Journal of Public Policy Marketing

Editorial Board and Journal Information

2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): i-iv

Introduction to the Special Issue on Transformative Consumer Research: Creating Dialogical Spaces for Policy and Action Research

Julie L Ozanne — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 1-4

From Nutrients to Nurturance: A Conceptual Introduction to Food Well-Being

Lauren G Block — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 5-13 Abstract The authors propose a restructuring of the food as health paradigm to food as well-being. This requires shifting from an emphasis on restraint and restrictions to a more positive, holistic understanding of the role of food in overall well-being. The authors propose the concept of food well-being (FWB), defined as a positive psychological, physical, emotional, and social relationship with food at both individual and societal levels. The authors define and explain the five primary domains of FWB: food socialization, food literacy, food marketing, food availability, and food policy. The FWB framework employs a richer definition of food and highlights the need for research that bridges other disciplines and paradigms outside and within marketing. Further research should develop and refine the understanding of each domain with the ultimate goal of moving the field toward this embodiment of food as well-being.

Transforming Consumer Health

Debra L Scammon — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 14-22 Abstract The 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is intended to transform the U.S. health care system. Its success will require the transformation of consumers' views about health and their willingness to participate in healthful behaviors. Focusing on three barriers to consumers' engagement in healthful behaviors, the authors review the research literature and suggest opportunities for further research. Using a social marketing perspective, they suggest actions for health care providers, marketers, and policy makers to help overcome these barriers.

Navigating the Central Tensions in Research on At-Risk Consumers: Challenges and Opportunities

Cornelia (Connie) Pechmann — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 23-30 Abstract A perennial problem in social marketing and public policy is the plight of at-risk consumers. The authors define at-risk consumers as marketplace participants who, because of historical or personal circumstances or disabilities, may be harmed by marketers' practices or may be unable or unwilling to take full advantage of marketplace opportunities. This definition refers to either objective reality or perceptions. Early research focused on consumers who were at risk because they were poor, ethnic or racial minorities, immigrants, women, or elderly. Today's researchers also study consumers who are at risk because they are from religious minorities, disabled, illiterate, homeless, indigent, lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. The authors identify four tensions affecting research on and policy and marketing applications for at-risk populations: the value of focusing on (1) vulnerabilities versus strengths, (2) radical versus marginal change, (3) targeting versus nontargeting, and (4) encouraging knowledgeable versus naive consumers. They conclude with a discussion of the significance of including at-risk consumers as full marketplace participants and identify future research directions.

Sustainable Consumption: Opportunities for Consumer Research and Public Policy

Andrea Prothero — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 31-38 Abstract This essay explores sustainable consumption and considers possible roles for marketing and consumer researchers and public policy makers in addressing the many sustainability challenges that pervade the planet. Future research approaches to this interdisciplinary topic must be comprehensive and systematic and would benefit from a variety of different perspectives. There are several opportunities for further research; the authors explore three areas in detail. First, they consider the inconsistency between the attitudes and behaviors of consumers with respect to sustainability. Second, they broaden the agenda to explore the role of individual citizens in society. Third, they propose a macroinstitutional approach to fostering sustainability. For each of these separate, but interrelated, opportunities, the authors examine the area in detail and consider possible research avenues and public policy initiatives.

Beyond Poverty: Social Justice in a Global Marketplace

Linda Scott — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 39-46 Abstract The social justice paradigm, developed in philosophy by John Rawls and others, reaches limits when confronted with diverse populations, unsound governments, and global markets. Its parameters are further limited by a traditional utilitarian approach to both industrial actors and consumer behaviors. Finally, by focusing too exclusively on poverty, as manifested in insufficient incomes or resources, the paradigm overlooks the oppressive role that gender, race, and religious prejudice play in keeping the poor subordinated. The authors suggest three ways in which marketing researchers could bring their unique expertise to the question of social justice in a global economy: by (1) reinventing the theoretical foundation laid down by thinkers such as Rawls, (2) documenting and evaluating emergent feasible fixes to achieve justice (e.g., the global resource dividend, cause-related marketing, Fair Trade, philanthrocapitalism), and (3) exploring the parameters of the consumption basket that would be minimally required to achieve human capabilities.

Immigration, Culture, and Ethnicity in Transformative Consumer Research

David Crockett — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 47-54 Abstract Immigration, culture, and ethnicity (IC&E) research has a lengthy history in consumer research, though most research focuses narrowly on identity (and related topics) and has been done at the individual level of analysis. First, the authors discuss the need for research focused on assessing well-being at the collective level and highlight the important role of social networks and communities in improving consumer well-being and creating effective policy interventions. Next, they explore the utility of the emerging intersectionality conceptual framework for research on well-being and IC&E. They offer specific suggestions for designing policy-oriented research using this approach and illustrate the process by taking a well-regarded IC&E study and reimagining its design using a process-centered approach to intersectionality.

Introduction to the History and Evolution of Journal of Public Policy & Marketing: The Editors Speak

William L Wilkie — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 55-55

Advancing the Study of Marketing's Impacts on Society: JPP&M as a Keystone of the Academic Infrastructure

William L Wilkie — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 56-58

In the Beginning: The Founding of Journal of Public Policy & Marketing

Thomas C Kinnear — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 59-59

The Early Years of Journal of Public Policy & Marketing

Patrick E Murphy — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 64-67

Four Among Seven: Midway in the History of Journal of Public Policy & Marketing

Debra L Scammon — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 72-75

Broadening Journal of Public Policy & Marketing's Outreach: My Tour of Duty as Editor

J Craig Andrews — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 76-80

Reflections of an Activist Editor

Joel B Cohen — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 81-85

Whither Marketing and Public Policy Research? or Has Public Policy and Marketing Come of Age?

