Towards the development of a scalar equivalent etic multicultural advertising response scale (MARS)

Abstract

While considerable prior research has focused on the development of standardized viewer response scales in advertising, such studies have, without exception, taken an emic approach. In other words, the scales have first been developed in one country, often the U.S., and then validated or replicated in other countries. Emic approaches have obvious limitations in an increasingly multicultural environment. By contrast, we offer a simple uni-dimensional advertising response scale developed following an etic approach, in which a universal measurement structure across cultures is sought using multiple cultures simultaneously. Psychometric tests demonstrate that the new scale is reliable, valid, parsimonious and generalizable across cultures and product categories. Theory-building and managerial implications of the approach are discussed, limitations noted and future research directions outlined.