The Relationship Between Attitude Toward the Ad and Intention: A Quasi-Experimental Analysis

115 p.Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1988.The purpose of this study was to investigate the joint and individual influences of brand usage attitudes and attitudes toward the ad on intention. There appears to be confusion over the theoretical and operational approach that should be applied when investigating the influence of ad attitudes in the consumer decision making process. This study attempted to clarify this confusion. A quasi-experimental design was used to separate the influences of ad attitude from that of brand usage attitude. The critical hypotheses questioned the ability of ad attitudes to mediate intention independent of brand usage attitudes; and the individual patterns of influence between brand usage attitudes and ad attitudes on intention.Results of this study indicate that brand attitudes are the mediator of intention. The influence of ad attitudes on intention beyond that of brand usage attitudes is rarely significant. A power of the positive logic was supported as the pattern of effects for brand usage attitudes. A power of the extremes logic was supported as the pattern of effects for ad attitudes.Conclusions suggest that ad attitudes should not be studied in isolation when investigating their impact on intention. Ad attitudes should be studied for their impact on brand attitudes, and at different levels of brand attitude. Results suggest that ad attitudes have their largest impact when brand usage attitudes are negative. Future studies should investigate how the effect of ad attitude is mediated from exposure to intention.U of I OnlyRestricted to the U of I community idenfinitely during batch ingest of legacy ETD