Transcript Chapter 1 Consumers Rule - National University of Kaohsiung

Chapter 5
The Self
By Michael R. Solomon
Consumer Behavior
Buying, Having, and Being
Sixth Edition
5-1
Opening Vignette: Lisa
• What depresses Lisa about the magazine
models?
• Lisa feels that women don’t look like
models in “real life.” Do you agree?
• If Lisa doesn’t consider herself unattractive,
why does she consider cosmetic surgery?
• Does Lisa want to improve herself for Eric
or herself?
5-2
Perspectives on the Self
• Does the Self Exist?
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1980’s called the “Me Decade”
March 7th designated “Self Day” by Self magazine
Western societies emphasize uniqueness of self.
Collective self: Eastern culture’s belief that a
person’s identity is derived from his or her social
group.
– Mien-Tzu (face): Confucian belief that reputation
is achieved through success and ostentation
5-3
Self Concept
• Self Concept:
– The beliefs a person holds about his or her own attributes
and how he or she evaluates these qualities
• Dimensions of the Attributes of Self Concept:
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Content
Positivity
Intensity
Accuracy
• Consumer perceptions of self can be quite
distorted, particularly with regard to their
physical appearance.
5-4
Self-Esteem
• Self-esteem:
– Refers to the positivity of a person’s self-concept.
• Social Comparison:
– A process by which consumers evaluate themselves
by comparing themselves with others (particularly
comparisons with idealized images of people in
advertising)
• Self-esteem Advertising:
– Attempts to change product attitudes by stimulating
positive feelings about the self.
5-5
Real and Idealized Selves
• Ideal Self:
– A person’s conception of how he or she would like to be
– Partially molded by elements of a consumer’s culture
• Actual Self:
– A person’s realistic appraisal of the qualities he or she does and
does not possess
• Fantasy: Bridging the Gap between the Selves:
– Fantasy: A self-induced shift in consciousness
– Fantasy appeals: Marketing communications aimed at
individuals with a large discrepancy between their real and
ideal selves
5-6
Fantasy Appeals
5-7
Multiple Selves
• Role Identities:
– Different components of the self
• Symbolic Interactionism:
– Stresses that relationships with other people play a large
part in forming the self
– Self-fulfilling prophecy: By acting the way we assume
others expect us to act, we wind up confirming these
perceptions
• The Looking-Glass Self:
– The process of imagining the reactions of others toward us
5-8
Self-Consciousness
• Self-Consciousness:
– A painful awareness of oneself magnified by the belief that
others are intently watching.
• Public Self-Consciousness:
– A heightened concern about the nature of one’s public
“image”
– Results in more concern about the appropriateness of
products and consumption activities
• Self Monitoring:
– Awareness of how one presents oneself in a social
environment
5-9
Consumption and Self-Concept
• Products that Shape the Self: You are What
you Consume:
– People use an individual’s consumption behaviors to help
them make judgments about that person’s social identity.
– Symbolic self-completion theory: People who have an
incomplete self-definition tend to complete this identity by
acquiring and displaying symbols associated with it.
• Self/Product Congruence:
– Consumers demonstrate consistency between their values
and the things they buy.
– Self-image congruence models: Products will be chosen
when their attributes match some aspect of the self.
5 - 10
The Extended Self
• Extended Self:
– External objects that consumers consider a part of
themselves
• Four Levels of the Extended Self:
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(1) Individual Level: Personal possessions
(2) Family Level: Residence and furnishings
(3) Community Level: Neighborhood or town one is from
(4) Group Level: Social groups
A consumer may also feel that landmarks, monuments, or
sports teams are part of the extended self.
5 - 11
Advertisements Extending the Self
• This Italian ad
demonstrates that our
favorite products are
part of the extended
self.
5 - 12
Discussion Question
• Some consumers feel that a sports team is part of the
extended self. At www.flameheads.com they celebrate
fanaticism toward the Tennessee Titans football team.
• How does affiliation with a sports team affect self
perceptions? What other affiliations are part of the
extended self?
5 - 13
Sex Roles
• Sex Identity:
– An important component of a consumer’s self
concept
• Gender Differences in Socialization:
– Agentic goals (Males): Stress self assertion and
mastery
– Communal goals (Females): Stress affiliation and
fostering of harmonious relations
5 - 14
Satirical Ad of Exploitation
• This French shoe ad
pokes fun at ads that
demean women by
proclaiming: “No
woman’s body was
exploited in the making
of this advertisement.”
