Johannes Kepler Universität Linz
Women in advertising and the media.
The representation of the deviation of how women are actually
represented in advertising and the media and of how women want to see
themselves represented in advertising and the media: the reasons for
their attitudes and the implications of these differences on the target
group of woman, and on the selection of products/advertising campaigns
for the advertising and media sector.
Master’s Thesis
to confer the academic degree of
Master of Science (MSc)
in the Master’s Programme General Management
Department of Retailing, Sales and Marketing
Supervisor: o.Univ.-Prof.Dkfm Dr. Gerhard A. Wührer
Co-Supervisor: Mag.Dr. Katharina Hofer
Tamara Hager, BSc
Ramooserstraße 46
5163 Mattsee
AFFIDAVIT
I assure that I have written this thesis myself. No further sources or aids were used than those explicitly stated. All citations in this work are labeled as such. The master thesis is identical to the text document transmitted electronically.
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Table of contents
List of figures ... III List of tables ... IV
Introduction ... 1
1 1.1 Problem definition ... 1
1.2 Objective of this thesis ... 3
1.3 Structure of this thesis ... 5
Fundamentals ... 7
2 2.1 Introduction of advertising and women in advertising and the media ... 7
2.1.1 Definition and purpose of advertising ... 7
2.1.2 Definition of beauty with regard to women in advertising and the media ... 9
2.1.3 Definition of slenderness with regard to women in advertising and the media ... 10
2.1.4 Definition of sex-appeal with regard to women in advertising and the media ... 11
2.1.4.1 Constitution, function, effects and acceptance of sex-appeal in advertising and the media 12 2.1.5 Definition and impact of women portrayed in advertising and the media in a humiliating, degrading or violent way and the representation and the effects of inequality between women and men in the area of media and advertising ... 15
2.2 Women in advertising and the media... 17
2.2.1 Beauty ideals and beauty trends in advertising and the media with regard to the target group of woman ... 17
2.2.2 Consequences of beauty ideals and beauty standards on the target group of woman . 22 2.2.3 Psychological aspects in advertising and the media with regard to the target group of woman 25 2.3 Representation of women in advertising and the media ... 30
2.3.1 Portrayal of women in advertising and the media ... 30
2.3.2 Roles and stereotypes of women in advertising and the media ... 37
2.3.3 Studies of “how women want to see themselves represented in advertising and the media?”... 45
Empirical Study ... 64
3 3.1 Research Approach ... 64
3.1.1 Research objectives and propositions ... 64
3.1.2 Research instrument ... 67
3.2 Data analysis ... 70
3.2.1 Description of the sample ... 70
3.2.2 Description of the procedure of the focus group discussions ... 72
3.2.3 Description of the concept of analysis ... 75
3.3 Research Results ... 85
3.3.1 Discussion of results of focus group discussions ... 85
3.3.1.1 Role Authority in advertising campaigns ... 86
3.3.1.2 Role Occupation in advertising campaigns ... 87
3.3.1.3 Role Non-Occupation in advertising campaigns ... 90
3.3.1.4 Role Beauty in advertising campaigns ... 91
3.3.1.5 Well rounded women in Dove-campaign ... 95
3.3.1.6 Role Age in advertising campaigns ... 96
3.3.1.7 Role Ethnic Minorities in advertising campaigns ... 97
3.3.1.8 Role Women in a humiliating, degrading or violent way in advertising campaigns ... 99
3.3.1.9 Role Others in advertising campaigns ... 99
3.3.1.10 Decision making process when buying products ... 100
3.3.1.11 Roles in life in advertising campaigns ... 101
3.3.1.12 Impacts of the discussed role models/representations on women ... 103
3.3.2 Deviation and similarities of “how women are actually represented in advertising and the media and of “how women want to see themselves represented in advertising and the media” 104 3.3.3 Implications on the target group of woman... 117
3.3.4 Implications on the selection of products/advertising campaigns for the advertising and media sector ... 119
3.3.5 Limitations and future research directions ... 122
BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 123
4 Appendix ... 138 5
List of figures
Figure 1: Dove-campaign ...20
Figure 2: Dove´s ProAge-campaign...21
Figure 3: "Davidoff" advertisement ...38
Figure 4: "Oral B" advertisement ...40
Figure 5: "Fruchtzwerge" advertisement ...41
Figure 6: "Gilette" advertisement ...42
Figure 7: "Jil Sander" advertisement ...43
Figure 8: "Baldriparan" advertisement ...43
List of tables
Table 1 Overview of the main concepts of this thesis ...55 Table 2 Overview of the concepts in addition of this thesis ...63 Table 3 Demographic characteristics of focus group members (age group of 35-65 years) ..71 Table 4 Demographic characteristics of focus group members (age group of 18-30 years) ..72 Table 5 Defined categories and subcategories for the two focus group discussions ...85
Introduction
1
Initially, the author deals with the problem definition, objective and structure of this thesis to get a first overview of the topic.
