A FACTOR-ANALYSIS OF ADVERTISING PRACTITIONERS PERCEPTIONS OF ADVERTISING ETHICS

This research investigated the perceptions of advertising ethics among 460 members of the American Advertising Federation. A principal compo nents factor analysis of members' perceptions, measured by 17 statemen ts, produced four factors of ''agencies' standards,'' ''active public responsibility,'' ''advertising claims,'' and ''agencies' social respo nsibility.'' These factors, then used as composite independent variabl es in a forward stepwise multiple-regression analysis, showed that Fac tor 3 (''advertising claims'') was the best predictor of the applicati on of deontological (or nonconsequential) ethics to ethically troubles ome situations in advertising. Implications of these results for adver tising ethics are outlined and suggestions for further research are of fered.