Consumerism as a Subset of Changing Societal Expectations and Its Norms - Research Paper Example

Introduction We, as consumers, are insecure beings. Most of the products bought by us from cars to colognes are used to hide some aspect of the self. The marketers work their way into the hearts of the consumers, through advertisements, by projecting jazzy images of happy, attractive people who just happen to be using their products. There is a general perception that attractive personalities are also smart, interesting, and competent (Solomon, 2007).The capitalist consumer philosophy banks on cultural definitions and stereotypes to buy and sell products (Spade and Valentine, 2007). The advertisements also trigger the feelings of comparison in the consumers, which is a human tendency. It has been noted that the young boys and girls often compare themselves with models that appear in the advertisements. The marketers amply exploit this tendency of making comparisons. Hypothesis Statement Why sex role identity is different from gender, and society’s expectations of masculinity and femininity help to determine the products we buy to be consistent with these expectations? Actual vs Ideal Self In order to understand the consumer behavioral patterns we have to explain the difference between the ‘ideal self’ and ‘actual self’. The ideal self, of how a person would like to be, is molded by the elements of culture in the advertisements, who serve as model of achievement or appearance. The ideal self is the conception of the consumer as they like to be perceived in the society (Solomon, 2007). It is the conception of how a person would like to look. Mostly consumers try to emulate some ideal or appearance. They, then, use cosmetics, plastic surgery, tanning salons, diet drinks and an array of other products to bring themselves in consonance with the ideal self (Solomon, 2007). The consumer, thus is propelled to buy products that are consistent with actual self or the dreamed of ideal self (Solomon, 2007). The advertisement of Calvin Klein perfume in the April 2008 issue of Vogue (see Appendix 2) uses the ideal, muscular body of the male model to subtly evoke a strong sense of manliness. Similarly, the advertisement of Selfridge and Co., designer wear, in April 2008 issue of Vogue, bolsters the ego of the reader with a strong and cryptic message, ‘Me, Myself and I”, the three word slogan. Some services and products are merely successful because they can appeal to consumer’s fantasy (Solomon, 2007). Depending upon the cultural contexts and influences of the advertisements consumers often develop notions of how they like to be seen, other than what they actually are. It is important to note that the ideal self, to a great extent, is influenced by the consumer culture. Consumer culture is the set of standards adopted or idealized by the members of public as models of achievement or appearance through idol worship of heroes in advertisements (Solomon, 2007).However, a large gap between the actual self and the ideal self may also result in arousal of negative feelings thus diminishing the effect of the advertisements (Solomon (2007). The level of dissatisfaction is proportional to the extent to which the consumers don’t realize their ideals. Fantasy Appeal It is important to note that the gap between the actual self and the ideal self can be understood through the notion of ‘fantasy appeal.’ Fantasy is change in consciousness of the subject that serves as an escape route from the real world (Solomon, 2007). The products and services are often so positioned that they pander to the fantasies of the customer (Solomon, 2007).The companies use ‘fantasy appeal’ to bridge the gap between the ideal self and the actual self. The advertisement of KERASTE night hair vitalizer showing shiny and silky black hair set in a black ground uses fantasy appeal to attract the consumer. The results of using the vitalizer may not be as good as they are projected, yet they are enough to create a dazzle to mesmerize the reader (Appendix 3). High-tech technologies, such as those used for trimming jaw lines, puffing up lips, eliminating blemishes and mold appearances, come in handy (Solomon, 2007).Consumers thus can face the real world with looks and appearances fashioned through technological means. Further, such practices are dynamic, ever evolving and not static in nature.. Advertising reinforces these gender expectations, which tend to mirror cultural values (Solomon, 2007, p. 166). Advertisements and Negativity Advertisements can also lead to development of negative ideas about self. Richins (1991) cited in Solomon (2007) noted that the college students who were exposed to advertisement about beautiful models developed a low self esteem about themselves after making comparisons with attractive models. Likewise in Myers Jr. and Biocca [1992] & Gulas and McKeage [2000] cited in Solomon [2007]) participants expressed lower satisfaction with their selves after seeing attractive faces in advertisements. One strategy is to challenge the low self-esteem of the consumer and then provide a linkage to the product. The biological gender does not have a bearing on how the person would exhibit sex-typed traits, the characteristics we stereotypically associate with one gender or the other. The consumer’s subjective feelings about his or her sexuality also play a critical role. The rest of the world is now catching with the American obsession of thinness. Since quality of body of a woman reflects their worth the major image distortions occur amongst females (Solomon, 2007). Some consumers, especially females, tend to emulate the projected ideals of beauty. Individuals especially the youth fall prey to eating disorders and diseases in which women get obsessed with thinness. Eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia occur as a result of distorted body image. Anorexia is abstinence from food and in