Student Researchers: Bill Heuisler, Natasha Montes de Oca, Brian Olivo, & Merry Wardrup (BA Students). This paper was based on an undergraduate project as part of a research methods course.
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Shyam Sundar Sethuraman
Introduction
This study examines the effects of frequency of exposure and the recency effect on attitude towards the advertisement (Aad). According to the recency effect, recent items are better remembered than distant ones. Specifically, this study asks the following research questions: What is the relationship between frequency of exposure to print advertisements and attitude towards, as well as memory of the ad in general, and the product's brand name, in particular? What is the relationship between placement of a print advertisement within a magazine format, and memory for ad as well as brand name?
Hypotheses
Based on the psychological literature on the Mere Exposure Effect as well as recency and repetition effects, the following hypotheses were proposed:
H1a: There will be a positive correlation between the number of times a person sees an ad and their attitude towards the ad.
H1b: There will be a positive correlation between the number of times a person sees an ad and their general memory of the ad.
H1c: There will be a positive correlation between the number of times a person sees an ad and their memory of the product's brand name.
H2a: There will be a positive correlation between the degree of recency of an ad and a person's general recall of the ad.
H2b: There will be a positive correlation between the degree of recency of an ad and a person's memory of the product's brand name.
Method
Ninety participants took part in a within-participants experiment. A book was created (simulating a magazine format) such that it contained both articles and advertisements. The articles were randomly chosen from magazines that are popular with college students. The ads were also randomly chosen; however they all pertained to beverages. From these, three alcoholic beverage ads were chosen to be manipulated while all the other ads served as controls. Participants were asked to go through the book and were asked to fill out a questionnaire after exposure. The questionnaire had items pertaining to general recall, frequency and recency measures, and attitude towards the ad (Aad) measures. Participants were told that once they had turned the page, they would not be allowed to go back to that page. This was done to control frequency of exposure.
Results
H1a: Not supported. The data did not show the hypothesized positive correlation between the number of times a person sees an ad and their attitude towards the ad.
H1b: Supported. A sufficient positive correlation was detected between the number of times a person sees an ad and their general memory of the ad.
H1c: Supported. A sufficient positive correlation was detected between the number of times a person sees an ad and their memory of the product's brand name.
H2a: Supported. A sufficient positive correlation was detected between the degree of recency of an ad and a person's general recall of the ad.
H2b: Supported. A sufficient positive correlation was detected between the degree of recency of an ad and a person's memory of the product's brand name.
Conclusions
Overall, data lend support to both frequency and recency effects. The implications for future research are many: Researchers interested in the Advertising Response Model (ARM) can use these results to maximize effectiveness of advertisements. Also, other important determinants of ads such as color, size, placement etc. can be studied in conjunction with recency and frequency to advance knowledge further.
For more details/information about this study, please contact:
Shyam Sundar Sethuraman
Associate Professor and Director
Media Effects Research Laboratory
College of Communications
Penn State University
University Park, PA 16802
Ph: (814) 865 2173
E-mail: sss12@psu.edu
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