Capitalizing on Faith: A Cross-Cultural Examination of Consumer Responses to the Use of Religious Symbols in Advertising

Abstract

The use of religious symbolism in advertising is increasingly ubiquitous, and has extended beyond the promotion of religiously-associated products to products in general. However, limited attention has been given by the scholars to the use of such symbols for promotional purposes, and rarely in a cross-cultural context. In this article, the authors examine the attitudes of Christian and Muslim consumers in Egypt and the United States toward religious symbolism in advertisements. The results indicate that a consumer’s religion, country, and level of religious commitment, as well as an ad’s level of symbolism explicitness directly influence attitudes toward religious symbols in advertising. However, some of the relationships between religious affiliation and attitudes toward these types of ads is moderated by country, and Christians and Muslims differ in the extent to which their cultural context and minority religious status influences their attitudes toward ads containing religious symbols.