bulimia the patient is know to do a binge, which is followed by vomiting, abuse of laxatives, and fasting. Role Identity and Sex Identity The way individuals conduct themselves, exhibiting particular behavior patterns is called the role. People find themselves doing new roles day after day. Almost all human beings have to enact different roles like that of father, husband, mother, son, manager, employee, etc. It is also pertinent to mention that some roles as that of being a family person are primary, while other social identities as those exemplified by our hobbies, or cherished ideals, play a predominantly a secondary role. People perform various characters of the life’s play through role identities. Marketers target their products at the consumer after identifying the role identity of the consumer. Sexual identity is one’s perception of being a male or a female (Diamond, 2000). Traditionally male roles have involved strength and dangerous occupations and the female roles were restricted to managing the household and rearing children (Diamond, 2000). Gender-role identity is a state of mind as well as that of the body. Sex role identity concerns with the body or with the maleness or femaleness of human being (Solomon, 2007, p166). As we will see later sex-role identity is different from gender, and society’s expectation of masculinity and femininity helps to determine the products we buy to be consistent with its expectations. These roles for each gender are known to vary from country to country and from one time period to another. However, the secondary identities, at times, are primary. Strategically marketers would like to leverage the impact of secondary identities by ensuring and directing an advertisement campaign toward the customer (Keefe [2000] cited in Solomon [2007]). Another ploy that is used by the marketers to identify with the target consumer is identity marketing (Rosenber[1982] cited in Solomon[2007]). Some marketing gimmicks are intelligently used upon individuals and a set of individuals to win over a target customer base through identity marketing (Solomon, 2007). Identity marketing enhances the customer’s pleasure of using a brand product, to an extent, that the paraphernalia or a biographical set of objects thus promoted becomes a part of the extended self of the consumer (Solomon, 2007). Sex identity marketing strategies are a subset of identity marketing. Gaining of sex identity may begin in late childhood and early adolescence when individuals become aware of organs that differentiate male and female from each other. Almost simultaneously, occurs the awareness of how the members of their gender act, wear, dress or speak. Here it is important to understand the gender role identity. Unlike sex-identity, it is both a state of the mind and the body. It is not necessary that the biological gender of a person will determine whether a person will exhibit sex-type traits or not. A person’s biological gender (i.e male or female) does not totally determine whether he or she will exhibit sex-type traits, characteristics we stereotypically associate with one gender or the other (Solomon, 2007, p166). It is important to mention that the intensity and the kind of development of sex identity may differ from person to person and from one cultural context to another. What is perceived as masculine in one sense can be deemed as feminine in another. Today, the evolution of a new managerial class of women has forced marketers to change their traditional assumptions about women as they target this growing market (Solomon, 2007 p168). However, (Solomon, 2007) argue that time may not have come for total annihilation of sex-role stereotypes. Sex and Gender Till recent times, the distinction between sex and gender was blurred. In the near past and current layman’s usage, the term sex and gender have been used interchangeably (Diamond, 2000). Both specify that men were masculine and women were feminine. Even from a sociological and anthropological standpoint both the terms could be used interchangeably (Diamond, 2000). However, the similarity ended with the realization that some men were more masculine and some women more feminine than others. The distinction became more apparent in the post-modern discourse (Kay, 2001). The word gender is, often euphemistically, used for sex, but its social and cultural and psychosocial connotations provide psychological understanding of identity (Diamond, 2000). The term sex is related to anatomical structure, the term gender is related to an imposed or adopted social and psychological condition (Diamond, 2000, p2). Most of the gender differences are molded culturally and hence are malleable Gender is fundamental precept of the marketing strategy today. The term is of recent origin and is purported to have been coined in the 1960s and 1970s. The concept of gender is deep-rooted in one’s cultural understanding one’s maleness and femaleness. It is an obvious resource from which creators and distributors of goods and services can draw ideas, images, and messages (Spade and Valentine, 2007). It is noted that there is an overall difference in perception of the advertisements amongst males and females. Females acquire information from the content of the advertisements in a piecemeal manner while the males are impressed by the overall themes. As such women pick up messages from the media more than men. Similarly gender differences are reinforced by clothing. Sorenson cited at Spade and Valentine (2007) observes that clothing is an ideal medium to express one’s gender as they are the natural extensions of the body and an important element in identity and communication. For example in the advertisement of Gloucester Quays advertisement (Appendix 1), the female model attired in white outfit amply suggests that the Designer Outlet sells women’s attire. However, the advertisement is set in a cargo ship. The advertisement subtly carries