From Attention to Avoidance: The Impact of Ad Fatigue on Consumer Buying Behavior
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62843/jrsr/2025.4d195Keywords:
Ad Fatigue, Digital Advertising, Ad Exposure, Ad Intrusiveness, Digital Avoidance, Brand Silencing, Consumer Buying Behavior, PLS-SEM, Social Media MarketingAbstract
The purpose of this study is to explore the shift in digital advertising from attention to avoidance by analysing the interrelationships of key factors impacting consumer purchase behaviours: ad exposure, ad intrusiveness, ad irrelevance, and ad avoidance and fatigue as mediators. For this study, an experimental study was used with a quantitative research design and a structured survey method. This study employed a partial least-squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) methodology, employing a questionnaire with a focus on the Likert scale to gather data from consumers, and the use of the software SmartPLS to examine data. Ad irrelevance (β = 0.143, p = 0.151) but neither ad exposure (β = 0.379, p < 0.001) nor ad intrusiveness (β = 0.385, p < 0.001) significantly explains ad fatigue. However, ad fatigue has a significant influence on digital avoidance (β = 0.823) and brand silencing (β = 0.826), which further affects consumer buying behavior significantly, such that digital avoidance has the highest impact (β = 0.725). It also tells about the model variance of 94.5% of the variance in the buying behavior. This study adds by combining ad fatigue, digital avoidance, and brand silencing into a single construct and indicating the ability of ad fatigue as a predominant mechanism between advertising stimuli and consumer behaviours.
References
Appel, G., Grewal, L., Hadi, R., & Stephen, A. T. (2020). The future of social media in marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing science, 48(1), 79-95.
Blake, A., Johnson, P., & Smith, R. (2024). Sustainable wedding consumption and eco-conscious fashion adoption. Journal of Consumer Culture, 24(2), 211–229.
Bright, L. F., & Logan, K. (2018). Is my fear of missing out (FOMO) causing fatigue? Advertising, social media fatigue, and the implications for consumers and brands. Internet Research, 28(5), 1213-1227.
Cavusoglu, L., & Atik, D. (2021). Digital visibility and sustainable fashion consumption. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 25(3), 421–438.
Chung, D., Chen, Y., & Meng, Y. (2023). Perceived information overload and intention to discontinue use of short-form video: The mediating roles of cognitive and psychological factors. Behavioral Sciences, 13(1), 50. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13010050
Deale, C., & Lee, S. (2024). Social influence and eco-friendly consumer decisions in event settings. Event Management, 28(1), 45–61.
Dehling, N. (2023). Silence in the consumer experience: A conceptualization and research agenda. Journal of Business Research, 165(114033), 114033. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.114033
Dhir, A., Yossatorn, Y., Kaur, P., & Chen, S. (2018). Online social media fatigue and psychological wellbeing—A study of compulsive use, fear of missing out, fatigue, anxiety and depression. International journal of information management, 40, 141-152.
Dilek Bozkurt, A. (2025). Marketing silence in zombie firms: A conceptual model proposal on perceptual disengagement and loyalty erosion. İşletme, 6(2), 139–163. https://doi.org/10.57116/isletme.1733780
Dwivedi, Y. K., Hughes, L., Kar, A. K., Baabdullah, A. M., Grover, P., & Islam, R. (2021). Consumer engagement in online brand communities: A systematic review and future research agenda. Journal of Business Research, 124, 428–448.
Fan, Y., Wong, I. A., Zhang, G., Lin, Z., & Wu, L. (2024). A multiwave study on tourist well-being: The role of attention restoration, psychological need, and social-sharing satisfaction. Tourism Management Perspectives, 51(101234), 101234. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmp.2024.101234
Feng, G. C., Su, X., & He, Y. (2024). A meta-analytical review of the determinants of social media discontinuance intentions. Mass Communication and Society, 27(3), 525-550.
Fernandes, T., & Oliveira, R. (2024). Brands as drivers of social media fatigue and its effects on users’ disengagement: the perspective of young consumers. Young Consumers Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers, 25(5), 625–644. https://doi.org/10.1108/yc-09-2023-1873
Frig, M., & Jaakkola, E. (2024). Symbolic sustainability and consumer identity expression. Journal of Business Research, 174.
Hazzam, J. (2022). The moderating role of age on social media marketing activities and consumer engagement (Vol. 23). Young Consumers.
Hirose, M., & Creswell, J. W. (2023). Applying explanatory sequential mixed methods design in social science research. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 17(2), 115–132.
Huh, J., & Kim, S. (2024). Performative sustainability and consumer behavior. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 58(1), 91–110.
Iqbal, M. M., Hussain, A. H., & Ali, M. (2023). Computational Analysis of Economic and Environmental Impacts of Energy Policies in Pakistan: A Statistical Approach. ILMA Journal of Technology & Software Management, 4(1), 19.
Kamal, M. H., Zaman, S. U., Alam, S. H., Iqbal, M., & Dashnyam, A. (2024). Sustaining Pakistan’s Economy through Strategic Gas Planning and Predictive Analytics. ILMA JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & ECONOMICS, 5(2).
Kar, A., & Tiwari, S. (2024). Social media influence on sustainable fashion choices. Fashion and Textiles. 11, 44–60.
Kemp, A. (2023). Nearly 90% of consumers no longer trust influencers, a new study finds. The Drum.
Kulakova, N., Wang, Y., & Chen, X. (2021). Consumer shifts toward eco-conscious fashion products. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 25(4), 603–620.
Li, F., Larimo, J., & Leonidou, L. C. (2023). Social media in marketing research: Theoretical bases, methodological aspects, and thematic focus. Psychology & Marketing, 40(1), 124–145. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21746
Maier, C., Laumer, S., Weinert, C., & Weitzel, T. (2015). The effects of technostress and switching stress on discontinued use of social networking services: a study of Facebook use. Information Systems Journal, 25(3), 275-308.
Pan, M., Blut, M., Ghiassaleh, A., & Lee, Z. W. Y. (2024). Influencer marketing effectiveness: A meta-analytic review. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 53(1), 52–78.
Sharma, M., Kaushal, D., & Joshi, S. (2023). Adverse effect of social media on Generation Z users' behavior: Government information support as a moderating variable. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 72(103256), 103256. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2023.103256
Toyon, M. A. S. (2021). Explanatory sequential design of mixed methods research: Phases and challenges. International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science (2147-4478), 10(5), 253–260. https://doi.org/10.20525/ijrbs.v10i5.1262
Zhang, S., Zhao, L., Lu, Y., & Yang, J. (2016). Do you get tired of socializing? An empirical explanation of discontinuous usage behaviour in social network services. Information & management, 53(7), 904-914.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
