Consumer Perception Of Keralites Towards Ethical Issues In Advertising With Special Reference To Women

Abstract

Advertising is understood as the paid form of non-personal communication, highly visible and very effective, done for masses and also an important element of promotion mix which helps to create awareness, remind, persuade to buy and retain the existing customers. The study of consumer perception is one of the most important aspects of consumer behavior. Perception is one of the most established fields in psychology research. It is generally presumed that advertisements should be socially, culturally and morally ethical. Ethics are the moral principles that govern the behavior of a person or a group. It can also be understood as the moral correctness of specified conduct. Ethics, in a broader sense, is the study of human behavior and its consequences in the light of what is ideally possible. Ethics is the “Conduct which is right in the eyes of the society”. It is also known as Good Conduct. In today’s society, advertising has a great impact on the people and the way they understand the world around them, live their lives, and perceive others Erotic advertisements showing men and women in insufficient clothes, use of indecent language and portrayal of women as mere commodities or sex objects are some of the common issues in present day advertising. This study is conducted to examine the perception of the consumers regarding the ethical issues especially the portrayal of women in Indian advertisements.