Abstract

This study aims to find the different effects on the elderly caused by reading advertising with different information loads due to differences of cognitive age and advertising credibility. Young adults and middle-aged adults are compared with the elderly. The results reveal that different ages show differences in cognitive age but not in advertising credibility. Most of the respondents in the three age groups have a low cognitive age and low advertising credibility. The elderly have insignificant differences for advertising effect with a high information load. Young adults and middle-aged adults reveal significant differences for the advertising effect of a high information load; however, the advertising effect of a low information load shows no differences due to age. Cognitive age is found to influence the advertising effect of a high information load. The advertising credibility of the three groups is significantly related to the advertising effect of both high and low information loads.

Key words: Elderly, information load, advertising effect, advertising credibility, cognitive age.