1.1 Problem definition
As a primary point of reference, advertising in general, is the point of intersection between the daily routine and the surrounding world of products and services. The formation and appearance of advertising and the question of which strategies should be applied in advertising are highly dependent on the societal context1, which means that the way one looks at the world is strongly associated with the way one is socialised.2 Besides this, advertising has to adapt to cultural patterns, values and ideas of being able to attract the attention of their target group. Customers ought to be able to identify with the situations and people or advertising campaigns. Addressing the target group in this fashion is an elementary function for the appropriate use of advertising in order of being in a position to find complete expression.3 Furthermore, advertising is not solely an invitation to buy, but also mediates hope, dreams and wishes which are achievable when buying the advertised products or services.4
Additionally, it is necessary to mention that advertising is not only the expression or the mirror of a culture, advertising itself also wields influence on culture and is thus one of the initiators of cultural change. In other words, advertising serves as orientation for human beings, communicates norms and values and depicts role models to the public,5 which means that advertising and the media are able to perpetuate stereotypes. Hence, gender-specific representation in this kind of area can be influential.6 In other words, the advertising sectoroffers an enormous area for a stereotyped and discriminatory portrayal of the sexes with special focus on the representation of women. It therefore seems necessary to mention that hardly any poster, television spot, newspaper or a magazine advertisement exists without an attractive woman operating as an appealing figure or eye-catcher. During her studies and throughout her everyday life, the author of this thesis has noticed that advertising 1 cf. Schmidt/Spieß (1995), p. 41 2 cf. Ellis et al. (2011), p. 43ff. 3 cf. Schmidt/Spieß (1995), p. 41 4 cf. Holtz-Bacha (2011), p. 9 5 cf. Hurth (2008), p. 15ff. 6 cf. Paek et al. (2010), p. 192
is primarily focused on men and that women are often treated as objects of sexual desire. Images of women where they are represented in a youthful and pretty way are highly dominant in advertising and the media.7 8 Another main point is that today´s society often associates slimness in the media or in advertising with sex-appeal, so much so, that women increasingly strive for beauty to also achieve this sex-appeal.9 10 A salient point is that women place great importance on entertainment in advertising and appreciate sophisticated advertisements in a comfortable environment. Beyond that, women typically wish to be treated with respect in advertising such that, on the one hand, they do not want to see themselves represented in a humiliating, degrading or even violent way and, on the other hand, they frequently do not desire to be depicted in an erotically provocative way.11
Furthermore, it is of significant relevance that the target group of woman has become increasingly important in recent years in the area of media and advertising as women are the primary purchasers of consumer goods.12 A reason for this is, among other things, that women have become an integral part of the workforce in the last few decades. Next, women nowadays are increasingly self-aware: they have a very specific perception of themselves, of their work, and their attitudes towards life.13 In other words, society has to deal with changes in gender roles, which means that women in today´s society are more often independent of their male counterparts and thus have the ability to make decisions regarding buying different things on their own.14 15 In reality, although the target group of woman wields enormous power in the marketplace, the representation of women in advertising campaigns cannot be equated with women as a powerful group. In spite their purchasing power, women are often portrayed in stereotypical roles.1617
As the insights of literature show varying degrees of effectiveness, this thesis aims at finding out the deviation of two main questions: “How are women actually 7 cf. Groesz et al. (2002), w.p. 8 cf. Furnham et al. (2000), w.p. 9 cf. Moser (1997), p. 37 10 cf. Parliamentary Assembly (2007b) 11 cf. Tschernookoff (1993) in Assig (1993), p. 96f. 12 cf. Hill (2002), w.p. 13 cf. Bartos(1992), p. 19 14 cf. Hill (2002), w.p. 15 cf. Barletta (2006), p. 19 16 cf. Hill (2002), w.p. 17 cf. Kroeber-Riel/Weinberg (2003), p. 476
represented in advertising and the media?” and “how would women rather see themselves being represented in advertising and the media?” Additionally questions are as follows: “What are the reasons for their attitudes?” and “what are the implications of these differences on the target group of woman and on the selection of products/advertising campaigns for the advertising and media sector?”
1.2 Objective of this thesis
The importance of the target group of woman in society today, and as a consequence therefore for the marketing and advertising sector, and the varying opinions of different authors of the present literature which are given to the topic of women in advertising and the media, the author of this thesis places the main focus on women in advertising.18
In more detail, the key objective is to define how women are actually represented in advertising and the media, how women want to see themselves represented in advertising and the media and what their reasons are for their attitudes to subsequently be in a position to derive implications of these differences on the target group of woman and, on the selection of products/advertising
campaigns for the advertising and media sector.
To be able to answer these types of research questions it is initially necessary to define various sub-research questions which need to be evaluated. In more detail, this thesis focuses on the discussion about the restricted repertoire of roles of women in advertising and the media whereby the main objective is to find out whether women prefer to see themselves portrayed as idealistic models or rather as realistic women. Special emphasis is placed on the question of whether advertising portrays women in a working role (a less traditional role), for example. would it make the product more desirable than if women are represented as, say, housewives or mothers or in a sexual-object or fashion-object role and what are the reasons for their attitudes? Furthermore, this paper concentrates on the representation of women in advertising and the media with regard to beauty, slimness and sex-appeal ideals. Thus, a fundamental part of this thesis is the evaluation of the question of how women perceive the representation of beautiful and slim women in advertising and the media and what are the impacts of such
18
questionable role models on women? Aside from this point of investigation, this thesis focuses on the question of how women perceive the representation of women in advertising and the media as sexual objects and what are the impacts of such representations on women?
In contrast, the author of this paper considers it beneficial to discuss and demonstrate the effects of campaigns that are somehow different to common advertising campaigns such as the advertisements of the Ogilvy & Mather agency with their brand of Dove where well-rounded women act as female testimonials for representing personal care products.19 In particular, this thesis deals with the question of how women perceive the representation of such advertisements like Dove´s campaign and what are the effects of such kind of advertising campaign on women?
Another main point of this thesis is to answer the question of how women perceive the representation of women in advertising and the media in a humiliating, degrading or even violent way and what are the impacts of such demonstrations on women?
To be able to answer the research questions and to be in a position to evaluate the various sub-research questions, it is necessary to review the existing marketing and advertising literature and to go into the field to do market research with regard to women in advertising and the media.
As a brief summary, the results of this thesis should be the foundation for identifying customer´s behavior and needs as well as their satisfaction and loyalty. In particular, the insights of the empirical study should be a helpful input for the marketing and advertising sector of being able to plan and implement future advertising efforts. 20 21
22 19 cf. http://www.dove.us/Social-Mission/campaign-for-real-beauty.aspx 20 cf. Morrison et al. (2012), p. 1 ff. 21 cf. Bartos (1992), p. 19 22 cf. Hill (2002), w.p.
1.3 Structure of this thesis
At the beginning, it is necessary to search through the existing literature according to women in advertising and the media of being able to gain a detailed insight of the situation. As already mentioned the content of the prevalent literature of women in the media and in advertising is, on the one hand underreported and, on the other hand shows varying degrees of effectiveness. Thus, the author of this thesis tries to build on existing research studies in the marketing and advertising literature in the part of the empirical study. In other words, it is advisable to subdivide this thesis into a conceptual and an empirical part whereby the first one acts as scientific fundament on which the empirical study is based.
Chapter 2.1 emphasises the introduction of advertising and women in advertising and the media, whereby initially the definition and purpose of advertising is explained in more detail. Following this, terms such as beauty, slenderness and sex-appeal with regard to the target group of woman in advertising and the media are defined in order to have an overview of the various conceptualities in this area. Another main part of this thesis is the description of the constitution, function, effects and acceptance of sex-appeal in advertising and the media. Furthermore, the author of this paper describes the representation and impacts of portraying women in a humiliating, degrading or even violent way.
Chapter 2.2 of women in advertising and the media deals with various studies of beauty ideals and trends in advertising with regard to women. In a further step, this thesis takes a closer look on the consequences of the prevailing beauty trends and ideals for the target group of woman which may, among other things, include body dissatisfaction which can lead to plastic surgery, fitness mania or even dieting and kinds of eating disorders.23 24 25 This chapter closes with psychological aspects that are behind advertising campaigns with regard to the target group of woman.
