Given below are two statements:
Statement I: Critics say advertising does not distinguish between superior and inferior products and persuades people to buy even inferior ones.
Statement II: Supporters say the superiority or inferiority of a product depends on its quality, which is an absolute concept.
In the light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Statement I is correct but Statement II is incorrect.
Statement I: Critics say advertising does not distinguish between superior and inferior products and persuades people to buy even inferior ones. — Correct. This is the objection that advertising encourages sale of inferior products. Critics say it does not tell superior products from inferior ones.
Statement II: Supporters say the superiority or inferiority of a product depends on its quality, which is an absolute concept. — Incorrect. Supporters say quality is a relative concept, not an absolute one. The level of quality a buyer wants depends on the buyer’s economic status and preferences. So people buy a product of a given quality if it suits their needs.
NCERT (2026-27 Edition): “4. Encourages Sale of Inferior Products: Advertising does not distinguish between superior and inferior products and persuade people to purchase even the inferior products. In fact superiority and inferiority depends on the quality, which is a relative concept. The desired level of quality will depend on the economic status and preferences of the target customers. Advertisements sell products of a given quality and the buyers will buy if it suits their requirements. No advertisement should however, make false claim about the quality of a product. If a firm makes a false claims it can be prosecuted for the same.” |