transgender undertones suggesting that women are can take up men’s roles it total professional male bastions as cargo handling, logistics and sailing. Nowadays sex and gender are being increasingly addressed separately. Though the research is ongoing to pinpoint how gender and sex fully impact consumer behavior it establishes discernible impact on consumer likes and dislikes. The two terms differ in definition and usage from scientific, medical, legal, religious or political standpoints and their interchangeable usage (Kay, 2001) can lead to confusion and lack of understanding. According to Solomon (2007), the biological gender, doesn’t dictate ‘sex typed traits’, a person associates with masculinity or femininity. Clear distinction between sex role identity and gender is helpful in psychological understanding of identity. Sex role identity, as distinguished from gender that is largely shaped by socio-cultural mores, helps in acquisition of ‘sex-typed’ products and services. Advertisement and marketers motivate the individuals to attain the ideal behavior. In other words, advertising and media help in socialization of individuals as male and female. The socio-cultural expectations of the males and females are largely conveyed through the media. Thus the role of media in projecting ideal males and females is important. However, media is not infallible and may, at times, convey a wrong image of the societal expectations. Sex and gender have always cast a long shadow on individual’s choice products. The fact is made use of by marketers and researchers in a good measure to make their product appealing to the niche market segment. These results could have been unimaginable a few decades ago as Korean society is noted for its macho dominated conservative moorings (Fowler [2005] cited in Solomon [2007]). Self-Concept Self-concept is a set of beliefs individuals hold about themselves. It is an idea fostered by holding positive and negative attitude towards one’s physical qualities. Self-concept helps in fair evaluation of inner and outer personalities. A person’s feedback about self by others is the feedback of how a society perceives as a person. A multitude of factors impinge upon the persona of an individual to carve a self-concept. Often self-concept, through attitudes developed thereof, helps individuals to take decisions to bring themselves in conformance with behavioral norms like fashion, dress, grooming standards, in the social set-up in which they live according to their gender. It is important to note that there is nothing permanent about these norms and standards as they vary over time and differ in various societies. Such imposed or adopted conditions make human beings assume a particular masculine and feminine role. Consumers’ self concept is defined as the attitude they bear towards themselves. The consumer’s image about themselves is part of the self-concept. The consumers hold an image about self an inaccurate distorted image about self. The companies tend to exploit these differences which give the marketers a chance to prey on the insecurities of the customers. Beauty Beauty is not considered skin deep, in the modern context. Far from dabbling with the skin complexion only, today’s men and women and female carry out all kinds of actions ranging from dietary control, use of grooming products and surgery to carry looks and aura that make them stand apart, and yet stay in consonance with societal expectations. The discourse of beauty is an endless one with the standards varying from one cultural context to another and one era to another. Human beauty, today, is not merely about aesthetics. It also is a reference point of one’s status, sophistication and social desirability. Furthermore, people in less powerful cultures tend to adopt the standards of beauty prevalent in dominant cultures. For example in Korea women are making changes in their looks through plastic surgery. The also try to shape up their legs making them slender as in the western world (Schuman [2001] cited in Solomon [2007])117. Advertisers, mass media and marketers tend to set up ideals of beauty that are desirable at any given time. A hyped ideal of beauty is the cultural beauty up to which the consumers try to size themselves up. Beauty in the post-modern discourse is an expression of good health, self-concept, and idealized beauty concepts. The beauty business, too, is deeply entrenched in the socio-cultural norms that vary according to cultural, national and regional contexts. So much so that the economic conditions, too, have impacted the ideals of beauty, for example, during the times of economic depression people idealized thin cheeks and large chin. On the contrary during the times when the economy was upbeat people preferred women with large eyes and full cheeks. ( Tesser and Pettijohn II [1998] cited in Solomon, 2007). For example, in sharp contrast today’s emphasis on health and vigor, in the early 1800s it was fashionable to appear delicate to the point of looking ill. Lillian Russell, Gibson Girl and Clara Bow each have set the standards of beauty in their epochs (Solomon, 2007). Masculinism Masculinism is devoted to the study of male imagery and complex psycho-social and cultural connotation that come with masculinity (Gough, Fioravanti and Lazzari [1983] cited in Solomon [1996]). The American male today idolizes three kinds of character as that of breadwinner, rebel and the man-of-action hero. The breadwinner model celebrates success and achievement and the man-of-action hero and the rebel model emphasizes rebellion, independence, adventure and potency. The man of action is the synthesis of the two that draws upon the better of the two models (Solomon, 1996). Traditionally man has been perceived as tough and aggressive and muscular. However, off late male has adopted a softer image. Of special interest is the rise of the metro-sexual male in the 1990s that transcends