Chapter 2.3 of representation of women in advertising and the media focuses on the portrayal of women in advertising and the media and are categorised into occupational - and non-occupational roles, environment/setting, authority, age, mental health, eroticisation, equating products with women and racial and ethnic minorities. Another area of focus is placed on roles and stereotypes of women in 23 cf. Posavec (1998), p. 189ff. 24 cf. Stephens et al. (1994), p. 197ff. 25 cf. Silverstein et al. (1986), p. 519ff.
advertising and the media according to Holtz-Bacha (2011) whose categorisation includes sexual objects, housewives/mothers, experts/working women, grandmothers, sporty women and women in their leisure time.26 As we can see from the above taxonomy, this thesis tries to answer the question of how women want to see themselves represented in advertising and the media on conceptual basis. Special focus is set on studies carried out by Barletta (2006)27 and Jaffé (2005)28. Chapter 2.4 gives an overview of the most important conceptual models used in this thesis.
As already mentioned, the conceptual part is a basis for the execution of the empirical research. Thus, the second part of this thesis (chapter 3) deals with the execution and evaluation of the empirical study. In particular, it gives an overview of the empirical study meaning that the sample, procedure of the focus group discussions and the concept of analysis is described. Next, the results of the focus group discussions are presented and interpreted. Finally, implications on the target group of woman and on the selections of products/advertising campaigns for the advertising and media sector are drawn, and ultimately, limitations and further research directions are discussed.
26 cf. Holtz-Bacha (2011), p. 90 ff. 27 cf. Barletta (2006), w.p. 28 cf. Jaffé (2005), w.p.
Fundamentals
2
In the following section the conceptual underpinnings of this master thesis will be discussed.
2.1 Introduction of advertising and women in advertising and the
media
The conceptual part of this thesis starts with the definition of advertising to firstly describe what advertising is, and secondly, delineate what the characteristics of advertising are.
More importantly, this paper includes further definitions with regard to women in advertising and the media to provide the content of this thesis with some important fundamentals. As already mentioned, the target group of woman is often represented in a stereotyped matter in advertising and the media. More specifically, they are often depicted in a youthful, pretty and slender way. What advertisements often do is propagate sex-appeal with regard to women. This has nowadays become the norm. Hence, it is necessary to initially describe the meaning of beauty, slenderness and sex-appeal. Furthermore, this thesis deals with the constitution, function, effects and acceptance of sex-appeal in our society with its central focus on advertising and the media.
By recognising that degradation and discrimination against women in advertising and the media is still a prevailing topic, the author of this thesis emphasises this discrimination against women of being able to exhibit how women in advertising and the media are represented in a humiliating, degrading or violent way and the impact this has on the target group of woman.
2.1.1 Definition and purpose of advertising
The term advertising is often mistakenly equated with the business discipline of marketing, but advertising is simply a small, but essential part of the marketing instrument of communication policy.29
In general, the term advertising describes “the act or practice of calling public attention to a product, service, need, business, etc., especially by paid announcements in newspapers and magazines, over radio or television, etc.”30
29 cf. Lötters et al. (1993), p. 2 30 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/advertising
Beyond this, the authors Richards and Curran (2002) state that contents of recent marketing and advertising textbooks do not deal with a widely adopted definition of the term advertising. Hence, they decided to combine certain recurring elements of various statements, whereby the following explanation originated: “[a]dvertising is a paid non-personal communication from an identified sponsor, using mass media to persuade or influence an audience.”31
According to Schweiger and Schattenecker (2001), however, advertising is an intended manipulation of market relevant attitudes and behaviours without formal constraint, but with the use of advertising media and paid media.32 Additionally, Kroeber-Riel and Weinberg (1999) also concur that advertising is increasingly used to influence the attitudes and behaviours of customers via special means of communication.33 In other words, the predominant intention of advertising is to bring the products to the customers. In order to be able to reach consumers with the advertising message and to make them buy the intended products, the application of communication and media is essential. Moreover, the formation and appearance of advertising and the question of which strategies should be applied in advertising is highly dependent on the societal context of the target group.34 In line with this argument, Ellis et al. (2011) state with their research of the so-called Critical Theory that social reality is socially structured and the authors show that the way one looks at the world is highly associated with the way one is socialised.35
Another relevant influencing factor for the advertising and marketing sector is that in recent years many new technologies and approaches have evolved, especially the internet. Technologies such as the internet make advertising more personal.36 As a consequence, the complex and highly competitive digital world of today leads to increased power exercised by customers. To put it another way, consumers nowadays are, due to the internet and accompanied by the transparency, increased in the position to weigh up various alternatives on their own and to make purchases under the most favourable conditions. Besides this, customers often turn away from
31 Richards/Curran (2002), p.64 32 cf. Schrattenecker/Schweiger (2001), p.102 33 cf. Kroeber-Riel/Weinberg (1999), p. 581 34 cf. Schmidt/Spieß (1995), p. 41 35 cf. Ellis et al. (2011), p. 43ff. 36 cf. Richards/Curran (2002), p.64
companies that do not adapt to their needs and wants and do not get into contact with them on the internet.37
As a brief summary, the main purpose of advertising is to enhance turnover and to maximize profit of being able to ensure the sustainable success of companies. Furthermore, advertising aims are to increase brand – and company awareness, as well as serve as kind of image care.38 Being able to reach these types of business goals, advertising experts have to act in a customer oriented manner, which means advertising campaigns have to be concise, understandable and, attractive, whereby meaningful short messages should be transmitted convincingly, in easily understandable and clear language to defined target groups. Advertising campaigns have to be truthful and ethical. Advertising messages should not mislead customers.39 40
2.1.2 Definition of beauty with regard to women in advertising and the media
According to the spelling dictionary the term beauty is associated with words like “gracefulness, attractiveness, charisma, elegance, delicateness, style and gentility.”41
Firstly, it is necessary to mention that the definition of beauty and beauty standards and their effects on society in connection with women in advertising and the media is a highly interesting topic in this field of research. Over the last decade, researchers such as Gallagher and Pecot-Hebert (2007), Goodman, Morris and Sutherland (2008), Krcmar, Giles and Helme (2008), Park (2005) and Rivero (2003) have focused on the area of beauty and beauty standards in advertising and the media.42 Although beauty is a term that cannot be seen in an objective light and lies in the eyes of the beholder, what is considered beautiful and the criteria of how a beautiful person ought to look, is to a considerable extent determined by society. In other words, multi-dimensional and continuously changing beauty standards are created and set within society with the support of advertising and the media.4344 45
37 cf. http://fa.ltings.de/marketing-steht-vor-grossen-veraenderungen/ 38 cf. Benkenstein (2001), p. 152 39 cf. Bergler et al. (1992), p. 15 40 cf. Sharma (2012), p. 1 41 cf. Duden, http://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Schoenheit 42 cf. Goldman/Waymer (2014), p. 2ff. 43 cf. McGrath/Mukerji (2000), p. 107 44 cf. Goldman/Waymer (2014), p. 2ff. 45 cf. Goldman/Waymer (2014), p. 2ff.
