About

Frank Dardis is an Associate Professor and faculty affiliate of the Media Effects Research Lab at the Bellisario College of Communications. He teaches courses on strategic communication, advertising and marketing, and advertising/public relations research methods. His research focuses on the psychological and persuasive effects that informational messages have on people. Specifically, Dardis has examined message framing, media framing, advocacy appeals, sponsorship messages, and repeated message exposures within both sociopolitical and marketing/consumer-related contexts. He has investigated message effects regarding sociopolitical topics such as social movement organizations, war protest, environmentalism, capital punishment, and political apathy. His consumer-oriented research centers on the impact of advertising messages on individuals' information processing and brand/corporate attitudes. In addition to regularly presenting his research at major academic conferences, Dardis has published articles in journals including Mass Communication and Society, International Communication Gazette, Communication Quarterly, Journal of Political Marketing, and Journal of Consumer Behavior.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Political Science
• Business
• Advertising
• Social psychology
• Psychology
• Public relations
• Cognitive psychology
• Law
• Marketing
• Economics

Selected publications

• Optimizing Brand Perceptions by Aligning Corporate Communication Strategy with Message Framing Strategy in CSR Messages

  Journal of Promotion Management · 2025-04-01 · 4 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Adolescent and Young Adult Social Media Food Marketing Exposure: Influence of Eating Behavior Traits on Brand Recall, Craving, and Purchase

  Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · 2025-08-01

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Saying the Right Things to the Right Audience: The Influence of Message Strategy and Consumer Demographics on Reactions to Corporate Social Advocacy (CSA) Communications

  International Journal of Business Communication · 2025-05-13 · 1 citations

  article

  Despite a growing number of studies in corporate social advocacy (CSA), little is known about the role of demographic and message factors in shaping consumer reactions toward corporate initiatives. Through a 2 ( gender : male vs. female) × 3 ( age group : 18–34, 35–54, 55+) × 2 ( message strategy : informational vs. narrative) online, between-subjects experiment ( N = 528), we demonstrated that individual factors and message format can influence CSA outcomes. Findings suggested that, after reading a CSA message, males and younger consumers reported higher advocating, megaphoning, purchasing, and brand preference intentions than females and older consumers. Subsequent analyses also revealed that transportation and identification mediated the relationship between message strategy and the outcome variables. Further, the mediation found that male participants and older consumers showed distinct patterns in how transportation and identification influenced their reactions. The implications of these results provide strategic insights to corporate management to design effective CSA messages.

  PublisherDOI

• Examining the impact of corporate social advocacy (CSA) issue ownership and message content on authenticity perceptions and behavioral intentions

  Corporate Communications An International Journal · 2025-02-04 · 8 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Purpose As companies continue to engage in CSA, they continue to struggle with determining what issues they should speak out about and how they can create compelling messages that inspire action. Guided by arguments from issue ownership theory, this study examines CSA message content effects related to two different social-political issues on advocacy behavioral intentions, megaphoning, brand preference and purchase intention. Specifically, the level of advocacy in a CSA message is examined, as well as the manner in which the message is written (narrative vs informational). Furthermore, this study examines the role of perceived authenticity and its impact on an individual’s supportive intentions. Design/methodology/approach This study conducts a 2 (issue: abortion rights vs gun violence) × 2 (level of advocacy: call-to-action (CTA) vs no call-to-action) × 2 (message type: narrative vs informational) between-subjects online experiment using a Qualtrics panel (N = 529) to examine the impact of CSA message features on individuals’ supportive intentions toward the brand. Findings Results indicate a significant interaction effect of issue by advocacy level on advocating behavioral intentions, megaphoning, brand preference and purchase intention, highlighting that companies should advocate more explicitly about some issues than others. The interaction effects of issue type × level of advocacy were completely and significantly mediated by perceived authenticity. Mediation paths revealed that a CTA with the gun violence issue had a significant positive effect on perceived authenticity, whereas a CTA with the abortion rights issue produced a significant negative effect on perceived authenticity. Originality/value This study makes a contribution to a growing body of CSA literature through its examination of CSA message content, which has been understudied in this context. The study findings reveal new insights regarding the interplay between issue type and level of advocacy, highlighting the importance of companies selecting issues carefully and tailoring message content appropriately to have the most impact on message receivers.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Improving nonprofit engagement on social media: Using big data, machine-learning, and sentiment analysis to evaluate leading nonprofits’ message strategies on Twitter/X

  International Journal of Information Technology · 2024-11-26 · 3 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Supplemental Material for Exploring Adolescent Vulnerability to Influencer Product Endorsement on Snack Intake Within a Live Streaming Context

  Technology Mind and Behavior · 2024-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Live streaming is a rapidly growing source of digital entertainment that presents a unique opportunity for food brands to reach young audiences. Streamers, or content creators, use influencer-based marketing strategies to promote food brands and model eating behaviors. Adolescents are vulnerable to these types of marketing practices due to increased saliency of social influence, which presents health implications as most of the marketed food products are high in fat, salt, and sugar. In a randomized crossover design, a sample of 72 adolescents, 12–19 years of age, viewed two simulated live stream videos with imbedded marketing for a food and nonfood product. A bowl of chips was offered during the viewing, and the amount consumed was measured. Using a mixed effects model, no main effect of marketing condition was found on snack intake. A significant effect of External Food Cue Responsiveness scores on snack intake was found, with higher scores showing greater intake in both conditions. Significant interactions between condition and age, the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire–cognitive restraint subscale, and the TFEQ–emotional eating subscale were found. These results demonstrate possible individual differences that determine food intake outcomes in response to food marketing exposure.

