The Effect of television-viewing motivation and individual traits on zapping behavior

This study examines how zapping behavior is influenced by television-viewing motives, which are categorized into goal-directed instrumental motives and process-oriented ritualistic motives. The boundary conditions for such an impact are investigated by testing the role of three individual traits: advertising skepticism, program involvement, and advertising involvement. By combining television viewing information from 1162 individuals with survey data, we empirically analyze the effect of motivation on viewers’ likelihood of zapping. The results suggest that the probability of zapping is lower when television viewing is driven by instrumental motives than by ritualistic motives. However, the negative impact of instrumental motivation is more pronounced for individuals with higher levels of advertising involvement. In contrast, those who are more skeptical toward advertisements or have higher program involvement are less vulnerable to such viewing motivation. These findings deepen our understanding of how the interplay between motivational and individual factors influences zapping behavior. Furthermore, this study provides valuable insights into how advertisers can develop effective advertising placement strategies by considering viewers’ motivations.