Date of Completion

2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy

Keywords

TikTok, WeightLossSupplement, PerceivedAdvertising Value(PAV), ProductPurchasingDecisions(PPD), FairPurchase, Purchase Convenience

Abstract

Background: According to WHO, more than 2.5 billion adults of the total population in 2022 were overweight and over 890 million adults are obese. Furthermore, the organization has estimated that 24% of the world’s population will be obese by 2030. Its development can be multifaceted which involves biological, psychological, societal, institutional, evolutionary and economic factors. Being an obese or overweight may increase an individual's susceptibility to develop metabolic disorders and chronic health conditions like diabetes. Since social media is widely used and contains a lot of idealized content, body positivity movements have emerged on platforms such as TikTok. The Philippines ranks as the 7th country in terms of TikTok users, with approximately 41.4 million active TikTok users. Due to TikTok’s gaining popularity, a lot of content creators grabbed the opportunity to post dietary and nutritional contents. The study aims to determine the factors that influence perceived advertising value and factors considered in making product purchasing decisions towards weight loss supplements among selected adults in Cavite, Philippines.

Methodology: A cross-sectional quantitative descriptive design was employed through a paper-based questionnaire. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 25.

Results: A total of 356 respondents have completed the survey. Significant relationships between sociodemographic factors and perceived advertising values were identified such as sex (p=0.001; 0.025), age (p=0.003), educational attainment (p=0.027; 0.019), employment status (p=0.009; < 0.001), household monthly income (p=0.023; < 0.001), and weight loss supplement usage (p=0.001). These findings underscore the diverse influences of sociodemographic factors on individuals’ perceptions of weight loss supplement advertising. Furthermore, factors considered in making

product purchasing decisions have a significant relationship with the sociodemographic factors of the respondents such as age (p=< 0.001), educational attainment (p=0.008; < 0.001), employment status (p=0.004; < 0.001), household monthly income (p=0.048; 0.001), household size (p=0.045; 0.020) and weight loss supplement usage (p=0.005; 0.001; < 0.001).

Conclusion: The findings of the study resulted in a significant correlation between the perceived advertising values and factors considered in making product purchasing decisions such as product safety (p=0.001) and product effectiveness (p=< 0.001) showed a positive correlation with informativeness. The entertainment factor is positively correlated to product safety (p=< 0.001). The product effectiveness (p=< 0.001) also showed a positive correlation to entertainment value. As such, the researchers suggest that the FDA is recommended to provide stronger enforcement in collaboration with online platforms. Healthcare professionals who are not engaged with the TikTok platform are recommended to provide evidence-based information during patient consultation such as the potential risks and benefits of using weight loss supplements. Future researchers may consider a qualitative approach to this study to determine different perspectives and may consider a larger scope of study in highly urbanized places. Moreover, future researchers may consider utilizing Post-hoc analysis after gathering the initial statistical data using Spearman's Rho to identify factors that may compare any significant differences between two or more groups.

First Advisor

FrancescaMarie Manansala, RPh

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