One of the primary criteria for beauty is to be slim. In many cases, the weight of female models in advertising campaigns is far below the medically recommended weight for women. Chapter 2.1.3 defines slenderness with regard to women in advertising and the media and deals with this topic in greater detail. Physical fitness is also considered a criterion for beauty. Apart from the ideal of being thin, women in advertising campaigns tend to represent an appearance-related perfection that is hardly attainable by the average woman. In other words, symmetrical faces and bodies are indications for being beautiful and a flawless, smooth and light-brown skin significantly increases a women´s attractiveness.46
2.1.3 Definition of slenderness with regard to women in advertising and the media
As already mentioned, the term beauty plays an integral part in the area of advertising and media especially focusing on the target group of woman.47 In more detail, the definition of beauty with regard to women in advertising and the media is highly associated with slimness. The majority of advertising and media campaigns show that the weight of illustrated women is far below the medically recommended weight (=Body Mass Index, which defines beauty with the relation of body weight and body height48.) for women.49 According to the spelling dictionary slenderness is defined as “the property of an attractively thin person”.50
On the contrary, obesity is defined as an “abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20 % or more over an individual's ideal body weight”.51
Decades ago, obesity was the best form of protection and assurance of survival when food was scarce and thus was considered a desirable body shape. Nowadays, obesity is rated in form of overweight and adiposity as a risk for the health of people. Today, advertisements with corpulent people acting as performers are regarded as funny and amusing.52 In this sense, people who want to be accepted in society have to strictly follow the beauty ideal of
slenderness. 46 cf. Engeln-Maddox (2006), p. 258 47 cf. Goldman/Waymer (2014), p. 4 48
cf. Liebig/Universität Hohenheim, 29.4.2013, http:/www.uni-hohenheim.de/wwwin140/info/interaktives/bmi.htm 49 cf. Engeln-Maddox (2006), p. 258 50 http://www.synonym.com/definitions/slenderness/ 51 http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/obesity 52 cf. Ringhofer (2001), w.p.
To sum up, the current public consensus today is that a slender and thin body has been set as the standard of an ideal body.53
2.1.4 Definition of sex-appeal with regard to women in advertising and the media
Generally, sex-appeal is the “physical attractiveness or personal qualities that arouse others sexually”.54
Additionally, sex-appeal is defined as the erotic and sexual attraction.55 As a further step, it is necessary to mention that there are a lot of words related to sex-appeal. Especially in connection with advertising, many different terms have been introduced over the years. These range from erotic, or erotic stimuli to sexy and sexually appealing advertising.56 Advertising messages therefore often depict physically attractive models whose enticing bodies are often revealed by provocative apparel.57 Besides this, full nudity is indeed the most obvious form of sexual representation, but sex-appeal can also be used in a much more subtle way. Reichert (2002/2003), an authority in the field, categorises the topic of sex-appeal in advertising and the media into five distinct groups:58
a) Depicted people are undressed or even partly dressed
In many cases, sex-appeal is issued exclusively by the degree of nudity of the depicted models. However, naked persons in advertising campaigns are only a part of sex-appeal.59
b) Sexual behaviour in form of personal contact such as flirting, posing,
kissing, embracing and/or laying one´s arm around other people´s body
c) Depiction of physical attractiveness such as an attractive face, hair or
figure. Examples demonstrating this include advertising campaigns which represent models clothed, though in obvious postures; radio spots with erotic voices of the speaker; or any form of advertising that allows explicitly erotic allusions in headlines, as well as slogans or product-explanatory advertising messages.60 53 cf. Huang (2013), p. 185 54 http://www.thefreedictionary.com/sex+appeal 55 cf. http://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Sex_Appeal 56 cf. Moser (1997), p. 37 57 cf. Lambiase (2003), p. 123 58 cf. Reichert (2002/2003), w.p. 59 cf. Moser (1997), p. 38 60 cf. Lambiase (2003), p. 122ff.
d) Sexual references like ambiguities, hidden linguistic allusions or through the
use of music, lighting or certain camera or editing techniques
e) Sexual embedding such as the depiction of sexual shapes or words which
are primarily presented subliminally.
It is necessary to mention that one can see a clear connection between beauty and
sex-appeal. Thus, women often strive for beauty to then, as a subsequent step,
achieve sex-appeal.61
As this chapter deals with the definition of sex-appeal and the types of sex-appeal which generally exist, the next chapterdiscusses its constitution, function, effects and acceptance in our society with the main focus on advertising and the media.
2.1.4.1 Constitution, function, effects and acceptance of sex-appeal in advertising and the media
The term sex-appeal is strongly used in mainstream consumer advertising.62 The general consensus is that, sex-appeal in advertising is used as a so-called eye-catcher since sexual drive is primordial motivation of human beings. As a consequence thereof, special attention is paid to advertising campaigns which have sex-appeal as their aim.6364
Moser (1997), one of the first researchers with regard to the topic of sex-appeal in advertising and the media, shows that the depiction of sex-appeal has increased since the 1980s. The result of this is that mainly female models were represented and they were shown in a more revealing way.65 A recent study by Reichert and Carpenter (2004) shows that the proportion of sexual motives increased from 1983 to 1993. However, after that time-period it remained constant or even decreased. Overall, it seems that by the mid-1990s, a preliminary peak was reached.66
Sex-appeal with a special focus on advertising and media is a highly debated issue.
However, it can be said that merely a couple of researchers emphasise the topic of
sex-appeal. At this point, reasons for this restraint can only be speculated upon. It is
highly probable that there is still an existing taboo with regard to sexual topics. Thus, researchers may be afraid of being confronted with such dubious topics such as sex 61 cf. Moser (1997), p. 37 62 cf. Reichert/Ramirez (2000), p. 267 63 cf. Moser (1997), p. 56f. 64 cf. Stankiewicz/Roselli (2008), p. 579 65 cf. Moser (1997), w.p. 66 cf. Reichert/Carpenter (2004) p. 824 ff.
in advertising and the media. It is equally imaginable that the often quoted phrase: "sex sells" is acknowledged as natural and true by many researchers – and to such an extent that further study of this topic does not seem worthwhile.67
Generally, sex-appeal can be categorised into nudity and suggestiveness. The former encompasses the amount and style of clothing the models represent in advertising campaigns. As for the latter, advertisements defined as suggestive are, on the one hand, less concrete than nudity68, but on the other hand, are delineated as “having or possessing sexual stimuli that trigger[s] or arouse[s] ideas about sex in a person´s mind”.69
The following section of this thesis shows the various effects of sex-appeal in advertising and the media which can be categorised into effects of activation, memory, and attitude.
