The Construction and Evolution of Ideals of Beauty: Cultural Influences and Identity, Schemes and Mind Maps of Consumer Behaviour

Download The Construction and Evolution of Ideals of Beauty: Cultural Influences and Identity and more Schemes and Mind Maps Consumer Behaviour in PDF only on Docsity! They don't allow sex-sensitive ads to air Indian culture is sensitive in matters of gender Women are not allowed to get close and close to men except in love relationships People often conform to their culture's expectations about how those of their gender should act, dress, or speak. Expectations for the appropriate behavior of men and women are not set in stone around the world. A society communicates its assumptions about the proper roles of men and women as it defines ideal behaviors for each gender. Sex role these guidelines change over time, and they differ radically across societies Women professors usually come out on the losing end of these reviews. Positive words such as smart and genius are more much more likely to describe males than females across 25 Depending on gender, male or female professors are evaluated different disciplines differently Bossy << Strict 6-3.Gender identity Other terms that fit female stereotypes pop up in reviews of female professors x Role Socialization Demanding (as well as nurturing) By as young as age 1 in some cases ‘oncept of gender identity at an earlier — the age of 3, most age U.S. children categorize driving a truck as masculine and cooking and cleaning as feminine. Children pick up on th Males are more self-oriented, whereas females are more other- oriented Females are more cautious responders Five basic conclusions about gender differences Females are more responsive to negative data Males process data more selectively and females more comprehensively; and Females are more sensitive to differentiating conditions and Gender-role identity factors. a state of mind as well as body A behavior that one culture considers to be masculine might get a different response in another. The explosion of these and other social networking services enables everyone to focus on himself or herself and share mundane or scintillating details about life with anyone who's interested Men in the United States limit touching each other, but some Latin and European cultures do not Masculinity Teenagers of both sexes adopt the new fad of hugging as a aes ne importance of acollective self (cofectivist) whele a person standard form of greeting (sometimes accompanied by the high- erives his or her identity in large measure from a social group Gender Identity Versus Sexual Identity five or the fist-bump) Why they are interested is another story ! The 1949 film Adam's Rib shows that a woman can have a Tends to subscribe to an independent understanding of the self, which emphasizes successful career and still be happily married. ultures the inherent separateness of each individual . F les | Western conventions as " casual Friday" which encourages employees to express their emale Sex Toles unique selves through dress ( at least short of muscle shirts and flip-flops) Tend to focus on an interdependent self where we define our . . identities largely by our relationships with others The evolution of a new managerial class of women has forced Does The Self Exist ? marketers to change their traditional assumptions about women For example, a Confucian perspective stresses the importance of face" as they target this growing market. "Face" - others’ perceptions of the self and maintaining one's desired status in their eyes. Non-Western One dimension of face ismien-tzu, the reputation one achieves Islamic countries require women to be completely covered in through the success and ostentation public and prohibit them from working as salespeople in stores . Developed explicit rules about the specific garments and even colors that open to the public Some Asian cultures . . . . Pi pI certain social classes and occupations were allowed to display These traditions live on today Japanese style manuals that set out detailed instructions for dressing and how to address people of differing status Sex roles constantly evolve For example, Lisa feels better about her professional identity than she does about her feminine identity. Sex-typed Products Culture’s stereotype of the ideal male is a tough, aggressive, muscular man who enjoys “manly” sports There certainly are parts of it you evaluate more positively than others Like women, men receive mixed messages about how they are supposed to behave and feel Each element that contributes to our self-concept is anidentity Self-Concept Male S The attributes of self-concept along such dimensions ascontent , positivity , intensity and stability over time, and accuracy ale Sex roles Breadwinner model draws from the U.S. myth of success and celebrates respectability, civic virtues, pursuit of material success, and organized achievement The beliefs a person holds about his or her own attributes and how he or she evaluates the self on these qualities A person's self-concept is a work