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Consumer autonomy can be defined as the aptitude and character to choose products rationally while being able to review

and reject them based on a persons feelings or research. People should not accept blindly and unconditionally an advertisers claims. However, many advertisers toe the line in trying to convince people to buy their products and infringing on the autonomy of their prospective customers. Ex. Apple

Advertising can achieve its target of sales promotion in two ways: 1. Cognitive Influencing 2. Affective Influencing

1.

Cognitive Influencing: Influencing convictions with regard to products

Peoples

2.

Affective Influencing: Influencing their desires and emotional perception with regard to products. In both cases, the moral boundary is there where legitimate forms of influencing change into coercion.

An important moral starting point is that advertising may not hinder consumers in making an autonomous choice. A choice is autonomous when it is made:
1. 2. 3. In full possession of ones faculties Based on understanding the situation Free of controlling influences determining the action

The consumers autonomy must be sufficiently safeguarded. It is unrealistic to expect consumers to make all their choices based on all available information and without there being some control on the sellers part. The only thing that is important is that consumers have a sufficient understanding of what the products on offer are and that the sellers influence is not too great.

Consumers do not have to have all available product information in order to be able to make an autonomous decision to buy a product, and in principle it is not a crime for sellers to try to tempt consumers to use particular products, by publishing attractive advertisements or by appealing to peoples emotions. However, there is a moral boundary to influencing consumers at some point.

Manipulation The influence of an advertiser can exert on consumers can vary from persuasion to coercion. Coercion means there is a question of totally controlling influence on the action, whereby the freedom of the person in question is wholly eliminated. On the other end of the spectrum are forms of influence which fully respect consumers freedom. This is the case in rational persuasion, by which consumers are being interested for a product by reasonable arguments. Ex. Two products for the price of one.

Manipulation Such objective price information fully respects the freedom of consumer.

Manipulation is somewhere in between coercion and persuasion. Although there is no question of coercion, the action is insufficiently free.

Examples of this are strong financial incentives, indoctrination, propaganda, playing on peoples emotions, irrational persuasion, enticement, temptation and deception. The difference between manipulation and coercion is that manipulation does not totally eliminate a persons freedom, their behaviour is not wholly determined.

A consumer is misled with regard to a product is cognitively manipulated towards making a certain choice, but consumer is not forced to do so. People speak of affective manipulation when consumers emotions and fantasies are played on to such an extent they are hindered in rationally testing their aroused desires.

Consumer Protection Act 1986.

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