Adolescents' Attention to Beer and Cigarette Print Ads and Associated Product Warnings

Abstract Much of the controversy surrounding the advertising of tobacco and alcohol products concerns the impact on young people. Eye tracking was used to determine how a large sample of adolescents attend to print ads for cigarettes, beer, and other products. In particular, the time spent viewing the ads, the percentages attending to mandated and voluntary warning messages, and the time spent viewing those messages were analyzed. The two cigarette ads had similar mandated warnings but produced very different results, thus demonstrating the importance of conducting warnings research in the context in which the warnings will be used. Finally, preliminary results based on eye tracking indicate that in the beer ad, the voluntary message encouraging responsible drinking had limited warning value.