in progress Regardless of age, people acknowledged that their prior choices had changed quite a bit over time, but they still tended to predict that they would not change as they got older. One way to define identity" Any category label with which a consumer self-associates that is amenable to a clear picture of what a person in that category looks like, thinks, feels and does" Rebel model , on the other hand, emphasizes rebellion, independence, adventure, and potency Man-of-action hero o is a synthesis that draws from the best of the other two models. The researchers suggest that men try to make sense out of three different models of masculinity Some of these identities are pretty stable Rubbermaid introduced a line of grooming tools specifically for LA e.g., mother, African American men, including tweezers and clippers Old Spice has long been known as the brand Dad keeps in his Some other gender benders medicine cabinet, but young women who like the scent and the _AALTUTI Ta €.g., Libertarian, college student, Prius driver relatively low price are tuning into the deodorant as well Whereas other identities are more temporary and likely to change Febreze is an odor-neutralizing line of products that Procter & Gamble (P&G) markets to women for housecleaning Androgyny can open new markets if marketers can expand the The positivity of a person's self-concept reach of their target audience People with low self-esteem . . . . p They will not perform very well, and they will try to avoid embarrassment, failure, or > . . rejection Androgyny refers to the possession of both masculine and feminine traits Self-Esteem oo z 7 . A more recent study found that individuals who are made to feel powerful spend more money on themselveskecause I'm work it !) , whereas Sex-typed people are more sensitive to the sex role depictions of those who experience a feeling of powerlessness spend more on others than on themselves. characters in advertising Androgyny | enjoy looking through fashion magazines Consumers low in self-esteem - portion-controlled snack items because they left they lacked self-control In our family, | take care of the checkbook and pay the bills. This is a basic human tendency Exposure to ads such as the ones Lisa checked out can trigger a process ofsocial comparison Researchers developed a scale to identify “nontraditional males” In which the person tries to evaluate her appearance by comparing it to the people depicted in these artificial images (NTMs) who exhibit stereotypically female tendencies. The scale | am concerned about getting enough calcium in my diet. included statements such as these separate group members from nonmembers place the individual in the social organization place the person in a gender category Body decoration or mutilation Many marketers tap into our need for benchmarks when they supply idealized images of happy, attractive people who just enhance sex-role identification ; happen to use their products. a . . How do marketers influence self-esteem ? | am good at fixing mechanical things. . ; . . . . Young women alter their perceptions of their own body shapes and sizes after they watch as little as 30 minutes of indicate desired social conduct TV programming ; So do men People who were served food by a server who was either fat or thin | would do better than average in a fistfight. different portion sizes In Clearasil campaign, two teenage boys enter a kitchen where a 40-ish mother is mixing something in a bowl. When her son leaves the indicate high status or rank room, his friend hits on Mom. The ad's tagline : "Clearasil may cause confidence’ The proportion of the population that is gay or lesbian is difficult to determine The Ideal Self Example Female college students who were exposed to beautiful women in advertisements afterward expressed lowered satisfaction with their own appearance, as fs» A person's conception of how he or she would like to be compared to other participants who did not view ads with attractive models . Real and Ideal Selves he actual self provide a sense of security . , . Our more realistic appraisal of the qualities we do and don't have The GLBT market is about as large as the Asian American population In which, we work hard to "manage" what others think of us These consumers spend in the range of i $250 billion to $280 billion a year 9 The Impression Management wi Applies to all sorts of behaviors, from professional contexts and dating to makers to religious Body anxiety Gay, Lesbian, bisexual, and Transgender (GLbT) consumers 6-5 Every culture dictates certain types of body experience a gap between their real and ideal physical selves, decoration or mutilation observance change aspects of their appearance They are 12 times more likely to hold professional jobs than the A Fantasy or daydream A self-induced shift in a consciousness, which is sometimes a way compensate for a lack of external stimulation or Cosmetic Surgery opposite sex to escape from problems in the real world Fantasy : Bringing the Gap Between the Selves An ad may transport us to an