Driving Consumer Action through Fear: A Regional Analysis of Television Commercials
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64137/31080030/IJFEMS-V2I2P112Keywords:
Fear Appeal, Purchase Intention, Perceived Severity, Perceived Vulnerability, Fear Arousal, Ad Valence, Television Advertisements, Consumer BehaviorAbstract
This study investigates the effectiveness of fear appeal in television advertisements and its impact on consumer purchase intention. The research examines two advertisements, HDFC Life Insurance (AD 1) and Sensodyne India (AD 2) to analyze how fear-based messaging influences consumer behavior. The independent variables include Perceived Severity, Perceived Vulnerability, Fear Arousal, and Ad Valence, while the dependent variable is Purchase Intention. A descriptive and cross-sectional survey design was adopted, with primary data collected from 150 respondents using a structured questionnaire based on a five-point Likert scale. Statistical tools, including Reliability Analysis (Cronbach’s Alpha), Pearson Correlation Analysis, Multiple Linear Regression, and Chi-Square Test were employed using IBM SPSS. The findings reveal that all fear appeal elements are significantly positively correlated with purchase intention for both advertisements. For AD 1, Perceived Severity (r = .389) was the dominant predictor, whereas for AD 2, Ad Valence (r = .433) and Fear Arousal emerged as the strongest predictors. The regression model explains 17.6% of the variance for HDFC (R² = .176) and 24.6% for Sensodyne (R² = .246). These findings highlight that fear appeal strategies must be tailored according to product category for maximum effectiveness.
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