The study employed a between-subject post-test only experimental design to examine whether guilt appeal levels affected green advertising effectiveness measured by consumers’ attitude towards the advertisement and the brand. Furthermore, guilt-aroused feelings were examined for their effects.
The study was conducted among 121 students in a large public university in the southwest of the United States (US). Empirical results supported the effects of guilt appeal on green advertising effectiveness. Participants were found to have more favourable attitudes towards the green advertisement and advertised brand when exposed to a low guilt advertisement than to a high guilt advertisement. Among three guilt-induced feelings, angry–irritated emotion and self-conscious emotion were found to moderate consumers’ attitudes towards the green advertisement and the advertised brand.
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