A broad range of studies emphasise the effects of female sex-appeal. According to Moser (1997), (female) sex-appeal inserted in advertising campaigns enhances activation and attention effects of men. In other words, advertisements without
sex-appeal show less activation of the male respondents. The reactions of women with
regard to the depiction of sex-appeal in advertisements and the media show no clear results. Consequently, implementing female sex-appeal increases the activation and attention of men rather than that of women. In contrast, the assumption that male
sex-appeal raises the activation of women rather than enhances the attention of men
is not supported. Moreover, it is necessary to state that attention and activation are stronger when introducing more intense forms of sex-appeal.70 Overall when representing advertising campaigns without sex-appeal, attention is paid to the product-relevant information whereas inserting erotic advertisements increasingly means a diversion from the core message.7172
In addition to this, what should be noted with respect to the memory effect of erotic advertisements is that although the use of (female) sex-appeal in advertising and the media leads to increased attention, this kind of attention does not subsequently help to better one´s memory of the advertised products, services or even brands. By 67 cf. Holtz-Bacha (2011), p. 205f. 68 Reichert/Ramirez (2000), p. 267 69 Reid et al. (1984), p. 215 70 cf. Moser (1997), p. 63f. 71 cf. Moser (1997), p. 66f. 72 cf. Moser (2002), w.p.
observing this in more detail, textual elements and especially the brand name are shown to be less present in one’s memory, at best the recognition of various advertising campaigns seems to have improved.7374
According to the investigations of the memory effects of the use of (female) sex-appeal, one can confidently conclude that one should discourage advertisers from using sex-appeal. However, there are arguments as to why it is still recommendable to implement (female) sex-appeal in advertising campaigns: the effects of attitude. One main point is that advertisers often want to reach high recognition values at the introduction phase of a product or service. In contrast, if brands are already known by customers, the main target is often to emotionally load the brand. In this case, erotic elements can act in an attitude building way. However, it is necessary to mention that there is only a limited association between recognition and attitudes. In particular, a positive attitude does not seem to depend on the amount of positive memories. Additionally, effects of recognition seem to be of secondary importance if advertising campaigns should only have the effect of appealing customers.75
After having discussed the effects of sex-appeal in advertising campaigns, an essential further step for the purpose of this thesis is to go into more detail about the social acceptance of (female) sex-appeal with regard to advertising and the media. Introducing (female) sex-appeal in advertising and the media helps to make the diverse contents of an advertisement be more memorable. Nonetheless, in case people with sex-appeal are used decoratively, recognition effects are low. In other words, the assumption that the more intense the female sex-appeal the less the recognition effect can only be partly supported.76 However, one can say that there is not enough empirical evidence to state with any certainty whether female sex-appeal in advertisements really has positive or negative effects on the activation -, recognition - and attitude process of customers.77
According to Kilbourne (2005), the ever increasing use of promiscuity in advertising and the media has significant negative impacts on children's development, as well as on women´s self-perception and, more recently, on that of men too. In particular, it is criticised that increasing sexualisation shifts values such as love, loyalty and 73 cf. Moser (1997), p. 67ff. 74 cf. Reichert (2002), w.p. 75 cf. Holtz-Bacha (2011), p. 198 ff. 76 cf. Moser (1997), p. 91f. 77 cf. Moser (1997), p. 103
partnership into the background and instead propagates superficialities and non-binding sexual intercourse.
Being able to define the social acceptance of female sex-appeal in advertising in more detail, one can say that social acceptance develops within a certain period of time and differs greatly from person to person. Hence, advertising experts` task is to consider ethical and moral values and views of the majority of society.78 In general, when advertising campaigns depict an excessive amount of sex-appeal, then the advertisement is often rejected.79 Women, however, tend to refuse advertisements with female sex-appeal.80 81 This is mainly because advertising messages that carry open and subliminal sexism, forces women into gender roles and places them on a disadvantage via the continuous progression of stereotypes. This is often referred as discriminatory advertising.82
One might then say that the topic of sex-appeal in advertising and the media is strongly connected to the victimization of women in advertising and the media. Hence, the next chapter deals with the topic of discrimination against women in advertising and the media in further detail.
2.1.5 Definition and impact of women portrayed in advertising and the media in a humiliating, degrading or violent way and the representation and the effects of inequality between women and men in the area of media and advertising
Discrimination against women in advertising and the media is prevalent when advertising messages carry open and subliminal sexism. This urges women to take on gender roles and puts them on a disadvantage due to the continuous progression of stereotypes, or sex-appeal has no connection to the product, or violence against women through pornography takes place, or women are depicted as beings that can be bought and sold or female persons are humiliated, ridiculed or may even be violated in various other ways.838485
According to the Austrian Advertising Council advertising campaigns should never discriminate against people because of their gender, religion or political attitudes. 78 cf. Österreichsicher Werberat, w.p. 79 cf. Moser (1997), p. 114 80 cf. Moser (1997), p. 116 81 cf. Mayer/Illmann (2000), p. 594 82 cf. Mayer/Illmann (2000), p. 594 83 cf. Schmerl (1992b), p. 237 84 cf. Sharma (2012), p. 2 85 cf. Mayer/Illmann (2000), p. 594
Alongside this, sexual offences should not be the only content of advertisements. Additionally, advertising should not negate the equality of the sexes or the current role of women in society.86
Following this argument, Bergler (1992) states that advertising campaigns where women are depicted as sexual objects are discriminatory for most women, because on the one hand, they do not correspond to reality, and thus are unrealistic and clichéd, and on the other hand, these kinds of advertisements represent women in a degrading way where the female person is solely an object of decoration.8788
Additionally, the advertising and media sector is highly characterised by pictures of a slim, ideal body shape and this kind of representation can also be regarded as discriminating. In other words, these illustrations of women in advertising campaigns are illusions, because of their unreal characteristics.89 90 Another significant aspect to observe is that women often feel discriminated by advertising if advertising and media experts neither consider enough women´s intelligence or qualifications, nor the professional equality between women and men.9192
In summary, sexual objectification and victimization of women in advertising and the media produces a certain degree of anti-woman attitudes. However, it is necessary to mention, that on the one hand, various evaluations of different advertising campaigns are highly dependent on the different interpretations people attribute to them. On the other hand, however, cultural differences are the influencing factor, as for instance, in Muslim countries, as showing female shapes is strictly forbidden.93 Ellis et al. (2011) also state with their research of the so-called Critical Theory that the way one looks at the world has a high correlation with the way one is socialised.94
To put it in Berger’s (1992) terms, the perception and evaluation of advertising is always a form of active information processing, where a variety of social, personal and situation-specific factors are involved.95 In particular, the judgment and the experiences of different women during one and the same advertisement are highly 86 cf. Österreichischer Werberat, w. p. 87 cf. Bergler et al. (1992), p.139 88 cf. Bergler et al. (1992), p.154 89 cf. Schmerl (1980), p. 6 90 cf. Huang (2013), p. 185f. 91 cf. Bergler et al. (1992), p. 166 92 cf. Stankiewicz/Roselli (2008), p. 581 93 cf. Boddewyn/Kunz (1991), p. 14f. 94 cf. Ellis et al. (2011), p. 43ff. 95 cf. Bergler et al. (1992), p.148
dependent on personal self-image, on expectations and desires of their own behaviour in different areas of life.96
2.2 Women in advertising and the media
This chapter deals with various studies on beauty ideals and - trends in advertising with regard to women. This thesis thereby takes a closer look at the consequences of the prevailing beauty trends and - ideals for the target group of woman. As a conclusive point, the chapter deals with the underlying psychological aspects that are behind advertising campaigns with regard to the target group of woman.
