Abstract
This paper discusses a test of a hypothetical model of the role of perceived ethical feelings about the use of female nudity/erotic stimuli in print advertising. Specifically, the linkages between perceived ethicalness of the use of the print ad (as measured by the Reidenbach and Robin ethics scale) and attitude toward the ad, brand, and purchase intention are explored.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
Reference
Alexander, M. W. and B. Judd, Jr.: 1986, ‘Differences in Attitudes Toward Nudity in Advertising’,Psychology: A Quarterly Journal of Human Behavior 23(1), 27–29.
Bagozzi, R. D.: 1978, ‘Salesforce Performance and Satisfaction as a Function of Individual Difference, Interpersonal, and Situational Factors’,Journal of Marketing Research 15, 517–531.
Boddewyn, J. J.: 1991, ‘Controlling Sex and Decency in Advertising Around the World’,Journal of Advertising 20(4), 25–35.
Boddewyn, J. J. and H. Kunz: 1991, ‘Sex and Decency Issues in Advertising: General and International Dimension’,Business Horizons, 13–19.
Burke, M. C. and J. A. Edell: 1989, ‘The Impact of Feelings on Ad-Based Affect and Cognition’,Journal of Marketing Research 26, 69–83.
Bush, A. J. and J. F. Hair, Jr.: 1985, ‘An Assessment of the Mall Intercept as a Data Collection Method’,Journal of Marketing Research 22, 158–167.
Courtney, A. E. and T. W. Whipple: 1983,Sex Stereotyping in Advertising (Lexington Books, Lexington, MA).
Ferrell, O. C. and L. Gresham: 1985, ‘A Contingency Framework for Understanding Ethical Decision Making in Marketing’,Journal of Marketing 49 (Summer), 87–96.
Ford, J. B. and M. S. LaTour: 1993, ‘Differing Reactions to Female Role Portrayals in Advertising’,Journal of Advertising Research 33(5), 43–52.
Ford, J. B., M. S. LaTour, E. D. Honeycutt, Jr., and M. Joseph: 1994, ‘Female Role Portrayals in International Advertising: Should Advertisers Standardize in the Pacific Rim?’,American Business Review 12(2), 1–10.
Frankena, W.: 1963,Ethics (Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ).
Gilly, M. C.: 1988, ‘Sex Roles in Advertising: A Comparison of Television Advertisements in Australia, Mexico, and the United States’,Journal of Marketing 52, 75–85.
Gould, S. J.: 1994, ‘Sexuality and Ethics in Advertising: A Framework and Research Agenda’,Journal of Advertising 23(3), 13–80.
Henthorne, T. L., M. S. LaTour, and R. Nataraajan: 1993, ‘Fear Appeals in Print Advertising: An Analysis of Arousal and Ad Response’,Journal of Advertising 22(2), 59–69.
Kilbourne, J.: 1987, ‘Still Killing Us Softly’, (Cambridge Documentary Films, Cambridge, MA).
LaTour, M. S.: 1990, ‘Female Nudity in Print Advertising: An Analysis of Gender Differences in Arousal and Ad Response’,Psychology and Marketing 7(1), 65–81.
LaTour, M. S. and T. L. Henthorne: 1993, ‘Female Nudity: Attitudes Toward the Ad and the Brand, and Implications for Advertising Strategy’,Journal of Consumer Marketing 10(3), 25–32.
LaTour, M. S. and T. L. Henthorne: 1994, ‘Ethical Judgements of Sexual Appeals in Print Advertising’,Journal of Advertising 23(3), 81.
LaTour, M. S., R. E. Pitts, and D. C. Snook-Luther: 1990, ‘Female Nudity, Arousal, and Ad Response: An Experimental Investigation’,Journal of Advertising 19(4), 51–62.
Lipman, J.: 1991, ‘Sexy or Sexist? Recent Ads Spark Debate’,The Wall Street Journal (Sept. 30), B1.
Lundstrom, W. J. and D. Sciglimpaglia: 1977, ‘Sex Role Portrayals in Advertising’,Journal of Marketing 41, 72–79.
Miller, C.: 1992, ‘Publisher Says Sexy Ads Are Ok, But Sexist Ones Will Sink Sales’,Marketing News 26(24), 8–9.
Murphy, P. and G. R. Laczniak: 1981, ‘Marketing Ethics: A Review with Implications for Managers, Educators and Researchers’,Review of Marketing 1981 (American Marketing Association, Chicago, IL), pp. 251–266.
Nowell, C. and L. R. Stanley: 1991, ‘Length-Biased Sampling in Mall Intercept Surveys’,Journal of Marketing Research 28, 475–479.
Nunally, J. C.: 1967,Psychometric Theory (McGraw-Hill, New York).
Reid, L. N., C. T. Salmon, and L. C. Soley: 1984, ‘The Nature of Sexual Content in Television Advertising: A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Award-Winning Commercials’, in R. W. Belk (ed.),AMA Educators' Proceedings (American Marketing Association, Chicago, IL), pp. 214–216.
Reidenbach, R. E. and D. P. Robin: 1988, ‘Some Initial Steps Toward Improving the Measurement of Ethical Evaluations of Marketing Activities’,Journal of Business Ethics 7, 871–879.
Reidenbach, R. E., D. P. Robin, and L. Dawson: 1991, ‘An Application and Extension of a Multidimensional Ethics Scale to Selected Marketing Practices and Marketing Groups’,Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 19(2), 83–92.
Sciglimpaglia, D., M. A. Belch, and R. F. Cain: 1978, ‘Demographic and Cognitive Factors Influencing Viewers' Evaluations of ‘Sexy’ Advertisements’, in William L. Wilkie (ed.),Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 6 (Association for Consumer Research), pp. 62–65.
Soley, L. and G. Kurzbard: 1986, ‘Sex in Advertising: A Comparison of 1964 and 1984 Magazine Advertisements’,Journal of Advertising 15(3), 46–54, 65.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Tony L. Henthorne is Director of the Institute for Service Excellence and Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Southern Mississippi. He has published in such journals asJournal of Advertising, Psychology and Marketing, andJournal of Business Ethics.
Michael S. LaTour is Associate Professor of Marketing at Auburn University. He has published in such journals asJournal of Advertising, Journal of Health Care Marketing, Journal of Business Ethics, andJournal of Advertising Research.
The authors contributed equally to this manuscript.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Henthorne, T.L., LaTour, M.S. A model to explore the ethics of erotic stimuli in print advertising. J Bus Ethics 14, 561–569 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00871984
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00871984