Cultular Dimensions in Advertising - Research Paper Example

?I. Introduction The use of English advertising in foreign countries is one that is well-studied. In Japan, for instance, the usage of English con s sophistication and modernity, as it also does in South Asia countries like India. In India, the usage of English is used to convey sophistication and modernity, while the usage of Hindi, the lingua franca of India, is used to connote tradition and belonging. In the Hispanic population living in the United States, English advertisements is seen as not accommodating, yet is somewhat positive if the listener has linguistic insecurity. Spanish advertisements have the opposite effect – they are accommodating, yet are somewhat negative for those with linguistic insecurity. Therefore, the researcher found that a mix of Spanish and English is most effective in these populations, as it mixes accommodation and respect (the Spanish part of the ad) with a positive feeling of linguistic security (the English part of the ad). Meanwhile, in all countries, there is a negative side to advertising. This negative side is that advertising encourages a feeling of inadequacy, and advertising also denigrates traditional social norms. The question that needs to be answered is what are the specific connotations that English convey in the different countries that are covered by the research, and why is advertising considered to be negative in some instances? I. Sociolinguistic Aspects of English Advertising A. In Japan The use of English in the country of Japan is becoming an increasingly popular phenomenon. The attribution of the high number of loan words in Japan dates back to the Meiji Restoration in 1868, in which Japan was transformed from feudal to a modern state by adopting Western civilization (Takashi, 1990, p. 327). There are a high number of English loan words in the Japanese language, much more so than loan words from European nations. English loan words represent 80.8% of Western loan words in Japan, with the other western loan words coming from France, Germany, Italian and Dutch (Takashi, 1990, p. 327). This is because the Japanese study English more than any other foreign language. There is some thought that the Japanese people regard English as representative of something cosmopolitan and international, and modern English words are seen as conveying sophistication and modernity, especially in they are used in advertising. (Takashi, 1990, p. 327). Part of the reason for this is because, before, 1931, English words were used in Japan for new concepts and things (Takashi, 1990, p. 327). Previous studies indicate that Japanese males use English loan words more when talking about academic subjects, as opposed to every day life, while Japanese females use English when speaking on every day topics, as opposed to academic topics. (Takashi, 1990, p. 328). Other studies indicated that commercials that were aired in European languages, such as English, German, French and Italian, and used Western imagery, such as background music, scenery, and a Western person, conveyed the social values and stereotypes attached to these languages. (Takashi, 1990, p. 328). Still other studies showed that young Japanese girls use English loanwords when they want to appear fashionable. (Takashi, 1990 328). Takashi's (1990) study focused upon the language of contemporary advertising, particularly the usage of English in the Japanese contemporary advertising. The focus was on the use of English loan words in Japanese advertising, with 506 Japanese commercials with English loan words and 413 print advertisements with these loan words. For the purpose of this study, the term “loan word” denoted any English word that had been morphologically, phonologically and syntactically integrated into the Japanese language. The study also delineated advertisements that were aimed at specific populations, such as female, young and old, and sought to discover how loan words were used in these specifically targeted advertisements. The study found a total of 5,556 English loan words in the advertisements studied – 1523 loan words in television commercials, and 4033 loan words in print advertisements. Of the advertisements that use these words, 45% used the words as a special effect, which means that it was used specifically to connote a positive attribute, such as health or prestige. The second most popular way to use the loan word was to name a service, company or product, such as using the word Xerox, Vicks or Kent. (Takashi, 1990, p. 331). The third most popular way to use loan words was to fill in a lexical gap, such as using English names (James Dean, George Pucchini), or place names (America, France, Madrid). The fourth most used way was to name technical terms, such as computer, facsimile, amino acid and natrium. The study also noted that, when advertising traditional Japanese or Chinese items, such as kimonos, futons, Chinese medicine and food, and items related to Buddhism, not a single English loan word was used. Thus, the study concluded that English is used in Japanese advertising to connote sophistication and modernity. (Takashi, 1990, p. 332). As far as demographics, there was no difference in the usage of English loan words in ads aimed at males then ads aimed at females. There was proportionately more English loan words in ads aimed at students, at 28.4%, then those aimed at executives (22%) or homemakers (21.1%). Takashi theorized that this is so because students have a fascination with the English language. For the homemakers and students, the usage of English was highest for special effects purposes, followed by product name, lexical gap filler and technical term. For the executives, special effects came first, followed by technical terms. This shows that English has different functions for different targeted populations – while special effects came first for all