unfamiliar, exciting situation; things we purchase may permit us to " try on" interesting or provocative roles a fairly risk-free way to express an adventurous side of the self They are 2 times more likely to own a motel than the opposite Several Web sites offer, consumers can experiment with different looks before they actually take the plunge in the real world sex The Virtual Makeovers Vogue's “Makeup Simulation” application (now available in Japan) allows women to see how brands such as Clinique would look on their (simulated) faces. THE SELF They are eight times more likely to own a laptop than the Johnson & Johnson’s ROC Skincare offers its “Skin Correxion Tool” to simulate the effects of anti-aging products. opposite sex The Torn Self Body piercing Where respondents struggle with retaining an authentic culture while still enjoying Western freedom ( and dealing Gay relationships are increasingly mainstream in most parts of with assumptions of others who believe they might be terrorists) the United States. We have as many selves as we do different social roles . . . . Depending on the situation, we act differently, use different products and services, and even vary in terms of how much we like the aspect of ourselves we put on display Finally, the cultural spotlight has turned on transgender people Multiple Selves A person may require a different set of products to play each of their roles A person's Ont hoe hor celfconeent Views people as actors who play different roles The dramaturgical perspective on consumer behavior We each play many roles, and each has its own script, props, and costumes Some identities (e.g., husband, boss, student) are more central to the self than others, but other identities (e.g., dancer, Body image refers to a consumer's subjective r ‘ fo me se! ¥ 9 ! gearhead, or advocate for the homeless) may dominate in specific situations. evaluation of his or her physical self The self has different components, or role identities, and only some of these are active at any given time consumer behavior because it implies that our possessions play a key role as we evaluate ourselves Some marketers exploit consumers’ i and decide “who we are.” tendencies to distort their body images 6.1 The self-concept strongly influences consumer behavior. . . as . oe . . . to place advertising messages in contexts in which people are likely to be well aware of that role identi The¥sociological tradition of symbolic interactionism stresses that relationships with other people play a large P 9 9 peop ¥ ty part to form the self. We assign meaning to any situation or object when we interpret the symbols in this environment Social media impacts how we feel about our bodies Our appraisal of who we are varies depending on whose perspective we consider and how accurately we predict their evaluations of us. Satisfaction with the physical image depends on how closely the When you choose a garment, the mirror superimposes it on your reflection so that you can see how it would look on your body without having to go to the trouble of trying it on. image corresponds to the ideal culture values The Looking-Glass Self > simulates the “primping” process many shoppers undergo when they prance in front of a mirror and try to imagine how a garment will look on them Our desire to define ourselves operates as a sort of psychological sonar: We take readings of our own identity when we “bounce” signals off others and try to project their The desires to match up to ideal of beauty drive a lot of impression of us. we “Taking the role of purchase decisions other’, or the looking glass self Eee When we act the way we assume others expect us to act, we often confirm these perceptions. A form of self-fulfilling prophecy Meerkating Tastes for physical features are “wired in” genetically Which describes the act of someone shooting a live video stream, has become a verb as thousands of people create their own running self-documentaries the props and settings consumers use to define their social roles Favor features often associate with good health and youth because these signal reproductive ability and strength. Consumers who score high on a scale of public self-consciousness express more interest in clothing and use more cosmetics than others who score lower Self-Consciousness Highly self-conscious subjects expressed greater willingness to buy personal products lick new possessions . . . . . . . . . . . . . High self-monitors are more attuned to how they present themselves in their social environments, and their estimates of how others will perceive their product choices influence People across ethnic and racial groups use what they choose to buy . eae take the names of conquered enemies to signal sexual desirability q incorporate objects into the self in some cases eat them ee perhaps that’s what we’re experiencing in what historians looking back might call “The Era of the Selfie. or bury the dead with their possessions Self-consciousness on steroids Advertising and other forms of mass media determine which forms of beauty we consider