Department of Advertising & Public Relations, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States of America.
School of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Arizona State University, Phoenix, Arizona, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2023 Mar 15;18(3):e0283102. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0283102. eCollection 2023.
Within the direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic test industry, attracting customers can be difficult especially due to the highly sensitive nature of these products. How these tests are communicated to consumers may be one avenue in which companies can impact customer purchase intentions. A 2 (message sidedness: one-way vs. two-way refutational) x 2 (hedging: present vs. absent) between-subjects experiment was conducted to understand how message features and prior product use influence information processing, risk and trust perceptions, and attitude toward the genetic test, which in turn, may influence direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic test purchase intentions. Results demonstrated that having used a genetic test in the past predicted participants' trust in the company, information processing, and risk judgments; however, among those who used a genetic test, viewing a message that included hedging tended to increase their trust in the message. Trust in the message and company, information processing, and risk judgments significantly predicted participants' attitudes toward genetic testing, which in turn predicted their purchase intentions. The results suggest that in the context of DTC genetic test messaging, practitioners should strive to increase consumer trust in the message and the company and facilitate information processing, and they should work to diminish perceived risk. These results suggest opportunities for identifying other message features that may influence message and company trust, information processing, risk judgments, and attitudes related to DTC genetic testing.
在直接面向消费者（DTC）的基因检测行业中，吸引客户可能很困难，尤其是因为这些产品具有高度的敏感性。这些测试如何与消费者沟通可能是公司影响客户购买意愿的一个途径。本研究采用 2（信息单边性：单向与双向反驳）x2（模糊限制语：有与无）被试间实验，旨在了解信息特征和产品使用如何影响信息处理、风险和信任感知，以及对基因检测的态度，进而影响直接面向消费者（DTC）的基因检测购买意愿。结果表明，过去使用过基因检测会预测参与者对公司的信任、信息处理和风险判断；然而，在使用过基因检测的参与者中，观看包含模糊限制语的信息往往会增加他们对信息的信任。对信息和公司的信任、信息处理和风险判断显著预测了参与者对基因检测的态度，进而预测了他们的购买意愿。结果表明，在 DTC 基因检测信息传递的背景下，从业者应该努力增加消费者对信息和公司的信任，促进信息处理，并努力降低感知风险。这些结果为识别其他可能影响 DTC 基因检测相关信息和公司信任、信息处理、风险判断以及态度的信息特征提供了机会。