2.2.1 Beauty ideals and beauty trends in advertising and the media with regard to the target group of woman
The previous chapters comprehensively deal with various definitions such as beauty, slenderness and sex-appeal with regard to the representation of women in advertising and the media. However, it is still necessary to complement this with a more detailed definition of ideals and trends in advertising.
Generally, the word ideal is derived from idea, i.e. from imagination, thought or notion.97 An ideal is thus an idea of how something might be, but what is hardly achievable by anyone.98 With regard to the depiction of women in advertising and the media, the present-day ideal perception of beauty and body is defined as a global preference for the young, tall, lean, slender and attractive body with mainly white, wrinkle-free - and depilated skin. In other words, the upper legs and breasts should be tight, the waists narrow, the belly flat, the arms delicate and the buttock sexy.99 The subsequent paragraphs address in further detail the various components that can be associated with beauty:
Youthfulness
Nowadays, beauty is highly associated with youthfulness. Conversely, however, age is connected to mortality, and a society which emphasises youth as a cult prefers to avoid dealing with the issue of age. Being able to handle this kind of ideal efficiently, techniques for the reconstruction of a youthfully body such as facelifts, corrective
breasts surgeries or hair implants are highly advertised in society today.100
96 cf. Bergler et al. (1992), p.149 97 cf. http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/idea.html 98 cf. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/ideal 99 cf. Sanders et al. (2000), p. 7 100 cf. Taylor (2012), p. 639ff.
Wrinkle-free - and depilated skin
One can see that the majority of advertising campaigns - with focus on female characters - typically exhibit the traditional attributes that are supposed to equate to beauty, including being thin and having smooth skin, long beautiful hair and a
youthful appearance.101 In particular, most advertising campaigns for skin care products are aimed at delaying the aging process. As a consequence, wrinkle-free skin is highly associated with youth and thus is an elementary component in present-day standards for beauty.102
In addition to this, the prevailing modern ideal of beauty is also based on depilated skin as body hair is not only considered unattractive, but also unfeminine and therefore unacceptable.103
Body height
Alongside youthfulness, wrinkle-free - and depilated skin, the third aspect which is integral in defining beauty trends and - ideals is body height. If we then focus on the representation of women in advertising and the media, it is increasingly evident that
super-tall and super-slim models are being depicted. Here it seems necessary to
state that body height is an indicator of superiority since these mannequins set unrealistic standards: the average woman is in many cases much shorter and not as slim.104
Slender and lean body
It is of important that the global trend towards more and more slimness has slowly but gradually reached its peak, as for the description of the prevailing notion of the ideal, with regard to the female body, thinness is not enough and thus a lean and
emaciated body is idealised.105 As a consequence thereof, the advertising sector highly propagates this typical image of the idealised woman.106
Paradoxically, the common notion today dictates that apparently all memory of the female fertility is embarrassing. With regard to the current fashion trends, women do not have typical female forms anymore. On the contrary, the so-called tubular body
101 cf. Berry (2007), w.p. 102 cf. Berry (2007), w.p. 103 cf. Posch (1999), p. 51 104 cf. Hoffmann (2012), p. 3 105 cf. Huang (2013), p. 185 106 cf. Murnen/Don (2012), p. 128ff.
form which reminds one a little of a boy´s body, is trendy. This means that instead of the feminine forms, a skeletal body with muscles is desirable.107108
Attractiveness
Finally, the last aspect under consideration is attractiveness which the spelling dictionary equates to being good looking. Furthermore, the term describes that attractive people generate an effect of attraction from others due to their attractive appearance.109
A further characteristic of attractiveness pertains to how the female body ought to look and how body characteristics are valued by society, something that, children learn very early on in life. Even in the fairy tale, the beautiful Cinderella gets her Prince Charming, while the evil and ugly stepsisters leave empty-handed.110 In other words, looking good is seen as beneficial for various areas in life. If a woman corresponds to the common ideal of beauty, she enjoys a number of unjustified benefits.111112
Besides the above, it is pertinent to mention that in considering the subjective view, which is subject to the definition of beauty, it is hardly possible to define an universal formula for beauty, per se. From an objective stance, scientific calculations with the aim of tackling the phenomenon of beauty and encapsulating it into a formula to explain the term, can only be regarded as a research approach as long as there is subjectivity. Additionally, beauty is highly dependent on the respective time-period and on the social context. What counts is not the appearance of a person, but how this appearance is evaluated or construed by each individual society. Beauty then, in other words, is a matter of opinion.113
Although most advertising campaigns where women are inserted focus on the beauty ideal of young, tall, lean and slender bodies with mainly white, wrinkle-free - and depilated skin, the Ogily & Mather agency have tried to change this kind of beauty ideal with their Dove-campaign for body-care products. In particular, the company approached confident average-looking women with charisma on the road, and selected them for their campaign. Images that are seen in magazines and 107 cf. Posch (1999), p. 69f. 108 cf. Murnen/Don (2012), p. 128ff. 109 cf. http://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Attraktivitaet 110 cf. Nuber (1997), p. 24 111 cf. Guggenberger (1995), p. 22f. 112 cf. Wagner (1999), p. 121 113 cf. Posch (1999), p. 14
newspapers, on billboards and on television show women in underwear who are not slim. These women are chubby, have big breasts, wide hips or a larger belly. In other words, for the first time, the agency does not display supermodels, but rather normal women have been moved into the public spotlight.114
Figure 1 illustrates one example demonstrating the above-mentioned Dove-campaign:
Figure 1: Dove-campaign115
In addition to the traditional Dove-campaign, the agency launched a new one, the so-called ProAge-campaign, where women from the age of 50 years or older are represented in various spots, newspapers and magazines and even on billboards. In more detail, these women are inserted nearly naked in order to advertise the various body-care products of Dove. This kind of representation should demonstrate that older women are still beautiful despite of their grey hair and wrinkles.