5 - 15
Sex Roles (cont.)
• Gender Versus Sexual Identity:
– Sex-Typed Traits: Characteristics stereotypically associated
with gender
• Sex-Typed Products:
– Many products are sex-typed (i.e., they take on masculine or
feminine attributes and are associated with gender)
• Androgyny:
– Refers to the possession of both masculine and feminine traits
– Sex-typed people: Stereotypically masculine or feminine
– Androgynous people: Mixed gender characteristics
5 - 16
Culturally Bound Sex Roles
• This ad for Bijan illustrates how sex-role identities are
culturally bound by contrasting the expectations of how
women should appear in two different countries.
5 - 17
Sex Roles (conc.)
• Female Sex Roles:
– Female sex roles are still evolving
• Male Sex Roles:
– Masculinism: The study of the male image and the cultural
meanings of masculinity
• Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender
(GLBT) Consumers:
– GLBT population is an attractive segment to marketers
– The 1990’s saw big corporations actively court this market
segment
5 - 18
Reinforcing Gender Stereotypes
• This ad rebels
somewhat against
“political correctness”
by reinforcing gender
stereotypes.
5 - 19
Targeting GLBT Consumers
• This ad for Alize, a
cognac drink, is
geared toward
lesbians.
5 - 20
Body Image
• Body Image:
– Refers to a consumer’s subjective evaluation of his
or her physical self
• Body Cathexis:
– A person’s feelings about his or her body
• Ideal of Beauty:
– A particular model, or exemplar, of appearance
5 - 21
Ideals of Beauty
• Is Beauty Universal?
– Men are attracted to an hourglass shape
– Women prefer men with a heavy lower face, above-average
height, and a prominent brow
• The Western Ideal:
– Big round eyes, tiny waists, large breasts, blond hair, and blue
eyes
• Ideals of Beauty over Time:
– Periods of history tend to be characterized by a specific “look”
– Sexual dimorphic markers: Aspects of the body that
distinguish between the sexes
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Waist-Hip Ratios
Figure 5.1
5 - 23
Beauty Ideals in the 1950’s
• This 1951 bathing beauty exemplified an ideal of
American femininity at that time.
5 - 24
Working on the Body
• Fattism:
– Our society is obsessed with weight
• Body Image Distortions:
– Women’s ideal figure is much thinner than their
actual figure
– Anorexia: Starving oneself in a quest for thinness
– Bulimia: Binge eating followed by purging
(vomiting, laxatives, fasting, or over-exercising)
– Body dysmorphic disorder: An obsession with
perceived flaws in appearance
5 - 25
Unrealistic Body Shape Expectations
• This ad for an online
weight-loss site drives
home the idea that the
media often
communicate unrealistic
expectations about body
shape.
5 - 26
Discussion Question
• In this advertisement, it is
insinuated that this
model’s physique was
achieved partially through
drinking milk. (Notice that
the model is so thin you
can see her ribs.)
• Is her physique really
ideal? What kind of
distorted message is this
sending to young girls
about body image?
5 - 27
Distorted Body Image
5 - 28
Cultural Emphasis on Thinness
• Society’s emphasis on thinness makes many consumers
insecure about their body image. This South American
ad promises, “You’ll never have to go to the beach in a TShirt again.”
5 - 29
Working on the Body (cont.)
• Cosmetic Surgery:
– Consumers are increasing electing to have cosmetic
surgery to change a poor body image or enhance
appearance.
– Men are increasingly having cosmetic surgery too.
• Breast Augmentation:
– Our culture tends to equate breast size with sex
appeal.
– Some women have breast augmentation procedures
because they feel larger breasts will increase their
allure.
5 - 30
Body Decoration and Mutilation
• Purpose of Decorating the Self:
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To separate group members from nonmembers
To place the individual in the social organization
To place the person in a gender category
To enhance sex-role identification
To indicate desired social conduct
To indicate high status or rank
To provide a sense of security
• Tattoos
• Body Piercing
5 - 31
Body Piercing
• Body piercing has
practically become a
mainstream fashion
statement.
5 - 32
Tattooing
• Tattooing is becoming
mainstream. This
Spanish ad for Nike
tennis products says,
“Rest in heaven, not
on the court.”
5 - 33