Influence of gender and marital status on susceptibility of persuasion strategies in advertisement

Abstract

The study has two main objectives: to find out what is the susceptibility of individuals to the persuasion strategies of Cialdini 's persuasive power according to gender and to determine some characteristics of users with different marital status in social influence. Cialdini's (2001-2021) persuasion strategies (principles), as well as Keptein's STPS (2009), were applied to measure the susceptibility to persuasion of individuals of both genders with different marital status. The results of an analysis of variance (ANOVA), measuring the influence of gender, showed that on the criterion of susceptibility to persuasion, males were more influenced by the following strategies: liking, reciprocity, authority, and social proof relative to females with the exception of the principle of commitment and consistency, and individuals who are divorced, separated and widowed responded positively to strategies such as social proof, scarcity and authority. Through regression analysis, social influence was found for unmarried users with respect to the reciprocity principle, as well as authority and scarcity when combining the latter strategies. Individuals who are cohabiting or married, as well as divorced, separated, and widowed, gave positive advertising responses to the scarcity principle, but cohabiting and married consumers exhibiting commitment and consistency under the influence of advertising. Hence, this study can serve organizations offering products and services through advertising, and its originality lies in the findings of mixed consumer responses regarding gender and marital status.