Exploring the temporal effect of ad clutter on digital ad avoidance: a two-wave longitudinal study

Purpose The study investigates the antecedents and consequences of digital ad avoidance in the e-commerce industry. This study aims to investigate how digital ad avoidance relates to internet usage over time, using a two-wave longitudinal research design. This study also explores how real-world advertising clutter (clutter and non-clutter) affects these relationships. Design/methodology/approach The data were collected from 192 online consumers in Türkiye, and a two-wave longitudinal research design and structural equation modeling were conducted to test the hypotheses of the conceptual model. Findings The results indicated that perceived goal impediment and prior negative experience had positive effects on affective avoidance in both ad-clutter and non-clutter periods. Further, affective avoidance had a significant positive effect on both cognitive and behavioral avoidance in either period. In addition, ad clutter moderated the effects of cognitive and behavioral avoidance on online purchase intention. Originality/value This research provides new evidence of the crucial role perceived goal impediment, prior negative experience and perceived control each play in driving digital ad avoidance. This paper contributes to the body of knowledge in the field by exploring how advertising clutter (both cluttered and non-cluttered settings) moderates these relationships through a two-wave longitudinal study.