PurposeThis study aims to examine how virtual influencers' degree of realism, both form and behavioral realism, along with variations in their social identity cues (gender, race), influences consumer attitudes and purchase intentions.Design/methodology/approachTwo field experiments were conducted. Study 1 examined how form and behavioral realism and gender (female/male) shaped attitudes and intentions. Study 2 investigated how race (non-White/White) paired with perceived realism influences consumer perceptions of virtual influencers and associated brands.FindingsResults demonstrate that perceived realism, along with gender presentation, significantly shapes consumer attitudes and influencer engagement intentions. Racial presentation, when paired with realism, shapes consumer influencer and brand attitudes, ultimately affecting purchase intentions.Practical implicationsThe findings offer actionable guidance for brands to develop and leverage virtual influencers by emphasizing authentic and carefully calibrated realism. This approach boosts brand engagement while reducing risks of bias and stereotyping.Originality/valueThis research advances the understanding of virtual influencers by highlighting how nuanced design elements and social cues shape consumer responses, offering insights for brands aiming to optimize digital influencer strategies.

This study examines how the September 4, 2019, settlement between YouTube and New York State for violating Children's Online Privacy Protection Act Rule (COPPA) policies has impacted kidfluencer promotional strategies. Using a quantitative content analysis and a YouTube data scraping technique, we assessed popular kidfluencer channels to determine whether there were shifts in sponsored advertising that could indicate a compensation for a loss of revenue from pre- and mid-roll ads. Our analysis focused on changes in the presence of sponsored content and patterns of brand integration within the videos. The results show a significant increase in sponsorship disclosures post-settlement, suggesting that kidfluencers and brands have adapted their strategies to comply with COPPA regulations, but are now relying on less transparent formats for delivering their messages. Whereas the number of videos featuring branded products remained consistent, the rise in disclosed sponsorships raises concerns about the growing use of embedded brand advertising, which is more difficult for children and parents to recognize.

Over the years, scholars have conducted a number of studies to examine the effectiveness of green messages in advertisements. But a gap in knowledge remains regarding how and to what extent such messages are effective in changing advertising and brand attitudes and purchase intentions. To fill the gap, we analyzed published experiment-based studies to investigate the persuasive impact of green messages in advertisements and developed a research model outlining the relationships between the key variables. Results of the meta-analysis suggested that overall, green ads had significant effects on ad attitudes, brand attitudes, and purchase intentions. Such effects, however, varied across several moderating conditions. These results have both practical and theoretical implications.

The purpose of the present study is to explore how narrative political ads interact with other message strategies in affecting recipients' ad responses. To accomplish that, we conducted a 2 x 2 x 2 between-subjects experiment whereby participants viewed political ads manipulated by message format (non-narrative vs. narrative), message valence (negative vs. positive), and message focus (issue vs. character). Results suggested that narrative political ads elicited favorable advertising evaluations via increased transportation and reduced counterarguing. Moreover, when political ads attacked the competing candidate's character, the narrative message led to higher levels of empathy and lower levels of counterarguing than the non-narrative message. Reduced counterarguing was the mechanism through which favorable ad evaluations were generated. These findings have both theoretical and practical implications.

Abstract Purpose This study investigates the influence of individual- and country-level factors on citizen members’ attitude and actions regarding plastic waste. At the individual level, it assesses the influence of the diversity of environmental news use from traditional media, online social networks, and other internet sources on the public’s support for policy and green behaviors related to plastic waste. Design/methodology/approach We utilized secondary survey data collected from 27 European countries by Eurobarometer. Results The two-level analysis show that several individual factors including gender, age, political ideology, risk perception, and most importantly diversity of sources in environmental news use, from all three types of media sources, was positively associated with participants’ policy support and green behaviors related to plastic waste. This research also found the influence of several country-level variables on green behaviors toward plastic waste. Implications When assessing support for plastic waste control, various factors at both levels (i.e., country and individual) need to be considered to mobilize the public. Findings suggest extending the theoretical model of social cognitive theory to include more country-level factors especially in cross-national comparison. Originality/value This study shed lights on understanding factors that could influence public policy support and green behaviors with regards to plastic waste.

This study examined two-sided conversion messages in relation to one-sided advocacy messages in reducing vaccine hesitancy related to COVID-19 vaccine uptake. Results demonstrated that, for vaccine-hesitant participants, conversion messages increased pro-COVID-19 vaccination attitudes and behavioral intentions. For high vaccine-hesitant participants, the relationship between conversion messages and attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccinations was mediated through source credibility. For low vaccine-hesitant participants, mediation occurred through counterarguing. Findings have implications for health message tailoring related to COVID-19 vaccine uptake.

