A four-item unipolar scale measuring the degree to which a consumer perceives an advertised brand as competent — effective, competent, efficient, and capable. Items are presented as completions to the stem 'I think the advertised Brand [X] is seen as…' and rated on 5-point scales anchored at the negative pole (e.g., 'not effective at all') and positive pole (e.g., 'very effective'). Developed for research on the compensation effect between warmth and competence in advertising, the scale draws on the Stereotype Content Model conceptualisation of brand competence as the degree to which a brand is perceived as capable of carrying out its intentions.
5-point unipolar (not at all / very)
Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.
SCALE STEM: Items complete the stem 'I think the advertised Brand [X] is seen as…' with the brand name replacing [X]. Single alpha: α = .86 — Kim & Ball (2021, Study 1; n = 186 MTurk). VALIDITY: Brand competence was confirmed as a mediator of the effect of warmth appeals on perceived product quality (moderated mediation, PROCESS macro Model 8), providing evidence of predictive validity. Items drawn from Aaker, Garbinsky & Vohs (2012) and Aaker, Vohs & Mogilner (2010). NOTE: Scale uses a 5-point response format (not 7-point). Companion to the Attitude Toward the Ad (Warmth) scale (ATADW, ID 2089) from the same paper — both were used together to examine the warmth-competence compensation effect in advertising. DOI: 10.1080/00913367.2021.1940393
Kim, Taemin and Jennifer Gerard Ball (2021). Unintended consequences of warmth appeals: An extension of the compensation effect between warmth and competence to advertising. Journal of Advertising, 50(5), 622–638.
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