groups, which shows that the need to connote sophistication and modernity was the priority, no matter who was the audience, the executives appeared to use English loan words for technical terms much more than students or homemakers. (Takashi, 1990, p. 336). Another finding was that loan words were more prominent in advertisements aimed at educated consumers, as opposed to the general population (24.9% educated v. 21.2% general), and that, while special effects were the most prominent across the board (41% for educated consumers v. 41.9% for the general population), English technical loan words were much more prominent for the educated consumers than the general population (30.4% educated v. 9.4% general), while the usage of English naming loan words was much more prominent in the general population than the educated population (32.6% general v. 14.7% educated). Moreover, the type of homemaker made a difference to advertisers when they used English loan words – for ads targeted to traditional homemakers, English loan words were used 19.9% of the time, while ads targeted to non-traditional homemakers used English loan words 24.7% of the time. (Takashi, 1990, pp. 336-337). The one constant, across the board, finding in Takashi's study is that English loan words are prominently used to connote modernity and sophistication. This is what English means to the Japanese – it is a symbol of sophistication and modernity, which is why these words are used so prominently in this manner. Beyond this, it is clear that the more educated a Japanese person is, the more he or she is likely to use English in a technical way. This was shown by the study of ads aimed at executives and the educated. These are the two most striking results of Takashi's study. B. For Spanish speakers who are part of a minority subculture in dominant English countries In the United States, where English is the dominant language, Hispanics make up a considerable proportion of the population. Therefore, much of the advertising in the United States caters to them in their language. However, within the United States Hispanic population there is heterogeneity – some within this population prefer English as their language for media use, including advertising, while others prefer Spanish. The Sapir-Wharfian hypothesis states that “language serves as a schema through which the world is understood and interpreted” (Koslow, 1994, p. 575). In other words, the use of language is a kind of filter through which one's experiences are processed. This hypothesis appeals to a broad range of disciplines, from anthropology, psychology and consumer research (Koslow, 1994, p. 575). Using the Sapir-Wharfian hypothesis as a basis, Koslow et al. (1994), examined Spanish-speaking participants, examining the effects that English advertising verses Spanish advertising had upon them. The anticipation was that commercials in their language, Spanish, would be seen as an accommodation to them, therefore would be viewed positively. According to accommodation theory, in the context of linguistics, the greater the amount of effort that a speaker puts into accommodating the language of the listener, the more favorably the listener will find the speaker. Therefore, if an advertisement is in Spanish, this would be accommodating to the Spanish listeners, therefore it would be viewed more favorably then other types of advertisements, such as English only or mixed advertisements, with English and Spanish. (Koslow, 1994, p. 576). One of the assumptions this study made was that individuals in the Hispanic culture would have positive feelings about their own culture and language. However, the authors noted that this was not always the case, and cited other cultures, such as patois speakers in France who have an inferiority complex about speaking this language; and individuals in Singapore who feel annoyed when speakers speak in the ethnic language of Singapore, rather than English, which is the lingua franca. Therefore, there was a good chance that Hispanics in the United States would feel inferior about the use of their own language in the United States, due to factors such as racism, which leads to disparagement of Spanish-speaking citizens. If this factor was in play, then this would influence how the Spanish-speaking listeners would feel about advertising in their own language as opposed to English, due to linguistic insecurity, such as what was observed in the cultures listed above. Moreover, households that were more linguistically assimilated, such as Hispanic households who only speak English, would be presumably less favorable to Spanish-speaking advertisements and more favorable towards English advertisements. (Koslow, et al., 1994, p. 577). Koslow (1994) recruited 413 Spanish-only speakers in Southern California, and they were asked to view one out of four advertisements. Of the original 413, 367 responses were used in the analysis – 56 percent male, 44 percent female. The advertisements consisted of one English only, and one Spanish only, and two bi-lingual advertisements – one English dominant, one Spanish dominant. The ads were simple, with a picture, a message and a slogan, and the bi-lingual ads had messages both in Spanish and English. In the English dominant ad, the ad was in English with Spanish subtitles. Vice versa for the Spanish dominant ad. The study found that, for the most positive results, advertisers should use a mix of both Spanish and English in their advertisements. This is because the use of Spanish is an accommodation, and showed respect for their Hispanic heritage, and this was looked upon favorably by the participants. At the same time, many Hispanics considered themselves both Hispanic and American, and looked favorably upon the lingua franca of the United States, which is English. Therefore, there is an element of linguistic inferiority, as described above. So, advertising only in