Alcohol beverage warnings in print advertisements

Michael S. Wogalter Department of Psychology Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY 12180 This experiment investigated the impact of warnings in alcoholic beverage advertising by embedding warnings in print (magazine) advertisements. Warning conspicuity (size and contrast) and shape (plain rectangle, rectangle with signal icon, and circle/arrow) were manipulated. Under the assumption that the research was a marketing study concerned with print media, participants paged through a simulated magazine and evaluated each page on its visual appeal. Later they were given an unexpected memory test on the content, location, and configuration of the warnings. The results showed that information in highly conspicuous (larger, higher contrast) warnings was remembered better than in less conspicuous warnings, and that warning advertisements can communicate information about the hazards of alcohol consumption. Implications of the results arc discussed, inclucling their applicability to warnings for other kinds of consumer products advertised in the print medium.