveness (Lee et al, 2011). Similarly, antimarijuana ads with marijuana cues were also rated less favorably by high-risk adolescents than those with no cues (Kang, Cappella, & Fishbein, 2009). …”