114
cf. Kreienkamp (2007), p. 131ff. 115
Figure 2 demonstrates one example of Dove´s ProAge-campaign:
Figure 2: Dove´s ProAge-campaign116
According to the Dove Beauty Study where 600 German women and men were polled, 80 % of the respondents perceive character is as more meaningful than having a dream body. As a consequence thereof, 95 % of the female interviewees stated that beautiful people have a great charisma. In other words, it is not as important to have perfect body dimensions as it is to possess naturalness. In fact, 94 % of the respondents state that beauty is overrated in our society.117
To sum up, the main purpose of inserting advertisements such as the Dove-campaign is to avoid, on the one hand, that women or even young girls are lead to the belief that they desperately have to look like the young, tall, lean and slender models with mainly white, wrinkle-free - and depilated skin which are represented in common advertising campaigns. In other words, advertising campaigns should not design unrealistic worlds that are not reachable by customers in any way. On the other hand, the intention is to communicate positive and independent women which are not dependent on the identity of men. Another main point is that the message of this kind of advertisement is not in any way offensive, condescending or contemptuous for the people involved.118
116 cf. https://www.google.at/search?um=1&newwindow=1&hl=de&biw=979&bih=446&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=Pr oAge+Dove&oq=ProAge+Dove&gs_l=img.3...1565.5782.0.5919.13.11.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c.1.25.im g..13.0.0.UVSgumNSC84#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=U79TKUtduoHwSM%3A%3BXV73DHjwm_FIUM %3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.beautyspion.de%252Fspionneu%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2007%252F12%252Fdove_proage.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fww w.beautyspion.de%252Fcategory%252Flanvin-marken-l-bis-q%3B450%3B200 117 cf. http://www.initiativefuerwahreschoenheit.de/uploadedFiles/de/Dove_Beauty_Studie.pdf 118 cf. Schmerl (1992), p. 281ff.
2.2.2 Consequences of beauty ideals and beauty standards on the target group of woman
Following the aspects of beauty ideals and - trends, this chapter deals with the consequences of the prevailing beauty ideals in advertising and the media on the target group of woman.
One of the main consequences of the prevailing beauty trends and – ideals, which are highly represented in advertising, is an inferior self-confidence of people. In particular, especially young women are at risk of defining their self-confidence through their appearance as the physical changes of puberty, the high-speed of development and the associated stresses and strains create stress. As a result, they try everything to make their body conform to the standard of slimness which prevails in our society.119 In a study by Kielsas et al. (2004), 32.2 % of female respondents defined themselves as obese. Though it should be noted that only 2.6 % really had a
BMI (=Body Mass Index, which defines beauty with the relationship between body
weight and body height 120. The normal BMI value is between 19 and 25. A BMI of 25 is referred to as overweight, whereas a BMI of fewer than 19 indicates underweight. These values are for an age group between 18-24 years. The older a person gets, the higher the optimal BMI value must be121 122) of over 25 and thus are regarded as overweight, which in turn, fittingly illustrates the consequence of trying to conform to the standard of slimness. Among the male respondents, 15.9 % held the belief that they were obese, but merely 5.1 % were estimated as stout.123
Considering what has been discussed so far, we can summarise the above by stating that when women look at images of beautiful slim girls or women, they showed signs of lower self-esteem, social anxiety, greater body dissatisfaction and heightened self-consciousness.124125 However, it is necessary to mention that slim people define themselves as sexually more attractive than obese ones.126 As a consequence, if women are highly satisfied with their body, their self-esteem is not that affected, meaning, they may not find exposure to media and advertising images
119
cf. Kjelsas et al. (2004), p. 7 120
cf. Liebig/Universität Hohenheim, 29.4.2013, http:/www.uni-hohenheim.de/wwwin140/info/interaktives/bmi.htm 121 cf. Posch (1999), p. 142 122 cf. Westenhöfer(1996), p. 11 123 cf. Kjelsas et al. (2004), p. 7 124 cf. Thornton/Maurice (2002), p. 437f. 125 cf. Harper/Tiggemann (2008), p. 655 126 cf. Haavio-Mannila/Purhonen (2001), p. 105
threatening. In particular, the authors Posavac et al. (1998) state that women are satisfied with their bodies if their body shape is not that different to the body shape of models represented in advertising or if body weight is not an important determinant as they are confident in skills and abilities which are not related to physical attractiveness.127
In the case of unsatisfied women with regard to their body shape and weight, they often begin, among other things, to diet in order to look like the models which are represented in advertising campaigns. It is necessary to mention that chronic dieting is a direct consequence of the social pressure on women to reach a nearly impossible slenderness. If women have low self-esteem, adolescent turbulences or a family history of affective disorders, chronic dieting often leads to the emergence of so-called Anorexia Nervosa (AN) or Bulimia Nervosa (BN).128 The majority of the theoretical analyses for the development of eating disorders are based on early childhood socialisation. In more detail, various analyses try to identify structures in the family of origin.129 In addition to this, eating habits of the parents are of great siginificance. In particular, the role model of mothers has excessive influence on their daughters.130
In general, if women are dissatisfied with their own bodies the probability for the origin of eating disorders such as AN or BN is high. This means if a woman has finally achieved her goal of being slim, but she does not stop dieting, she runs the risk of contracting AN. Anorexia Nervosa (AN) patients are anxious of becoming fat and usually loose approximately 25 % of their original weight, claiming they feel plump even if this is not the case. To put it another way, the main intention of people suffering from AN is their impulse for attaining thinness. Besides this, AN patients are unable to perceive their own body realistically, meaning, they are not in the position to properly estimate their body girth and proportions. Another eating disorder is what is known as Bulimia Nervosa (BN), where people rapidly consume large amounts of food in a short time only to regurgitate their food soon after they have eaten it. BN patients are not in the position to stop eating voluntarily and weight fluctuations are common. People who suffer from BN develop a morbid fear of being too thick. If we
127 cf. Posavac et al. (1998), p. 188 128 cf. Hsu (1990), w.p. 129 cf. Prahl/Setzwein (1999), p. 115 130 cf. Gerlinghoff/Backmund (1999), 30ff.