This study examined the persuasive effects of two-sided refutational conversion messages compared to one-sided advocacy messages in increasing pro-COVID-19 vaccination attitudes and reducing resistance to getting vaccinated among U.S. adults who self-reported as unvaccinated. Results showed that main effects of conversion messages led to significantly higher attitudes but failed to directly reduce resistance toward vaccination. Predicted mediation effects between conversion messages and the dependent variables were found for homophily but were not supported for argument strength. Significant group differences were detected between participants who self-reported as high or low in vaccine hesitancy, for structural equation models that significantly and indirectly led to decreased resistance. Findings show the potential for two-sided conversion messages to be used by public health message designers to affect pro-health outcomes. Implications and limitations of these results and future directions are discussed.

This chapter includes a study about narrative persuasion in the context of political advertising. The study examined mechanisms of narrative persuasion, including transportation, counterarguing, and three discrete emotions within 2018 senatorial and gubernatorial narrative video ads using a 2 (valence: support vs. attack) × 2 (length: 30-second vs. 60-second) factorial experiment. Results showed the discrete emotion of happiness served as a primary mediator between valence and transportation, and between valence and attitudinal variables (candidate and ad). A valence-by-length interaction also affected happiness and attitude toward the candidate.

Around May 6, 2020, a 26-minute-long video (conspiracy theory) exploded on social media named "Plandemic" by a molecular biologist who made false assertions about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Conspiracy theories are often disseminated through disinformation and can be defined as an individual or group's feelings that occur when responsibility for a social or political event is attributed to the actions of a manipulative, malevolent group. Individuals are attracted to conspiracy theories to fulfill specific epistemic, existential, and social motives. Utilizing these taxonomies, the authors use Latent Dirichlet Allocation topic modeling, a popular form of text mining along with thematic analysis, a popular qualitative method in social sciences to uncover which of these motives were stated in tweets and were more prevalent in the spread of this misinformation.

Purpose While research has shown that corporate social responsibility (CSR) can enhance a company's reputation, less is known about the effects of CSR communication on nonprofits. Hence, the current study seeks to understand how corporate reputation, message credibility and message source may impact consumers' attitudinal and behavioral intentions toward nonprofits. Design/methodology/approach A 2 (corporate reputation: low vs high) × 2 (CSR communication source: newspaper blog vs nonprofit blog) between-subjects online experiment was conducted. Real-world corporations (Toyota and Volkswagen) and a nonprofit (World Wildlife Fund) were chosen based on a pretest. Findings Nonprofit reputation increased after reading a CSR message, especially when it involved a partnership with a low-reputation corporation. Nevertheless, CSR partnerships with high-reputation corporations evoked higher volunteer intentions. Message credibility mediated the relationship between corporate reputation and nonprofit reputation. When the communication source was the nonprofit and the partnership involved a high-reputation corporation, positive evaluations of nonprofit likeability and competence resulted. Practical implications Nonprofit communication managers should understand the merit of communicating CSR partnerships with their constituents, regardless of medium. Additionally, the choice of a corporate partner is important for certain nonprofit outcomes. Lastly, message credibility is another important factor that should be considered. Originality/value The study bridges literature in communications that typically examines CSR by focusing on its effects on corporate outcomes with literature in nonprofit management that looks at nonprofit outcome measures. This study demonstrated that nonprofit–corporate alliances can also influence nonprofit reputation and donation/volunteer intentions based on the reputation of the corporate partner.

The year 2017 was an historic season for hurricanes devastating the United States. Related news coverage brought people close to the impacts of these natural disasters through evocative stories of people acting as heroes and villains, showing humanity at its best and worst. The current study experimentally tested the potential for these news stories of human responses to hurricanes to shape emotional and moral responses of viewers. The study also examined how hurricane news could subsequently influence other perceptions, including the implicit link between climate change and hurricane intensity and frequency. Results showed that news stories featuring the best and worst of humanity were both effective at evoking compassion, yet only stories featuring the worst of humanity evoked anger. Both emotions' relationships with moral conviction, policy attitudes, and behavioral intentions toward climate change were mediated by reflection, and further analyses revealed significant differences among conservative, moderate, and liberal audiences.

Autonomous vehicles represent an emerging technology with the potential to radically transform everyday life. Yet there is little understanding of how promotional tactics-easy-to-grasp technology labels or pairing the technology with well-known celebrities-influence public perceptions of risk, benefits, and intentions. Therefore, we experimentally tested (N = 721) the effects of technology name and celebrity presence on emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses to promotional messages. Moreover, we examined how individual differences and attention to news about autonomous vehicles can moderate responses. Results of this exploratory study revealed the importance of affective and cognitive mediators and audience-related moderators in shaping responses.