Gender-related reactions to gratuitous sex appeals in advertising

Abstract

This research investigates differences and similarities between men and women in their spontaneous reactions to gratuitous sexual appeals in advertising. Earlier research suggests that both males and females will react negatively to such ads because of perceptions of unethicality, manipulativeness, etc. However, we hypothesize and find that, under the sort of constrained processing conditions that allow the elicitation of spontaneous, gut-level reactions, men on average will exhibit a more positive attitudinal response to gratuitous sex appeals than women (Experiments 1 and 2). Experiment 3 then provides support for the underlying process – and also demonstrates intragender variation—by showing that women with more liberal attitudes to sex per se react in a manner very similar to men; namely, they report more liking for a sexual ad than a nonsexual ad.