English is not accommodating, therefore is somewhat negative, while advertising only in Spanish aroused feelings of linguistic inferiority. This is why mixed advertisements, with a mixture of English and Spanish, is seen as the best way to reach the Hispanic population in the United States. (Koslow et al., 1994, p. 583). C. India India is one of the Asian countries that is not considered to be one of the countries that marketers have designated as being highly developed. That designation belongs to Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore. The reason for this is that India's per capita GDP is below US$3,000, which is contrasted with Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore's per capita GDP, which is in the US$20,000 bracket (Jones, 2000, p. 249). However, Jones (2000) believes that India is not necessarily in the same league as the other countries who average less than US$3,000, such as Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, the Phillipines, Myanmar, North Korea, Sri Lanka and Cambodia, for several reasons. One is that India has a very significant land mass, has the second-largest population on earth, and its total GDP is in the top 15 in the world. It is also a world leader in the computer industry, one of the top 10 steel producers and is an atomic power country. India is also progressive, with political freedom, well-educated population, and a “powerful entrepreneurial spirit.” According to Jones, this makes India an attractive target for advertisers and marketers (Jones, 2000, p. 250). Moreover, India has a lot in common with its Western neighbors. Jones (2000) argues that the consumption patterns of the Indians who have discretionary income are similar to the households in Paris, New York, London and Tokyo. These households, designated discretionary income or DI households, are similarly educated, dress similarly, consume food and beverages similarly, use the same credit cards, equip their homes similarly, have similar television watching patterns and travel as widely as their Western counterparts. The only difference is that these DI households represent the minority in India, yet the numbers are still substantial, with 16.2 million Indian household's being designated high-income in the year 2000 (Jones, 2000, p. 251). Therefore, India represents an attractive target for Western advertising and probably uses a lot of English loan words in their advertising, due to the influx of Western countries who desire to advertise there. To this end, Bhatia studied the usage of English words in Hindi magazines. The study concentrated on the use of English in specific ways in Hindi advertisements. The first way is the use of English in headlines/attention getter/captions; the second way is the use of English in the body of the text. The study found that, in the Hindi language, English is overwhelmingly used in product naming, and is also used as an attention-getting device. (Bhatia, 1987, p. 39). The study also found that Hindi advertising and media does not always permit products to be associated with modernity or westernization. One example of this is fabric. Fabric advertisements are not explicitly associated with westernization, and attempt to walk a fine line between modernity and tradition. While the fabric product names are often in English, the advertisements themselves do not use English as an attention getter, and the attention getter in these advertisements are often geared towards emphasizing tradition. Westernization is used subtly in these advertisements, through visual cues as opposed to linguistically. (Bhatia, 1990, p. 38). Another study, conducted by Krishna and Ahluwalia (2008) of South Asia cultures, in particular India, theorized that English is used in countries to connote modernity and sophistication, as the Takashi study has shown, but that the language of the country is used to connote belonging and tradition. Therefore, the theory was that the Hindi language connotes belonging and tradition in India, while English would connote sophistication and modernity. (Krishna & Ahluwalia, 2008). Further, the researchers anticipated that the linguistic inferiority that was shown in Koslow's study would not be seen in the study of the Indian population, as the Hindi language has “several positive associations, such as solidarity, pride, nationalism, family and belongingness, and is not necessarily associated with lower social status.” (Krishna & Ahluwalia, 2008). The conceptual framework of the Krishna and Ahluwalia study was that people would pay more attention to English in advertisements if the usage of English was unexpected in the context of the particular ad, and that the usage of the language in unexpected contexts will be more effective in connoting the attributes associated with that language – sophistication and modernity. The converse is true when using Hindi language in unexpected ways – tradition and belonging will be the connotations, and these connotations are strengthened when the Hindi language is used unexpectedly. (Krishna & Ahluwalia, 2008). This unexpected use of language in advertising is a time-honored way of getting attention to ads, and is related to using rhetorical figures, which are expressions that deviate from expectation; schemes, in which the text is excessively orderly or regular; and tropes, in which the text contains a “deficiency of order or irregularities.” (McQuarrie & Mick, 1996, p. 429). Thus, the usage of English or Hindi in unexpected ways comports with traditional ways of getting attention, in that the traditional way of getting attention is by using language unexpectedly. The Krishna and Ahluwalia study predicted that unexpected language would be used in different ways in different contexts. For instance, with multi-national companies (MNCs), English is the expected language, and the use of Hindi will cause listeners to pay attention. For