Is It Ethical for Retailers to Intentionally Promote Alcohol to Young Adults - Annotated Bibliography Example

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY By Name Course Instructor Institution City/State Date Annotated Bibliography Introduction Alcohol supply, which includes its production, retail sale, as well as marketing, plays a crucial role in alcohol problems and consumption. For decades, alcohol marketing has been an important part of the supply chain, and alcohol companies are spending a lot of money to promote and advertise their products to potential customers. Most of the money is used in the traditional measured media such as print, radio, and television. In order to maintain their markets, these companies have to continuously invest heavily in both promotion and advertising; in order to expand the market, these companies persuade drinkers to increase their consumption or change brands, or encourage non-drinkers to start taking alcohol. In this regard, young people are mostly targeted. Even though the exact consequences of this marketing on persons are hard to measure, it is progressively more permeating. Alcohol marketing volume that young people across the globe are exposed to is unmatched. They are not just exposed to alcohol marketing through conventional mediums of communication like newspaper, billboards, television, and radio; but as well through the internet, which includes social sites like Twitter and Facebook. The paper provides an annotated bibliography with the intention of answering if it is it ethical for retailers to intentionally promote alcohol to young adults. Article 1 Entry Jones, S.C. & Smith, K.M., 2011. The effect of point of sale promotions on the alcohol purchasing behaviour of young people in metropolitan, regional and rural Australia. Journal of Youth Studies, vol. 14, no. 8, pp.885-900. Jones and Smith (2011) article intends to specifically analyse the effects of point of sale (POS) promotions on adolescents, in anticipation of offering proof that can be utilised in informing regulation and policy in alcohol marketing. In this case, numerous focus groups were performed in three distinct areas with teenagers aged between 16 and 25 years. During the study, the authors asked the participants about their remembrance of numerous POS promotions as well as the impact of such promotions on their alcohol consumption and purchasing behaviour. The article usefulness is verified by the fact that the research is conducted on non-advertising alcohol promotions, which to a large extent has been neglected bearing in mind it has an effect on young people’s alcohol-related behaviours as well as attitudes. Based on non-advertising, the authors are talking about the promotions and marketing communications, which are not broadcasted through the media, but instead are promotions offered at the location where the alcohol product is bought. Such promotions include displays or posters, give-aways, gifts, branded merchandise, volume/price discounts, as well as competitions. The study met its main objective of determining the effects of point of sale promotions on the alcohol purchasing behaviour of teenagers with the study results show a strong impact of POS promotions on young people. The credibility of the study is beyond doubt since it was conducted ethically with approval from the University’s Human Research Ethics Committee. The authors prove that POS promotions, especially reduced prices appear to be mainly effective in promoting the buying of high volumes of alcohol; thus, creating the need for regulation in POS promotions. The article is significantly crucial to the essay because it provides not just evidence that POS promotions can play a significant part in alcohol purchasing behaviours, but also exhibits how such promotion can unethically targets the young people intentionally. Article 2 Entry Bruin, B.d., 2013. Socially Responsible Investment in the alcohol industry: an assessment of investor attitudes and ethical arguments. Contemporary Social Science: Journal of the Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 8, no. 1, pp.58-70. Bruin (2013) article evaluate and analyse the ethical arguments as well as standards that Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) investors utilise when deselecting the alcohol corporations as well as industry. Moreover, the author talks about the shareholder democracy role in this industry, by reviewing a number of evidence on the SRI financial effects on sin stocks as well as analyse the drives that SRI investors could be having to deselect alcohol industry investment. The article offers an optional Ethical Issues Argument and supports the assertion that there subsist no noble moral reasons for recognised SRI investors to sidestep the alcohol industry. According to the author, the alcoholic beverages’ marketing is possibly the most imperative issue, for the reason that it is in marketing that the alcohol industry has the biggest authority in mitigating the detriments of irresponsible or excessive alcohol consumption. The article highlights issues that are ethically debatable; supporting gender stereotypes, techniques of sales, the formation of false desires as well as the targeting of defenceless consumers such as young people. The author’s arguments are supported with real-life examples such as the Cambodia beer girls wherein teenage girls promote and represent particular brands of beer in local pubs. Even though the credibility of the article is not clear because the arguments are built by citing past studies, it clearly verifies that when the