Ronald Paul Hill — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 86-88

Toward a Public Policy and Marketing Understanding of Lobbying and Its Role in the Development of Public Policy in the United States

Terrance G Gabel — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 89-95 Abstract A key aspect of the public policy development process in the United States is marketing-laden competition among interest groups aiming to influence policy in their respective favors. Lobbying, the principal means by which this competition transpires, has vast potential to significantly affect marketplace law and practice--including marketers and consumers--in a widespread way. The purpose of this essay is to stimulate scholarly discussion on lobbying and its role in the public policy development process. Toward this end, the authors (1) discuss the nature of lobbying practice in the United States, (2) consider regulatory control and protection of lobbying activity, (3) formulate a theoretical framework from within which to understand lobbying from a public policy and marketing perspective, and (4) provide suggestions for the direction of further research.

Advertising and Policy Insights for the Voter Versus Customer Trade-Off

Betsy D Gelb — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 96-99 Abstract The Supreme Court decision allowing corporations to promote candidates close to an election raises many relevant marketing questions: Will doing so antagonize customers? If a firm spends advertising dollars to influence elections rather than simply to promote goods and services, how can those dollars be spent effectively? Should a company advertise as part of a coalition? Will procandidate or antiopponent advertisements be the better choice, or are special events a wiser choice than any advertising? The authors explore these marketing questions, which have public policy implications, because proposed legislation to limit the effect of the Supreme Court decision is best evaluated according to understanding of corporate priorities. A key issue is transparency--that is, whether the audience for any promotion to support or oppose a candidate knows which corporations are the sponsors or whether their identity is hidden within a coalition.

Resistance and Risk: Examining the Effects of Message Cues in Encouraging End-of-Life Planning

Elyria Kemp — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 100-109 Abstract Several organizations have made efforts in their marketing communications to encourage consumers to make decisions about death care and other end-of-life alternatives before these services are needed. The purpose of this research is to compare persuasive communication strategies derived from the approach-avoidance conflict model to encourage end-of-life planning behavior. This research addresses the psychological resistance consumers may have toward planning, including factors that may impede message processing. Results provide evidence that planning may be influenced by the use of specific messages that reduce resistance and perceptions of invulnerability. The authors conclude with implications for social marketing programs that encourage end-of-life planning.

Direct-to-Consumer Advertising: Exposure, Behavior, and Policy Implications

Susan D Myers — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 110-118 Abstract This research investigates the influence that the proliferation of prescription drug advertising has on consumers' purchase decisions by evaluating how direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) awareness influences the acquisition of the prescription erectile dysfunction (ED) drug Viagra. The authors' purpose is to determine whether familiarity with DTCA influences the likelihood that consumers will try to obtain Viagra with and/or without a prescription while considering demographic, individual trait, and attitudinal factors. Their results indicate that a significant relationship exists between awareness and acquisition of the drug. They find that respondent familiarity with DTCA is positively associated with the likelihood of having ordered Viagra, indicating that DTCA does play a role in prompting men to seek medical advice. Despite controversy over the appropriateness of sexual themes depicted in ED advertisements, it seems that the use of DTCA for ED drugs has helped many men feel more comfortable in discussing sexual impotence with their physicians. Thus, the authors' findings provide support for DTCA advocates who promote drug advertising as an important information resource that helps guide responsible consumer decision making. Moreover, the results uncover two individual difference variables that promoted Viagra use without medical consent, indicating a need to identify potentially vulnerable populations relevant to individual brands or therapeutic classes of drugs. Although the study's results and findings are limited to a single therapeutic class, they provide general policy implications and directions for extension of the research.

Hubble Bubble Trouble: The Need for Education About and Regulation of Hookah Smoking

Merlyn A Griffiths — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 119-132 Abstract A Middle Eastern tradition, hookah smoking involves burning flavored tobacco heated by charcoal, creating smoke that is filtered through water and ingested through the mouth using a hose. Hookah lounges are increasingly locating around college campuses in the United States, and websites offering hookah paraphernalia target U.S. high school and college students. In two studies involving interviews with college-age hookah smokers and analysis of website marketing practices, the authors investigate consumer beliefs and attitudes toward hookah smoking and the way it is portrayed online. The findings indicate that it is a social phenomenon, with young people introducing peers to the practice and websites promoting shared consumption experiences. Contrary to medical evidence, young people believe smoking sweetened tobacco through a hookah is nonaddictive and safer than cigarettes. Hookah lounges often are exempt from age restriction laws because many double as cafes and other eating establishments. Traditional tobacco warnings are not present in lounges or on websites. The findings highlight potential health dangers of hookah smoking and the need for education regarding this practice and demonstrate that regulatory oversight is needed.

Do Credit Card Users Systematically Underestimate Their Interest Rates? Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances

Joshua M Frank — 2011-05-02

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 30(1): 133-139 Abstract This study examines credit card penalty pricing using data from the Survey of Consumer Finances. In particular, the author uses a flag in the data set for the first time to analyze bias in reported credit card interest rate. He also uses this flag to estimate how frequently people mistakenly believe they are not at a penalty interest rate. The results imply that, on average, consumers underestimate their credit card interest rate by 30%-33%. Penalty rates seem to compound this bias. There is also some evidence that consumers who are more optimistic using other measures derived from the survey tend to underestimate their rate by a larger amount.