The separateness-connectedness self-schema: Scale development and application to message construction

✍ Scribed by Cheng Lu Wang; John C. Mowen

• Book ID: 101298709
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 396 KB
• Volume: 14
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0742-6046
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1520-6793(199703)14:2<185::aid-mar5>3.0.co;2-9

✦ Synopsis

Two studies were conducted to assess separateness -connectedness (SC) as a new message variable and as a new individual difference variable in advertising. Study I began the process of developing a Separateness -Connectedness scale based on a sample of 140 college students (97 Westerners and 43 non-Westerners, 81 males and 59 females) attending a midwestern university. The 9-item, 2-factor scale revealed good reliability and construct validity. The structure of the overall model was then successfully tested on a new sample by confirmatory factor analysis.

In Study II an experiment assessed whether the separateness/connectedness self-schema would moderate the effect of using either a connected or a separated advertising appeal on consumers' attitude toward the ad. As predicted, a significant interaction effect was found. The results revealed that individuals with a separate self-schema preferred a separated advertising theme, and individuals with a connected selfschema preferred a connected advertising theme. Implications for advertising managers, the studies' limitations, and future research directions are also discussed.