SOCIAL MARKETING - A CRITICAL-APPRAISAL

This article provides a critical analysis of the growing use of social marketing in the field of health promotion. In response to a recent a rticle by A. Hastings and G. Haywood (Health Promotion International, 6, 135-134), three questions are asked about each of the proposed tene ts of social marketing are these ideas new? are they more effective th an current health promotion practices? and do they raise any particula r ethical concerns ? On each of these counts, the analysis suggests th at the purported benefits of social marketing might not be as great as proponents claim. There are also some problematic unintended conseque nces that arise from the use of social marketing methods. The narrow f ocus on individual behavior change and the potentially manipulative te chniques for inducing behavior change are of particular concern. The p aper concludes with a call for further discussion about the limits and potential iatrogenic side-effects of using social marketing strategie s for health promotion.