contrast the two, people who suffer from AN deny food, while BN patients cannot stop eating.131
In general, there are gender differences with regard to eating disorders. AN, for example, is increasingly a disease pertaining to white females and it affects about 0.5 %-1 % of women in the age group between 15 and 25. Basically, these gender differences in eating disorders are due to hormonal or psychodynamic factors. However, it is hard to find the detailed reasons why so many young women and girls suffer from AN and BN. In general, there are two reasons why women are affected by eating disorders rather than men. On the one hand, women are culturally disempowered and on the other hand, there is a lot of pressure to achieve the culturally emerged beauty ideal of ultra-thinness.132 133 134 135 With the idealisation of a female tubular body, a higher social pressure is exercised on young girls and women than ever before. With the standardisation of the body towards a streamlined body, controlled eating and sporty training have been introduced into our daily lives and is increasingly becoming the all-determining principle of life. Women, who are still dissatisfied, often seek help at cosmetic surgeons. In particular, more and more women are turning to breast-reduction surgeries, breast augmentation surgeries and liposuction to reconfigure their bodies. In other words, today plastic surgery is booming. One can see an increase in the number of clinics, practicing cosmetic surgeons and the interventions made.136
Another main point is that health became very popular in recent years. As a consequence thereof, wellness spas and beauty farms are in great demand. Slenderness and fitness have become everyday needs, which can be satisfied through activity and doing sports.137
131 cf. Milne-Home/Milne-Home (2013), p. 5f. 132 cf. Paxton (2000), p. 25 133 cf. Orbach (1978), w.p. 134 cf. Kaplan (1980), w.p. 135 cf. Chernin (1981), w.p. 136
cf. Meili (2008), p. 119f. in Villa (edt.) (2008) 137
2.2.3 Psychological aspects in advertising and the media with regard to the target group of woman
In general, the main objective of advertising is to convince the receiver of the validity of a statement by inserting various advertising messages, and as a consequence thereof, to activate the persons belonging and to gain their attention. In focussing especially on the target group of woman, it is necessary to mention that nowadays there are a lot of different types of women with various priorities, preferences and
values. Besides this, they slip into diverse roles which help them cope with the various phases of life they go through. In other words, women demand appropriate
products and advertising messages which are in line with their various phases of life.138 139 Moreover, since the majority of products which are being advertised and purchased are not essential for survival, it is relevant to define appropriate advertising campaigns for the target group of man, as well as for the target group of woman.140
This chapter focusses on psychological aspects that are behind advertising campaigns with regard to the target group of woman in more detail. It is necessary to emphasise the internal (psychological) processes of how the target group of woman takes on advertising messages, how they come to the decision to purchase a product or service and how they behave on the market cognitively and emotionally.141 In other words, the way in which men and women process information is different. Thus, it is necessary to elaborate on the psychological variables of women and men as these are factors crucial for both the understanding and the clarity of advertising messages, and thus also for how they are processed.142
The dominating psychological variables with regard to the effects of advertising messages on people are generally categorised in activating and cognitive processes.143 144 The first one describes the internal state of excitement of the central nervous system of human beings. This kind of excitement puts people in a motivated and capable state. Besides this, the process of activation is a prerequisite for a targeted influence of a buyer´s behaviour, as well as for getting customers´
attention and accompanied with this information intake to determined advertising
138 cf. Kreienkamp (2007), p. 36 139 cf. Barletta (2006), p. 299 140 cf. Pellny in Assig (1993), p. 154 141 cf. Behrens (1996), p. 73ff. 142 cf. Teigeler (1968), p. 16ff 143 cf. Meffert (2000), w.p. 144 cf. Kroeber-Riel/Weinberg (2003), w.p.
messages. In more detail, getting attention can be associated with the selection and concentration on certain stimuli and information. Against the information overload in society nowadays, it is increasingly important to attract customers´ attention. Besides this, to gain the activation of buyers in an optimal manner, placing an emphasis on gender-specific features is of great significance. In other words, it is essential that stimuli and information are often absorbed and processed by women in a different way than by men. As an example, the first association women make with the word “file” is to “fingernails”, while men, in contrast, often connect this word with things like “wood” or “metal”.145 146
Closely related with the characteristic of attention is the attitude of involvement whereby involved people are activated and hence they pay more attention with regard to information intake than individuals that are not that involved.
In addition to this, Kroeber-Riel and Weinberg (2003) talk about complex activating processes, focusing on emotions, motives and adjustment of people. Examples for emotions are fear, happiness, jealousy or sympathy.147 Besides this, Meffert (2000) states that emotions include activation, attention and involvement and additionally includes interpretations of various situations.148 Furthermore, gender specific differentiations with regard to emotions can be exhibited. In other words, women often react in a more diverse manner than men with regard to emotions. Due to the growing homogeneity of many products, the focus is set on emotional advertising messages. Different feelings associated with individual products or services are often distinguishing factors to stay competitive.
The motivational factor should explain of “why” human action occurs.149 Meffert (2000) differentiates between various kinds of motives:150
Primary and secondary motives
On the one hand, primary motives are biological motives. People are not in the position to learn them. Examples are hunger or thirst. On the other hand, secondary motives are those that one is able to learn. They serve in a direct or indirect way for meeting primary motives.
145 cf. Teigeler (1968), p. 24 146 cf. Meffert (2000), p. 110ff. 147 cf. Kroeber-Riel (2003), p. 100 148 cf. Meffert (2000), p. 113 149 cf. Kroeber-Riel/Weinberg (2003), p. 41 150 cf. Meffert (2000), p. 117
Intrinsic and extrinsic motives
People are intrinsically motivated when their activities lead to a reward because of their own action. In contrast, extrinsic motives focus on rewards by other people. An example that demonstrates this is the desire for recognition, appreciation and validation of one´s work.
Conscious and unconscious motives
Unconscious motives differ from conscious motives in that the impact on customers is below the threshold of personal perception.
Motives of Maslow151
Maslow (1987)152 differentiates in his hierarchy of needs between psychological needs such as hunger and thirst, safety needs such as protection of poverty, love/belonging needs like the feeling of belonging, esteem needs like appreciation and status and self-actualization needs such as self-development and self-discovery to describe the steps that human motivations generally move through.
Notably, if the basic and safety needs are met, the need for social affiliation is given priority. In other words, people tend to look for affiliation to, for example, a group and seek to be loved.
As Kroeber-Riel and Weinberg (2003) talk about adjustment with regard to the effects of advertising messages on people, in many cases, individuals tend to compare themselves to others who are similar and they are often influenced by those people. To put it another way, such so-called reference persons not only promote the satisfaction of social needs, but often also cause and reinforce them.
As a consequence thereof, marketing - and advertising experts use so-called “normal” people, whose consumption activity can exert informational social influence, for their advertising strategies. Special emphasis with regard to social needs is placed on advertisements for cosmetics and health products where the messages basically leads to optimizing its outer appearance and also to increase the inner well-being. Besides this, it is pertinent to mention that both the comparison with normal people (those who are similar to oneself) and with idealised people such as
151
cf. Maslow (1987), p. 150 152
