Chapter 7 - The Self

§ Symbolic self-completion theory

- People who have an incomplete self-definition tend to complete their identity when they acquire and display symbols they associate with that role. - E.g., adolescent boys may use "macho" products such as cars and cigarettes to bolster their developing masculinity.

The Big Five of Luxury Brand Personality

-Tradition -Elitism -Conspicuousness -Eccentricity -Sensuality

Freudian Theory:

-immediate gratification =pleasure principle -mediates between the id and the superego = reality principle -person's conscience = internalizes society's rules

Learning Objectives

1. The self-concept strongly influences consumer behavior. 2. Products often define a person's selfconcept. 3. A consumer's personality influences the way he responds to marketing stimuli, but efforts to use this information in marketing contexts meet with mixed results. 4. Brands have personalities. 5. The way we think about our bodies (and the way our culture tells us we should think) is a key component of self-esteem. 6. Every culture dictates certain types of body decoration or mutilation.

MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator)

Another widely used personality test based on Carl Jung's work • The Myers-Briggs classifies people into 16 categories on these dimensions: 1. Focus of attention: Introversion or Extraversion 2. Information processing: Sensing or Intuition 3. Decision making: Thinking and Feeling 4. Dealing with outer world: Judging (systematic approach) and Perceiving (spontaneous approach)

Ideals of Beauty

Exemplar of appearance • "What is beautiful is good" stereotype • Favorable physical features: • Attractive faces • Good health and youth • Balance/symmetry • Feminine curves/hourglass body shape • "Strong" male features • Preferences for some genetic features are genetic rather than cultural.

Self-image congruence model

Individuals choose products when their attributes match some aspect of the self. - When brands use their personalities to relate to consumers, they are assuming that people express themselves with their brand choices. - Congruency between consumers and their preferred brands - From concrete relationships ("I own it") to abstract relationships ("It is like me")

Motivational Research & Consumption Motives (by Ernest Dichter)

Motivational research à to understand the deeper meanings of products and advertisements • socially unacceptable needs à acceptable outlets (product substitutes) • In-depth interviews with individual consumers Power-masculinity-virility • Security • Eroticism • Moral purity-cleanliness • Social acceptance • Individuality • Status • Femininity • Reward • Mastery over environment • Disalienation • Magic-mystery

Social identity as individual consumption behaviors

Question: Who am I now? • Answer: To some extent, your possessions!

What is Self-Concept?

Self-concept summarizes the beliefs a person holds about his own attributes and how he evaluates the self on these qualities. à complex structure • Attributes of self-concept: - content (e.g., facial attractiveness versus mental aptitude) - positivity (i.e., self-esteem) - intensity and stability over time - accuracy (i.e., the Degree to which one's selfassessment corresponds to reality).

Trait Theory

The quantitative measurement of personality traits: identifiable characteristics that define a person • Traits relevant to consumer behavior: • Innovativeness • Materialism • Self-consciousness • Need for cognition • Frugality • Problems with trait theory in consumer research - It is simply hard to predict consumer behavior based on personality - Not sufficiently valid or reliable scale

Body image:

a consumer's subjective evaluation of his physical self. As with a person's overall self-concept, this image is not necessarily accurate.

Body cathexis:

a person's feelings about his body à the emotional significance of some object or idea. • Consumers who are more satisfied with their bodies are more frequent users of preening products like blow dryers, cologne, and facial bronzers.

Products often define

a person's selfconcept.

• Identity marketing:

a promotional strategy where consumers alter some aspects of their selves to advertise for a branded product

• A self-fulfilling prophecy comes into play

because "signals" influence the individual's actual behavior.

Inference of personality based on

consumption patterns

A product that creates and communicates a distinctive brand personality ->

earns brand equity, and inspires years of loyalty

Brand equity:

extent to which a consumer holds strong, favorable, and unique associations with a brand in memory - extent to which s/he is willing to pay more for the branded version of a product than for a nonbranded (generic) version

A person with different social roles

many social selves

• Impression management

means that we work to "manage" what others think of us e.g., formal suits for job interviews, makeup

• Community:

neighborhood or town where you live

• Ideal self:

our conception of how we would like to be

• Actual self:

our more realistic appraisal of the qualities we have

• Individual:

personal possessions (cars, clothing)

Self-esteem advertising:

products provide remedy to low self-esteem

Self-esteem

refers to the positivity of a person's selfconcept. • People with low self-esteem expect that they will not perform very well, and they will try to avoid embarrassment, failure, and rejection. • a recent study: individuals who are made to feel powerful spend more money on themselves ("because I'm worth it!") vs. those who experience a feeling of powerlessness spend more on others than on themselves.

• Family:

residence and furnishings

• Brand personality:

set of traits people attribute to a product as if it were a person

Group:

social or other groups

Symbolic interactionism

stresses that relationships with other people play a large part in forming the self.

looking-glass self:

the process of imagining others' reactions "taking the role of the other" • Our appraisal of who we are varies depending on whose perspective we consider and how accurately we predict their evaluations of us.

Self-image congruence model:

we choose products when attributes matches the self

People who have an incomplete self-definition complete the identity by acquisition.

à Products help to create the perceived self.

Body Decoration Purposes

• Decorating the self can serve several purposes. • Some of these are to: 1.Distinguish group members from nonmembers 2.Place the individual in the social organization 3.Place the person in a gender category 4.Enhance sex-role identification 5.Indicate desired social conduct 6.Indicate high status or rank 7.Provide a sense of security

Carl Jung, Father of Analytical Psychology

• Disciple of Freud, but did not accept Freud's emphasis on sexual aspects of personality • Established concept of collective unconscious • Explained the creation of archetype - a universally recognized idea or behavior pattern - themes like birth and death - appear in myths, stories, and dream e.g., "Old wise man", "Earth mother" in ad messages • Young & Rubicam (a major ad agency) uses the concept of archetypes in its BrandAsset® Archetypes model (depicted on the next slides)

Working on the Body

• Fattism • Cosmetic surgery (e.g., breast augmentation, liposuction, nose jobs, face lifts, and other enhancements) • Body decoration and mutilation • Body piercing

• Products can:

• Help us reach ideal self • Be consistent with actual self

The Levels of the Extended Self

• Individual: • Family: • Community:

Neo-Freudian Theories (theories of personality on relationships)

• Karen Horney • Compliant vs. detached vs. aggressive • Alfred Adler • Motivation to overcome inferiority • Harry Stack Sullivan • Personality evolves to reduce anxiety in social relationships • Carl Jung • Developed analytical psychology

• A consumer's personality influences the way he responds to marketing stimuli, but efforts to use this information in marketing contexts meet with mixed results.

• Personality: a person's unique psychological makeup

Chapter Summary

• Self-concept as an influence on behavior • The role of products in defining self-concept. • People's personalities influence their buying choices. • Brands have personalities. • The way we think about our bodies influences self-esteem. • Body mutilation is a way we decorate our bodies.

The Big Five (Neo-Personality Inventory)

• The most widely recognized approach to measuring personality traits -Openness to experience -Conscientiousness -Extroversion -Agreeableness -Neuroticism

Anthropomorphism

• The tendency to attribute human characteristics to objects or animals • A cartoon character or mythical creation as if it were a person and even assume that it has human feelings