Above the message and beyond reach: persuasion knowledge by a European teenage beer commercial audience

The article accounts for qualitative knowledge on European adolescents’ (n=326) ad literacy, genre scepticism and persuasion knowledge as expressed in group discussions about televised beer commercials. Data was collected from six European countries: Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, and Poland. A general scepticism regarding the commercials’ tactics of persuasion dominated the material as a whole. There were no significant cross-country, gender or age variations between the materials regarding the level of ad scepticism. The students had great beliefs in their own coping and resisting abilities and attempts of persuasion were generally judged as unlikely to succeed. The study suggests that critical ad-literacy is not culturally bound to the same extent as attitudes towards drinking. The researchers point out an opportunity to use the format of the FGs to stimulate the expression of persuasion knowledge among young people.