desirable The body ee < ss The decline of shared points of reference over the last 50 years as we witnessed a decline in family, community, and traditions. The way we “package” our bodies varies enormously The Empty Self 6-4. The way we (and our culture) think about our bodies is a key component of self-esteem. . | to replace Lower own self-esteem The use of foreign materials Indeed recent research that included brain wave measures such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) showed that when a person has a close supplement human body ‘ vee : : . . ! ‘ “ON : : relationship with a brand this activates the insula, a brain area responsible for urging, addiction, loss aversion, and interpersonal love. i ? Consumers dissatisfied Is beauty universal? ( 1 it is not necessarily new with their appearance Diminishing the effectiveness of an ad because of . . . We choose products when their attributes match some aspect of the self. negative feelings a highly attractive model arouses integrate man-made products into George Washington's infamous wooden teeth . Self-image congruence models our physical bodies When we choose a product that we think is aesthetically pleasing this choice makes us feel better about erode the barrier between self and not self ourselves. Language provides phrases to sum up cultural ideals More than 4 million Americans have an artificial knee As we mature into a role, we actually rely less on the products people associate with it but recent advances in technology the integration of man-made silicon implants with the patient's " : Symbolic self-completion theory organic material. people who have an incomplete self-definition tend to complete this identity when they acquire and display symbols they associate with that role Cultural changes modify the ideals of beauty that are dominant at one point in time A consumer's use of products influences other's perceptions, the same products can help to determine his or rend her own self-concept and social identity More than 200,000 people now have cochlear implants that deliver sound from a microphone directly to the auditory nerve The Extended Self People use an individual's consumption behaviors to identify that person's social identity Throughout history, women have worked hard to attain beauty Example : Study participants make surprisingly accurate guesses about the occupant's Ideals of female beauty personality . evolve over time Our culture communicates standards of beauty virtually everywhere we turn many people feel a strong bond to their footwear Are We What We Buy ? Ideal of beauty people see themselves as they imagine others see them The changes of ideal body type cause to . The similarity between a person's self-image and the images of products purchased does tend to increase over the time redefine sexual dimorphic markers The singer Mariah Carey recently posted a photo of her huge the product is owned shoe closet on Instagram and labeled it “Always my fovorite room in the house....#shoes #shoes #moreshoes. between product attributes and the consumer's self-image Man and woman have different taste of ideal body shapes In fact, some of us willingly (and perhaps eagerly) label ourselves as fanatics about a cherished product After a “breakup” with a brand, people tend to develop strong negative feelings and will go to great lengths to discredit it, including bad-mouthing and their shoes as magical emblems of self even vandalism A process of cognitive matching stories as Dorothy's red shoes in The Wizard of Oz, Karen's magical red shoes in Hans Christian Anderson's The Red Shoes, and Cinderella's glass slippers Congruity between consumers and their most preferred brands of beer, soap, toothpaste, and cigarettes relative to their least preferred brands, as well as between consumers’ self-images and their favorite stores rugged/delicate People sacrifice their health to attain desirable body image Most major body image distortions occur among females excitable/calm The Western ideal Researchers link a distorted body image to eating disorders of female beauty many material objects—ranging from personal possessions and pets to national monuments or landmarks help to form a consumer's indetity Some sp@gific attributes useful to describe matches between consumers and products rational/emotional formal/informal everyone can name a valued possession that has a lot of the self “wrapped up” in it A brand personality for an expressive, image-oriented product, such as perfume, and quite another to impute human characteristics to . . a toaster Standards are changing because the typical woman's body is no longer as “petite” as it used to be Fattism is deeply ingrained in our culture consumers include many of their personal possessions in self- Objects act as a security blanket when they reinforce our identities, especially in unfamiliar situations. Ply Ing definition We are attached'to an object to the extent we rely on it to maintain our self-concept Clothing manufacturers offer vanity sizing, where they Individual level deliberately assign smaller