Departmental Papers (ASC)
Title
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of this Version
12-1989
Publication Source
Journal of Consumer Research
Volume
16
Issue
3
Start Page
335
Last Page
343
Abstract
Television ads can be classified as either arguments or dramas or hybrids of these forms. We claim that form dimension influences how ads are processed. An argument backs its claims with appeals to objectivity and is processed evaluatively. A drama appeals more to subjective criteria and is processed empathically. A study is reported in which 40 television commercials were classified on a dramatization scale. They were shown to 1,215 people, and measures of evaluative and empathic processing were taken. The measures were found to be weighted differently for arguments and dramas, supporting the contention that form influences processing.
Recommended Citation
Deighton, J., Romer, D., & McQueen, J. (1989). Using Drama to Persuade. Journal of Consumer Research, 16 (3), 335-343. Retrieved from https://repository.upenn.edu/asc_papers/360
Date Posted: 11 July 2014
This document has been peer reviewed.
Comments
At the time of publication, author Daniel Romer was affiliated with Leo Burnett, Inc. Currently, he is a faculty member at the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.