Who Responds to Warmth?: The Moderating Role of Regulatory Focus in the Persuasive Power of Warmth Appeals

초록

This study examines whether consumers’ regulatory focus shapes the persuasive effectiveness of warmth appeals in brand advertising. Drawing on Regulatory Focus Theory, this study investigates how promotionand prevention-focused consumers respond to high- versus low-warmth advertising messages in a competencevalued category, financial services. The results revealed a significant interaction between the two factors. Specifically, high-warmth advertising increased purchase intention among promotion-focused consumers, whereas prevention-focused consumers showed no significant difference between high- and low-warmth conditions. These findings suggest that warmth appeals are most effective when they fit consumers’ aspirational and relational goals, and that prevention-focused consumers may require more diagnostic competence- or security-related cues. This study contributes to advertising research by identifying regulatory focus as a motivational boundary condition of warmth appeal effectiveness and offers practical implications for message tailoring in brand advertising.

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