  PublisherDOI

• Exploring adolescent vulnerability to influencer product endorsement on snack intake within a live streaming context.

  Technology Mind and Behavior · 2024-01-01 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access

  Live streaming is a rapidly growing source of digital entertainment that presents a unique opportunity for food brands to reach young audiences. Streamers, or content creators, use influencer-based marketing strategies to promote food brands and model eating behaviors. Adolescents are vulnerable to these types of marketing practices due to increased saliency of social influence, which presents health implications as most of the marketed food products are high in fat, salt, and sugar. In a randomized crossover design, a sample of 72 adolescents, 12–19 years of age, viewed two simulated live stream videos with imbedded marketing for a food and nonfood product. A bowl of chips was offered during the viewing, and the amount consumed was measured. Using a mixed effects model, no main effect of marketing condition was found on snack intake. A significant effect of External Food Cue Responsiveness scores on snack intake was found, with higher scores showing greater intake in both conditions. Significant interactions between condition and age, the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire–cognitive restraint subscale, and the TFEQ–emotional eating subscale were found. These results demonstrate possible individual differences that determine food intake outcomes in response to food marketing exposure.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Amplifying Player Experience to Facilitate Prosocial Outcomes in a Narrative-Based Serious Game

  Media and Communication · 2024-09-30 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  The rise and development of serious games have shown promise in addressing critical social issues, including school bullying. However, prior work often compares game-based interventions with the conventional non-game approach, failing to generate insights about which game features should be emphasized to create more effective games. To bridge this research gap, in light of video games’ advantages for creating immersive experiences that benefit persuasion, we created a narrative-based serious game addressing school bullying and conducted two studies (Study 1, <em>N</em> = 130; Study 2, <em>N</em> = 250) to explore the persuasive effects of two game features, respectively player–avatar similarity and in-game control, on player experience (including player–avatar identification, narrative engagement, and empathy) and prosocial intention. We found mixed results subject to player perspective such that only when players took the bully’s perspective did one of the game features—in-game control—successfully create the intended empathy via amplified narrative engagement toward the desirable prosocial intention.

  PublisherDOI

• The food and beverage cues in digital marketing model: special considerations of social media, gaming, and livestreaming environments for food marketing and eating behavior research

  Frontiers in Nutrition · 2024 · 44 citations

  • Computer Science
  • Marketing
  • Business

  Digital marketing to children, teens, and adults contributes to substantial exposure to cues and persuasive messages that drive the overconsumption of energy dense foods and sugary beverages. Previous food marketing research has focused on traditional media, but less is known about how marketing techniques translate within digital platforms, such as social media, livestreaming, and gaming. Building upon previous theories and models, we propose a new model entitled food and beverage cues in digital marketing (FBCDM). The FBCDM model specifies key marking elements and marketing integration strategies that are common on digital platforms and are hypothesized to enhance the effects of advertising and incentive sensitization process. FBCDM also categorizes measurable outcomes into three domains that include brand, food, and social outcomes. Additionally, repeated marketing exposure and the resulting outcomes are hypothesized to have long term consequences related to consumer markets, consumption behavior, culture, and health. We include a discussion of what is currently known about digital marketing exposure within the outcome domains, and we highlight gaps in research including the long-term consequences of digital marketing exposure. The FBCDM model provides a conceptual framework to guide future research to examine the digital marketing of food and beverages to children and adolescents in order to inform government and industry policies that restrict the aggressive marketing of products associated with obesity and adverse diet related outcomes.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Designing effective corporate social advocacy campaigns using valence, arousal, and issue salience

  Public Relations Review · 2022 · 42 citations

  • Political Science
  • Psychology
  • Social psychology
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Mike Schmierbach

  16 shared

• Fuyuan Shen

  Pennsylvania State University

  5 shared

• Brett Sherrick

  Purdue University West Lafayette

  5 shared

• Julia Daisy Fraustino

  West Virginia University

  5 shared

• Jason Freeman

  University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras

  4 shared

• Lee Ahern

  Pennsylvania State University

  4 shared

• Michel M. Haigh

  Texas State University

  4 shared

• Keunyeong Kim

  Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

  4 shared

Labs

• Media Effects Research LabPI

  Investigates social and psychological effects of technological elements unique to web-based mass-communication.

Education

• Ph.D.

  University of South Carolina

  2003