Effects of Print Comparative Political Advertising on Political Decision-Making and Participation

An experiment examined intended and unintended effects of print comparative political advertising on political decision-making, voting preferences, and situational election involvement. Results suggested that comparative advertising reduces targeted-candidate voting preferences while avoiding most forms of voter backlash. Voter backlash was evidenced, however, in participants' perceptions that the sponsoring candidate was mean-spirited. Comparative advertising significantly increased participants' situational election involvement.