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College students remember advertising slogans
Students surveyed at three Texas universities could correctly identify the advertising slogans for Nike, M&Ms and Taco Bell, but they may not correctly identify the significance of July 4, 1776, according to a new University of North Texas study.
Dr. Roy Busby, professor of journalism, and Leslie Carter, a student in UNT's Mayborn Graduate Institute of Journalism, asked 316 students in introductory political science and advertising classes at UNT, Texas A&M University and Southern Methodist University to identify current and older ad slogans. Names of the products were marked out in the slogans. The students also answered questions about historical events and people often covered in political science classes.
Three out of four students gave more correct answers for the ad slogan questions than they did for the political science questions, the researchers said.
"They've been exposed to the slogans a lot more during their lives than to the political science facts," Busby said. "Obviously, repetition of a good advertising slogan still works."
At least 90 percent of the students correctly identified the advertising slogans for Nike ("Just do it"), M&Ms ("Melts in your mouth, not in your hands"), Taco Bell ("Yo Quiero"), Rice Krispies ("Snap, crackle, pop"), Energizer batteries ("It keeps going and going and going"), Frosted Flakes ("They're grrreat"), NBC ("Must-see TV"), the U.S. Army ("Be all that you can be") and Budweiser ("The king of beers").
At least 90 percent of the students also could identify George W. Bush as the governor of Texas, Air Force One as the name of the presidential aircraft, Sandra Day O'Conner as the first female Supreme Court justice, and the three branches of federal government as judicial, executive and legislative. They also knew that CIA was the acronym for Central Intelligence Agency and NASA the acronym for National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Yet almost 40 percent of the students did not know that July 4, 1776, was the date of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Most of those who missed the question said the Revolutionary War ended on that date.
In addition, almost 40 percent did not write an answer to who led the Confederate forces during the Civil War. About 30 percent of those who answered incorrectly said it was Ulysses S. Grant, rather than Robert E. Lee.
Political science facts missed by 60 to 80 percent of the students included who was president when the Berlin Wall came down (George Bush), where the Bay of Pigs invasion occurred (Cuba), who would become president if both the president and vice president were removed from office (the Speaker of the House), the last state in the continental United States to become a state (Arizona), the president who was never elected (Gerald Ford) and what VE stands for in VE Day (Victory in Europe).
In other findings:
Students frequently confused advertising slogans for different brands of beer, cars, pants and drinks. Almost every student who missed the Docker's slogan ("Nice pants") thought it was the slogan for Bugle Boy jeans ("Are those Bugle Boy jeans you're wearing?"). Students who missed the Sprite slogan ("Obey your thirst") often thought it was the Gatorade slogan ("Life's a sport. Drink it up").
Some of the older slogans for Calgon ("Calgon, take me away") and General Electric ("We bring good things to life") scored higher than slogans aimed at those in young age groups, like slogans for soft drinks and fast food restaurants. Slogans for Burger King and McDonald's were not among the top six identified.
Approximately 35 percent of the students confused the Republican elephant with Democrat donkey.
One in four students confused the Watergate scandal under President Nixon with the Whitewater scandal under President Clinton.
For more information about the study, call Busby at (940) 565-2267.
UNT News Service Phone Number: (940) 565-2108
Contact: Nancy Kolsti (940) 565-3509
Email: nkolsti@unt.edu
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