On communicating about taboo social issues in least developed countries: The case of Ethiopia

The general objective of this dissertation is to contribute to increasing the effectiveness of advertising programs in an LDC through an increased understanding of media and message decisions in the context of an LDC. Accordingly, three empirical papers on media decisions and message decisions in the context of an LDC are presented. The different empirical papers of this dissertation answer important research questions such as: Why are billboards popular in an LDC? What factors contribute to the effectiveness of billboard advertising in an LDC? What is the relationship between the factors contributing to billboard effectiveness and the reasons for using the medium in the context of an LDC? Is an advertising variation strategy superior to an advertising repetition strategy in view of the sequence in which positive and negative message appeals are presented (within a given medium)? Is an advertising variation strategy superior to an advertising repetition strategy when addressing taboo versus non-taboo social issues (within a given medium)? Does culture influence the effectiveness of specific advertising appeals when addressing social issues that are considered as a taboo