the traditional role of the males to exhibit interest in fashion, home design, gourmet cooking, etc. Men are splurging on $7.7 billion on grooming products every year showing that they are concerned about their appearance as never before. Nowadays advertisements carrying softer images of males are in vogue in western countries (Solomon, 1996). Unlike maleness and femaleness masculinity and femininity are not biological characteristics (Solomon, 1996, p166). The concepts of masculinity and femininity and the norms related to them vary from country to country. While the Malaysians favor the use of males in technical products, the same niche advertising is dominated by females in Singapore. The conservative macho imagery traditionally prevalent in male dominated societies of the Asian countries like Japan and Korea are losing favor with the advertisers as an increasing number of women don professional mantles and actively perform in the public life (Solomon, 2007). Masculine and Feminine Advertising Products are categorized by the consumer as masculine and feminine. As an example, Thor’s Hammer vodka is so named to carry a masculine image, Thor being the Norse God of Thunder. The advertisement further describes it as bold, broad and solid and distinguishes itself from other frosted and girly-man type vodkas. It is not uncommon to find people sacrificing their health to attain desirable body image. (Solomon, 2007). A beer had male and female versions of the advertisement. While the male version carried such terms as aggressive, flavor, good food and good company, the female version carried female terms like full-bodied, smooth and gentle ( Solomon, 2007). The advertisement with the feminine theme held more appeal to those consumers who had a predominantly female orientation and the likewise the masculine tone held more appeal to those with masculine accent in their personalities. The advertisers transform gender into identity thus luring consumers to believe that they can be more masculine and more feminine if they buy and use a particular kind of product. By the way of example men are lured into buying flashy cars, watches, while women are lured into buying an array of cosmetic products, attire, or handbags. It is the perception of those buying these products that they help them to find their real selves. Till about a decade back, sports goods manufacturers sold products to women that were merely inferior versions of the male products. This, however, has changed with women increasingly buying male sports goods as they looked for quality. Now the manufacturers are taking women buyers more seriously (Solomon, 1996) Body Language Very often, fashion and style are exhibited in distortion, and mutilation of body. It has been testified that the breast size of the woman is directly related to sex-appeal. As a consequence, women carry out breast surgeries to alter the size of their breasts. Tattoos too are not only meant for body adornment but are used to make statement of the self. It is a risk free way of expressing adventurous side’s of one’s self. Body decoration and or/mutilation may serve such functions as separating group members from nonmembers, marking individuals’ status or rank within a social organization or within gender category. To go to any length to emulate the cultural ideals is a harmful and an ill conceived notion. Rise of the Metro sexual In the churning that goes on in the post-modern discourse, the market researchers have to look beyond sex-typed traits as increasingly males exhibit tendencies that go with femininity in public and in private. In a study conducted by Chen, Rodgers and Williams (2004) cited in Solomon (2007) a scale was developed to identify non-traditional male from non-traditional males. The scale used statements such as: I enjoy looking through fashion magazines. In our family, I take care of the checkbook and pay the bills. I am concerned about getting enough calcium in my diet. I am good at fixing mechanical things. I would do better than average in fist fights. In a survey conducted amongst Korean consumers under 40 years of age, 66 percent of men and 57 percent women were found to be leading ‘androgynous’ lifestyles. The androgynous lifestyle, as opposed to sex-typed masculine or feminine lifestyles, carries the element of two. Androgyny is close to ‘metrosexuality’. The emergence of the metro-sexual man of which, David Beckham is the chief protagonist is a reflection of shedding of stereotypes and adoption of new social mores and cultural norms. The women, too, with strong masculine component in their sex-role identity preferred ad portrayals that include non-traditional men (Jaffe and Berger [1994] cited in Solomon, [1996]). Conclusion The studies on consumer behaviour are in a constant state of flux with fundamental precept of ‘hard selling’ as its driving force. For long consumer behavior for long has been associated with sex and gender. Recent times, have witnessed a change from strong sense of male or female consumerism to post modernist androgynous and metrosexual consumerism, consequently ringing in a paradigm shift in advertising. Now marketers try to exploit the appeal particular products and their advertisement holds for male, female, transgender, metrosexual and homosexual consumer. Consumerism thus is a subset of changing societal expectations and its norms. References Diamond, M., (2007) Sex and gender: same or different Retrieved March 10th 2008 http://www.hawaii.edu/PCSS/online_artcls/intersex/sex_gender.html Kay, M, (2001) Gender identity in consumer behavior research: a literature review and research agenda Retrieved March 16th 2008 http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3896/is_200101/ai_n8932689 Solomon, R, (2007) Consumer behavior: buying, having and being. Pearson, Prentice- Hall, NJ. Spade, J, N., Valentine, C, G., (2007 ) The kaleidoscope of gender, Pine Forge Press, US. Read More