THE MEASUREMENT OF ADVERTISING INVOLVEMENT

In an earlier paper in this journal,* the author suggested that the processes of attitude change underlying mass communication impact are of two kinds: with low involvement to persuasive stimuli one might look for gradual shifts in perceptual structure, aided by repetition, activated by behavioral choice situations, and followed at some time by attitude change, while with high involvement one could look instead for the classic and familiar conflict of ideas at the level of conscious opinion and attitude that precedes changes in behavior. The present paper describes the development and application of a workable tool to measure this involvement, a necessary step if the study of communication impact along these lines is to proceed further. Dr. Krugman is Vice President of MARPLAN, a division of Communications Affiliates, Inc., New York City, and a member of the Editorial Board of the Quarterly.