local companies, Hindi is expected, as are mixed advertisements, using English and Hindi. For local companies, the use of English only would be unexpected, but the use of Hindi or mixed would be expected. Therefore, the listeners will be more likely to pay attention to local ads that are only in English then to local ads in Hindi or mixed. (Krishna & Ahluwalia, 2008). Moreover, the type of product advertised also makes a difference. Necessities are associated with family, belonging, comfort and tradition, while luxuries are associated with sophistication, upper class and exclusivity. Therefore, the anticipation would be that English would be more broadly, and markedly (unexpectedly) used for luxuries, while Hindi would be more broadly and markedly used for necessities. (Krishna & Ahluwalia, 2008). Consistent with the theorizing, Krishna and Ahluwalia (2008) found that MNCs have more at stake in language usage than local companies, and that MNCs would gain by using English for luxury products, and Hindi or mixed for necessities. Also consistent with the theories, the use of English in advertisement connoted sophistication. While any use of English was effective for conveying sophistication, the use of pure English was the most effective on this front. The use of Hindi conveyed a sense of belonging. The use of mixed languages convey both a sense of belonging and sophistication. (Krishna & Ahluwalia, 2008). II. The Negative Side of Advertising There is also a dark side to advertising, in any language. One of these is the effect of mirroring and modeling. Advertisements attempt to model the “good life” - they show you what you should want to have in life, and the kind of lifestyle that you should be leading. They represent an ideal, but this ideal is unattainable by many, if not most, in our society. This brings about sense of inferiority, in that the ads seem to be a mirror of what we should aspire to, and they subsequently cause individuals to look around at their own reality and realize that they are not living the good life that they should. (Pollay, 1986, p. 26). The advertisements are particularly hard on women, as they show women that they should aspire to perfection, which causes women to worry about their grey hair or extra pounds, instead of worrying about what is inside. The elderly can also feel a sense of inferiority, as advertisements emphasize youth and youth culture, showing that popularity and fun is associated with youth, not with being a senior citizen. The net effect of the modeling and the mirroring is that individuals are left with a feeling that their life is half-lived, because they do not see themselves in the advertisements and see the people in the advertisements as what they aspire to be, yet cannot achieve. (Polley, 1986, pp. 26-27). Another problem is that of social change and social problems. Advertising changes our culture, and not always for the better. For instance, values are changed because of advertisements. The need for thrift has been supplanted by the need to buy. The work ethic is replaced by the consumption ethic. Sexual sell has replaced modesty. Etc. Advertising also encourages competition, and this can result in anti-social behaviour, such as stealing and violence. (Pollay, 1986, pp. 27-28). Conclusion The use of English is used to persuade in a variety of ways. In foreign countries, the use of English is persuasive because it connotes modernity and sophistication, and this is an effective tool for the sale of luxury goods in India. In Japan, English is further used most extensively in well-educated populations, such as executives. In Japan, English is mainly used for special effects, and is used in other contexts in varying ways, depending upon the targeted audience. For instance, English is often used in a technical way for executives, and, for homemakers, English is often used as a product name. In Hispanic populations living in the United States, the use of English in advertisements is a double-edged sword – on the one hand, English is seen as the superior language by some, therefore using some English in an advertisement is a positive thing, as it helps the listener overcome linguistic insecurity; on the other hand, the exclusive use of English is seen as somewhat negative, due to the fact that it is seen as not accommodating. Therefore, a mix of English and Spanish is recommended for advertisements targeting this population. Sources Used Bhatia, Tej. “English in Advertising: Multiple Mixing and Media.” World Englishes 4(1) (1987): 33-48. Fuertes-Oliveras, Pedro, Marisol Velasco-Sacristain, Ascension Arribaas-Bano and Eva Sammalego-Fernandez. “Persuasion and Advertising English: Metadiscourse in Slogans and Headlines.” Journal of Pragmatics 33 (2001): 1291-1307. Koslow, Scott, Prem Shamdasani, and Ellen Touchstone. “Exploring Language Effects in Ethnic Advertising: A Sociolinguistic Perspective.” The Journal of Consumer Research 20(4)(March 1994): 575-585. Krishna, Aradhana, and Rohini Ahluwalia. “Language Choice in Advertising to Bilinguals: Asymmetric Effects for Multinationals versus Local Firms.” Journal of Consumer Research 35 (December 2008). Martin, Elizabeth. “Mixing English in French Advertising.” World Englishes 21(3) (2002): 375-401. McQuarrie, Edward, and David Glen Mick. “Figures of Rhetoric in Advertising Language.” The Journal of Consumer Research 22(4)(March 1996): 424-438. Polley, Richard. “The Distorted Mirror: Reflections on the Unintended Consequences of Advertising.” The Journal of Marketing 50(2)(April 1986): 18-36. Rush, Susan. “The Noun Phrase in Advertising English.” Journal of Pragmatics 29: 155-171. Stern, Barbara. “How Does an Ad Mean? Language in Services Advertising.” Journal of Advertising 17(2)(1988): 3-14. Takashi, Kyoko. “A Sociolinguistic Analysis of English Borrowings in Japanese Advertising Texts.” World Englishes, 9(3) (1990): 327-341. Read More