Have you been offended by a discriminatory or harmful ad? You might just buy the product it's promoting

BEER-SHEVA, Israel, August 11, 2025 – Time plays a key role in consumer behavior, especially concerning the purchasing patterns of vulnerable groups in society who have been ridiculed in offensive and discriminatory ads. Ben-Gurion University researcher Dr. Enav Friedmann examined the long-term reactions of consumers from discriminated groups after exposure to offensive advertising. Such advertising often manifests in marketing messages that demean excluded groups, reinforce harmful stereotypes, or cross social norms.

Their findings were published last month in Psychology & Marketing (https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.70010). Dr. Friedmann is a member of the Department of Business Administration at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. She is the head of the LBM research lab, which focuses on marketing,

"The social and psychological implications of such advertisements are profound," explains Dr. Friedmann. "Socially, they normalize prejudice, perpetuate stereotypes, and undermine efforts to achieve equality. We decided to examine these conflicts of social identity combined with consumer behavior. This is a topic that hasn't been researched enough, but it has significant implications for individuals, groups, and businesses in society."

The Study's Approach

To this end, three independent experiments were conducted. They examined the impact of exposure to insulting advertisements or those excluding vulnerable groups (women and people of color) at two time points: immediately upon exposure to the ad, and then 10 days or a month later. The offensive ads were designed to be inspired by authentic advertisements from companies, which contained offensive content toward women and people of color. A total of 640 women and men, both light-skinned and dark-skinned, participated in all the experiments and answered questions related to the brand and their personal feelings.

Key Findings

In the first experiment, a hypothetical ad for a body soap brand called "BubbleSoap" was presented, with a racist implication toward people of color. A dark-skinned family was shown in the 'before' image and a light-skinned family in the 'after' image. It was found that dark-skinned participants who felt their ethnic group was severely discriminated against, and tended to identify less with their group, showed a higher purchase intention for the BubbleSoap brand ten days later compared to participants who did not feel their ethnic group was discriminated against.

The second experiment involved an offensive advertisement toward women for a real brand. Participants were randomly exposed to either non-offensive sexist ads or offensive sexist ads. The offensive version was identical but included the text: "Women, I'm sick of you! I get tired of all of you so quickly," with the well-known tagline below: "You're not you when you're hungry." This ad was inspired by real candy bar ads that mock the idea of men respecting women and aggressively disparage women under the guise of sarcastic humor. After about a month, it was found that women who identified their gender group as significantly discriminated against, and tended to identify less with the female group, were more likely to choose the brand that offended their group. The choice was made at each time point by choosing between three chocolate brands. Of course, the respondents' initial preference for the offensive brand was considered.

In the third experiment, neurological measurements were taken using an EEG device in a lab experiment for a construction company. Participants were randomly exposed to either offensive or non-offensive sexist ads. The offensive version included the text: "She thinks she understands... In big decisions, don't let her decide!" Participants were asked to describe their feelings toward the brand at two points in time. The researchers measured the activation of the participants' right and left frontal brain regions during a brand feeling task. After ten days, among women who identified their group as significantly discriminated against, and tended to identify less with the female group over time, increased activity was found in the left frontal areas (compared to the right) of the brain. These areas are known in the literature to indicate a desire to approach a stimulus.

The Paradoxical Phenomenon

The findings revealed a paradoxical phenomenon: participants who reported high levels of perceived discrimination against their group, and over time tended to identify less with the offended group, actually showed an increasing preference for the brand that insulted their group. This was measured through purchase intention, actual product choice, or brain responses indicating an approach toward the brand. This phenomenon aligns with theories of disidentification, a process in which individuals from vulnerable groups come to understand the long-term consequences of harm to their group (reduced self-esteem and group-esteem). Those who feel their group is significantly discriminated against and tend to reduce their identification with the group in order to protect their sense of self-esteem, tend to do so by approaching the object that harmed their group over time.

"The research findings deepen our understanding of how identity threats affect responses in advertising contexts and highlight the ethical considerations brands must address when formulating campaigns," explains Dr. Friedmann. "This research delves into the psychological complexity of identity regulation as a result of exposure to threatening content for consumers."

Implications and Recommendations

The study results do not suggest that offensive-discriminatory advertising is an effective marketing strategy. Most participants exposed to this content did not demonstrate more positive attitudes or behaviors than those in the control group; rather, it was a specific limited group of people who reacted positively to it. On the contrary, such advertisements can exact a significant psychological toll on individuals belonging to discriminated groups. These findings reinforce the importance of adopting an ethical approach to identity-based marketing and avoiding tactics that exploit social vulnerability for strategic profit.

In accordance with the study's findings, the researchers recommend adopting an approach that involves enforcement and clear criteria to prevent harm to various population groups.

"Enforcement against offensive and discriminatory marketing is essential to protect the well-being of individuals and foster a more egalitarian society. As a society, we must develop specific criteria for controlling offensive advertisements, as is customary in the UK, and impose significant financial penalties on those who violate them," concluded Dr. Friedmann.

The Research Team

The research team included: Eliran Solodoha from the Peres Academic Center, Sandra Maria Correia Loureiro from the University of Lisbon, and Lior Aviali, LBM Lab Manager, from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.

Link to photo of Dr. Enav Friedmann: https://mediagraph.io/shares/33d2933032d7688b-

Photo Credit: Doron Latzer