Factors Affecting Consumers' Perceptions of Product Warnings: An Examination of the Differences between Male and Female Consumers

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
This study utilized a survey to investigate several factors that may influence consumers' perceptions of warnings. The purpose of this research was twofold: 1) to partially replicate a previous study of college undergraduates to see if similar results would be obtained in a random sample of consumers, and 2) to determine if these factors are significantly different depending on the sex of the consumer. Subjects rated twelve products according to: dangerousness, familiarity, their willingness to read a warning, need for a warning, and location of the warning. The results of this research are similar to those of the original study, therefore, the undergraduates can be considered a good indicator of the general consumer population. Further analysis showed differences in the perception of warnings between male and female consumers. Females are more likely to feel a product should have a warning and are more likely to read a warning despite the perceived dangerousness of the product than are males. The likelihood of males reading warning labels depends on the perceived dangerousness and familiarity of the product.

This publication has 8 references indexed in Scilit: