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Summary
Should the marketing community support repeating a study, when so much value is placed on new research? The answer may be a resounding “Yes,” according to this Journal of Advertising Research article.
Top academic journals —especially marketing journals — tend to publish only research that yields new or unexpected findings. In addition, studies that elicit positive results generally receive more attention than those with negative ones. The result: there is little incentive for researchers to replicate a study, so that false results may never be challenged.
The hesitancy to repeat studies fails to recognize an important factor: replication studies can determine if the basic findings of the original study hold up over time or in different circumstances. The industry, therefore, should consider increasing the number of replication studies published, which may raise confidence in advertising research.
