THE ANTONINUS JOURNAL

Abstract

Every consumer product is expected to have a clear and understandable warning. In case it does not, manufacturers violate their legal responsibilities towards consumers because of failure to promote clear and adequate product warnings (RA 7394). This research tested the comprehensibility of existing product warning texts printed on medicines, household chemicals, and beauty product items available in the Philippine market. Utilizing the experimental method in which a cloze test procedure is adapted, 47 mothers were chosen randomly and served as the study’s respondents. Considerably, those who are high school graduates, still studying in college, and working professionals are included as the main subjects of this research. The tests are developed and taken from the authentic source (existing product warnings) which yielded 65 items for medicines, 75 items for household chemicals, and 50 items for beauty products. The analyses reveal that medicines have the highest percentage of text difficulty, while household chemical products exhibit a certain degree of text complexity. Meanwhile, beauty product warnings are found to be the easiest, as they present the lowest difficulty index. Finally, comprehensibility test results and reading procedures generate a vital implication in the comprehension skills of Filipino consumers, particularly in responding to emergency situations.