sizes to garments What is today’s ideal The saying “You Example as they aged, their feelings about these objects evolved from concrete relationships (e.g., “I own it”) to more sophisticated, abstract relationships (e.g., of female beauty? are what you wear” reflects the belief that one’s things are a part “Itis like me”). The body shape of each ethnic population is diverse of one’s identity Consumers can agitate to make market friendlier to shoppers older kids between middle childhood and early adolescence inserted more photos of branded merchandise. who don't conform to a pencil-thin ideal of beauty This part of the extended self includes a consumer's residence Family level <<" the furnishings in it the house as a symbolic body for the family consumers to describe themselves in terms Thi ibuti f i If-identity i h h | h dd obj of the neighborhood or town from which they come e contribution of possessions to self-identity is perhaps most apparent when we lose these treasured objects Consumers may have lost literally everything but the clothes on their backs following a fire, hurricane, flood, or earthquake, highlights the dramatic impact of product loss. four levels of the extended self One of the first acts of institutions that want to repress individuality and encourage group identity, such as prisons or the military, is to confiscate personal possession Beards were a no-no The “beard movement” came into fashion for over a century A society's ideals of —_ beauty for men change as Beards became linked to capitalists well Workers’ rebellions evoked bearded men committing violent acts against their bosses Victims of burglaries and natural disasters commonly report feelings of alienation, depression, or of being “violated.” Some people are reluctant to undergo the process of re-creating their identities by acquiring new possessions. close ties to a community, this sense of belonging is particularly . rtant Interviews with disaster victims reveal that some hesitate to invest the self in new possessions and so become more detached about what they buy. importan Community level Male ideals involve length of hair, the presence and type of facial hair, musculature, clothing styles and accessories We regard our attachments to certain social groups as a part of the self Sport the strong and muscular Ideals of male beauty hysi f | physique of the male stereotype Advertisers appear to have . . A consumer also may feel that landmarks, monuments, or sports the males’ ideal in mind Group level teams are a part of the extended self Man and woman have different taste of ideal body shapes what extent do the products we buy influence how we define 6-2 Products often define a person’s self- ourselves? concept. study relationships between thoughts and behaviors increasingly talk about the theor of embodied cognition states of the body modify states of the mind the idea that our body language actually changes how we see ourselves The embodied cognition approach is consistent with consumer behavior research Embodied Cognition In one study they asked respondents to wear a lab coat, which people associate with attentiveness and precise work results for students in « » job interview settings dress for success’ male candidates who wore professional attire acted more assertively and confidently during the interviews we have access to “post-production” tools to engineer our identities allow virtually anyone to dramatically modify his or her digital self These free or inexpensive applications create additional identities in the form of avatars in virtual worlds The Digital Self U.S. Americans alone spend about $1.6 billion per year to buy you are what you wear virtual goods just for their avatars you are what you post the Apple Watch Get ready for the invasion of wearable computing Google Glass inserted into our bodies Wearable computing our digital interactions will become attached to our bodies implant computer chips into our wrists Sensing for sleep disorders by tracking breath, heart rate, and motion Detecting possible onset of Alzheimer’s by monitoring a person's gait via a GPS embedded in his or her shoes Tracking ingestion of medication via sensors that are activated by stomach fluid Measuring blood sugar via a contact lens with a chip that can track activity in a patient's tears Assessing the impact of blows to a football player’s head via sensors inserted in his helmet New virtual makeover technologies easier for each of us to involve the digital self as we choose products to adorn our physical selves These platforms allow the Virtual Makeovers shopper to superimpose images on their faces or bodies turns the front-facing iPhone and iPad camera into a makeup mirror so that the customer can virtually try on hundreds of cosmetics products The shopper can change facial expressions and lighting . . conditions L’Oréal offers a Makeup Genius app the virtual makeup stays on her face allows consumers to upload a picture of themselves and try on Sd : frames virtually The online glasses merchant Warby Parker Perfect 365 and Face Tune