Drug Injury Advertising

Abstract

Drug injury advertising, which solicits consumers for lawsuits against drug and medical device manufacturers, is a $114 million business. Yet little is known about how consumers respond to the medical information contained in these ads. This study applies insights from the field of marketing to the drug injury advertising context, and further tests those insights through two experiments. Results suggest that some consumers are deceived by drug injury ads, and that some types of advertising are more deceptive than others. We also find that deceptive drug injury ads have a stronger influence on consumer risk perceptions and behavioral intentions, such as intentions to use the medication or seek additional information.