Humor in Advertising : A Comparative Study between Japan and Korea

The purpose of this study is to examine the use of humor in advertising with respect to: (1) how often humorous appeals are utilized in Japanese and Korean television commercials; (2) what form of humor is used; and (3) whether differences in the use of humor exist between product categories. Toward this end, three issues are addressed. First, three research fields are reviewed: (1) theories on humor mechanism; (2) two types of models, cognitive and affective, for explaining the effects of humor on persuasion; and (3) content analysis studies of humor in advertising. Second, to understand each country\u27s advertising styles that might affect the use of humor in advertising, specific characteristics of Japanese and Korean advertising are also examined. Finally, a content analysis of Japanese and Korean advertisements is presented. The result indicated more use of humor in Japanese television commercials. The resulf of analyzing commercials by humor type showed that ludicrous humor is most often used in both countries, accounting for almost half of the humor-intended TV commercials. While pun-based humor was the second most frequently used in Japan, joke-based humor ranked second in Korea. It is also interesting that very few satirical commercials are found in either country. In terms of product categories represented, commercials for low involvement products employed humor most frequently in both countries. In conclusion, the results indicate differences in the use of humor dimensions between the two countries, but it is also revealed that there is a global strategy in the application of humor in advertising, regardless of national cultures