Children's attention toward cartoon executed photos

Abstract

The study is intended to examine the effect of cartoon execution on children's attention toward and preferences for tourism photographs. A 3 (photo categories) × 2 (photo effects) × 2 (display order) repeated-measures experiment was designed to compare children's fixation counts, fixation duration, and dwell time between normal and cartoon-executed photos of tourism attractions in culture, nature, and recreation categories. Follow-up interviews were conducted to triangulate experimental findings. Results indicate that cartoon execution, as a common advertising tactic, can effectively increase children's attention to tourism photographs, but the effects vary by category. Findings from this study contribute to the body of knowledge on advertising effectiveness and tourism and provide insight for destination marketing organizations.