Sex Doesn’t Sell After All, Study Says

Maybe sex doesn’t sell after all.

Commercials that feature sex and violence — or appear on programs with that kind of content — are less effective than those with neutral themes, according to a study published by the academic journal Psychological Bulletin.

Violent and sexual television programming impairs viewers’ memory because it diverts attention from the advertising, said Brad Bushman, a professor of communication and psychology at Ohio State University and co-author of the study, which analyzed the results of 53 previous experiments . . .

The study concluded that “brands advertised in violent contexts will be remembered less often, evaluated less favorably, and less likely to be purchased than brands advertised in nonviolent media. We also suggest that advertising in sexual media may not be as detrimental as advertising in violent media, but does not appear to be a successful strategy either.”

Bushman said his own earlier research didn’t find a significant difference in how men and women reacted to the different types of advertising. But the broader compilation of studies showed that violence and sex had a larger effect on males, he said. (Read more from “Sex Doesn’t Sell After All, Study Says” HERE)

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