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A Critical Review of the Costs of Advertising: a Transformative Consumer Research Perspective

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Abstract

This critical literature review incorporates a transformative consumer research (TCR) perspective in highlighting selected transgressions in corporate social responsibility that touch on (1) wealth consolidation, (2) environmental degradation, (3) commodification, (4) semiotic contamination, and (5) an erosion of accountability. It argues for a participatory approach among stakeholders in sustaining marketing research and assessing consumer policy that is both ethical and critical for academic marketers and practitioners alike. Transformative consumer researchers work to ensure that advertisements, messaging, and integrated marketing communications play a key role in promoting honesty and transparency. At the same time, transformative consumer research recognizes that advertising often masks the underlying costs incurred by society in general, and consumers in particular. TCR practices presently exist, and examples are presented to highlight these practices in consumer policy.

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Notes

  1. According to these sources, the average American spends 30 min each week engaging in sexual intercourse.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for the Study of Cuban Culture + Economy, Blacksburg, VA, USA

    Joseph L. Scarpaci

  2. School of Business, Management, and Economics, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK

    Benjamin K. Sovacool

  3. Center for Energy Technologies, Aarhus University, Herning, Denmark

    Benjamin K. Sovacool

  4. Business and Social Sciences, Department of Business Development and Technology, Aarhus University, Herning, Denmark

    Benjamin K. Sovacool

  5. Department of Business Management, Glasgow School for Business and Society, Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasglow, Scotland

    Ronnie Ballantyne

  6. Institut d’Administration des Enterprises, IAE, University of Nice, Nice, France

    Ronnie Ballantyne

Authors
  1. Joseph L. Scarpaci
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  2. Benjamin K. Sovacool
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  3. Ronnie Ballantyne
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Correspondence to Joseph L. Scarpaci.

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Scarpaci, J.L., Sovacool, B.K. & Ballantyne, R. A Critical Review of the Costs of Advertising: a Transformative Consumer Research Perspective. J Consum Policy 39, 119–140 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10603-016-9315-y

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