market segment has harmful products and/or vulnerable consumers then the usually standard marketing strategy can be considered unethical. The article will be useful to the essay because it provides various arguments such as Religious Value Argument and ethical issues argument which concerns desisting from making use of negative screens and rather opting for advocacy campaigning. Article 3 Entry Bowring, A.L. et al., 2012. Know your limits: Awareness of the 2009 Australian alcohol guidelines among young people. Drug and Alcohol Review, vol. 31, pp.213–23. Bowring et al. (2012) article examined the teenagers’ understanding of the 2009 Australian alcohol guidelines that was creating to lessen health risks attributed by alcohol consumption. The authors also intended to assess teenagers’ knowledge of risks associated with alcohol as well as their drinking behaviours. The study intended to verify that young people are vulnerable to alcohol-related injury and harm. The study results showed that even though there was inadequate awareness about the Australia alcohol guidelines of 2009, young people even so largely indicated some knowledge of alcohol consumption levels associated with enduring injury and harm. Oddly, in spite of high underrating of risks associated with alcohol consumption, scores of young people, especially men reported unsafe levels of alcohol consumption. This study can be considered credibly ethical because it obtained its approval from the Alfred Hospital Human Research Ethics Committee. The study results prove that information and education intended for conveying the risk of alcohol consumption can be successful in reducing unsafe levels of consumption. Still, as noted by the authors, it is not probable to evaluate directly the understanding level showed by study participants to details concerning risks associated with alcohol consumption dispersed through the 2009 guidelines promotion. Biasness in the study arises from the fact that understanding safe limits of drinking and alcohol consumption was self-reported; therefore, it could have been a matter of social desirability. The article is somewhat useful to the essay since it talks about alcohol consumption amongst young people, but it is not relevant in determining if it is ethical for retailers to intentionally promote alcohol to young adults since it talks about awareness of alcohol-related risks. Article 4 Entry Jones, S., 2014. The lure of alcohol point of sale promotions. Of Substance, vol. 12, no. 1, p.19. Jones (2014) article seeks to talk about point of sale promotions, and how it can be used to lure young people to alcohol. According to the author, the use of POS to market alcohol products has tremendously increased to an ‘aggressive’ point. The article is based on two previous studies carried out by the author in 2008 and 2010. The 2008 study was performed in NSW where the author established an average of 10 POS per outlet while in 2010, together with colleagues from National Drug Research Institute established an average of 33 POS per store, which is considerably in excess of finding in 2008 study. The study arguments are rooted from the interviews conducted exiting patrons, and the author established that there is a connection between promotions as well as purchases. This is proved in her 2010 study, where the participants in POS promotions had bought an increased alcohol quantity as compared to those who failed to take part, especially in promotions of beer. The article objective is to provide evidence that POS are common and influences alcohol consumptions. Most of such promotions as mentioned by the author fall outside the Alcohol Beverage Advertising Code scope, and so are under the regulators; radar. The credibility of the study cannot be determined because it is based on two previous studies that performed on POS on alcohol purchasing, and lacks statistical evidence from the two previous studies. This study is considerably crucial to the essay, because it talks about alcohol promotion, retailers’ unethical behavior, and failure to adhere to the code on alcohol advertising. Conclusion In conclusion, as evidenced in the annotated bibliography young people are largely vulnerable consumers because they do not have the ability for complete rational decision-making. As indicated in Bowring et al. (2012) and Jones (2014) artcile, alcohol advertising self-regulation has consistently been unsuccessful in making sure that the marketing of alcohol is socially responsible. The current regulations do not completely cover the alcohol industry, and this proves that majority of non-signatories are not regulated. As indicated by Bruin (2013) the pervasiveness and level of alcohol marketing in young people lives is worrying since alcohol producers are continually targeting the adolescent market so as to boost their sales. Alcohol marketing is malicious to health of young people, and the industry is now shifting to POS promotions to attract more young people. Through POS promotions, youthful drinkers are made to believe alcohol is a non-risky substance. They are continually being bombarded by alcohol images showing people who drink as stylish, successful, erotic and recognised by their peers. Therefore, young people struggling with loneliness feelings are successfully lured into alcohol, considering most alcohol advertisements show alcohol consumption as integral to social acceptance. Alcohol advertising impact on teenagers is substantial bearing in mind that young people have an inconsistent level of harm from injury and accidents related to alcohol consumption Read More