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Abstract
Advertising is an extremely relevant topic because it impacts our everyday
lifestyles and decisions. It is impossible to ignore the multitude of ads and persuasive
messages that saturate today’s media. Advertisements promote a culture of consumption
by incorporating consumer values into their selling tactics. What do advertisements say
about society and ourselves? Research is controversial in discussing whether advertising
passively reflects society or if it is responsible for creating social change. Geoffrey
Lantos (1987) created a literature review that will discuss this controversy by looking
through some of the past research on advertisements creating social values such as
materialism, compared to opposing positions that say advertising reflects what the
consumer needs. Russel Belk (1985) conducted a study on U.S. magazine advertising that
found that materialistic ads have increased while utilitarian appeals has decreased during
the twentieth century. In 2007, Xigen Li and Lin Zhunag examined dominant cultural
values in the banner ads of the top U.S. websites advertising over the years of 2000 to
2007. The study showed Internet advertising reflects utilitarian appeals and incorporates
typical cultural norms of American society. Building off of this, Jos Hornikx’s (2009)
meta-analysis confirmed that ads using cultural value appeals are more persuasive and
better liked than those without. American ads portraying individualistic value were more
effective because they were reflective of the culture. One of the major limitations of the
majority of the studies is that they rely on past research and content analysis as opposed
to conducting new research. New research should be conducted analyzing advertising in
2015, specifically looking at how values of consumerism have evolved to the present day.
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Advertising Americanism:
A review of research on consumer culture and the values reflected in modern ads
Overview
Scholar Geoffrey (1987) Lantos quotes, “advertising in America has been one of
the most significant of all factors in altering our living habits, our social attitudes, and our
personal expectations” (p.108). American advertising has become similar to a societal
institution in the sense that it is now so enmeshed with culture that it is difficult to discern
whether society influences advertising, or advertising influences society. There is much
controversy over how much of American values can be accredited to advertising and the
literature reviews how advertisements create social values in comparison to positions that
say advertising simply reflects what the consumer needs. On one hand, it is undeniable
that being constantly inundated with ad promotions, slogans and images targeting
consumers will have an impact on individual and collective social norms. Croteau and
Hoynes (2014) support the claim that advertising influences society when they
conceptualize the term “socialization,” which is “the process whereby we learn and
internalize the values, beliefs and norms of our culture and, in doing, develop a sense of
self” (p.16). From a sociological standpoint, individuals internalize the values of a culture
as their own in developing their identity. The large influence of media and technology in
American culture has, therefore, become a socializing agent impacting the view of the
self. Croteau and Hoynes emphasize the influential role of media and advertising when
they speculate that without it, “our perceptions of ourselves would probably be different,
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because we would not have television characters and advertising images to compare
ourselves against” (p.7). Images in the media and advertising provide a comparison for
American social behavior.
Croteau and Hoynes also give credence to the opposing argument that advertising
reflects society and that social desires determine the content of advertising messages. The
authors explain the concept of ideology as a system of meaning that helps us make value
judgments about the world and how it operates. Geoffrey Lantos quotes, “American
advertising...simplifies and typifies. It does not claim to picture reality as it is but reality
as it should be—life and lives worth emulating”(p.122). Although the media may not
reflect society as it is, Croteau and Hoynes (2014) suggest that analyzing the media
ideologies can tell us something about culture and individual values. However, “we can
often be unaware of the ideological position of contemporary media because it reflects
our own ‘taken-for-granted’ views of the world” (Croteau & Hoynes, 2014, p. 153). It is
helpful to look at the advertising in terms of patterns and images, which is what the
research in this paper attempts to do.
In light of this debate this paper will review studies that examine how advertisers
incorporate American ideologies into ad appeals, and what kind of impact this has on the
consumer and reinforcing the culture itself. The research presented evaluates both print
and online advertisements in their strategic inclusion of values distinctive of American
society. The collective findings illustrate that advertisements will be more effective
when they match American culture, which values the individual, material goods and
pleasure.
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Literature Review
America is perceived to be a consumerist individualistic culture and it is
important to understand the role that advertising plays in socializing such a culture.
Croteau and Hoynes explain that advertising only funds and “supports media that
encourages consumption” (p.69). Advertisers are motivated to increase profits by
inspiring the consumer to keep buying. This has made America a consumer-capitalist
society in which ads send the message that happiness can be bought. This culture of
consumption relates to consumerism, or the association of materials with happiness
(Croteau & Hoynes, 2014). Materialism is a consumerist ideology that is rooted in a need
to purchase goods and consequently, to have the financial ability to do so. Advertising
images normalize the middle upper class by associating one’s ability to buy material
items with status and freedom. In connecting products with cultural values such as
pleasure and status, ads play a role in perpetuating a materialist culture dominated by the
upper class. They glamorize the higher-class stratifications with ideas of luxury and
hedonism. The dictionary defines hedonism as the “pursuit of pleasure or self-
indulgence,” which is what motivates consumerism. Through images of hedonism and
the luxury of the upper class, ads “promote a worldview that stresses the individual and
the realm of private life, ignoring collective values and the terrain of the public world”
(Croteau & Hoynes, 2014, p.179). This illustrates that American consumer culture
focuses on the interests of the individual rather than the public.
Individualism is a major American value that is utilized in advertising to reflect
the dominant American culture. Research done by Jos Hornikx and Daniel O’Keefe
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(2009) indicates that adapting to consumer values is significant because they are the
“guiding principles in life affecting people’s attitudes, intentions and behavior,” thus
making them effective to incorporate in persuasion and advertising (p.40). Naturally,
consumers differ in their preference for some values over others. The ranking and
preference of values can also vary by culture, such as the United States valuing
individualism more than a Korean culture that values collectivism. Values play a major
role in defining and distinguishing cultures and this distinction is often revealed in the
type of advertisements presented in a particular culture. This is exemplified in Han and
Shavitt’s 1994 study that found “appeals in Korean ads were more frequently related to
interdependence and harmony, whereas those in U.S. ads tend to feature independence
and individuality” (Hornikx & O’Keefe, 2009, p.41). In comparison to other countries,
the United States has historically been considered a place of “the American dream” and
individualism. Previous research has examined cultural values and persuasive effects by
using two ads that each reflected a value representative of two different cultures. One ad
would reflect the cultures values and the other would be adapted to the second, different
culture. Using this research idea, Hornikx and O’Keefe conducted a meta-analysis on ad
persuasiveness and liking in association with cultural value appeal adaptation. Their
methodology included identifying relevant research reports that compared at least two
ads that were adapted and unadapted to each culture. They calculated the effect size
between the different ads appeals within Asia-pacific, Central and South American as
well as American culture. Each culture was evaluated on Hofstedes individualism-
collectivism, masculinity-femininity and high-low uncertainty avoidance. The findings
showed a greater effect size for culturally adapted value ads, confirming they are more
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persuasive than unadapted ones. Adaptive appeals were found to be more persuasive for
North American and Asian-Pacific audiences. They concluded that ads were more
persuasive when they were adaptive, specifically in regards to individualism-collectivism
values. The results indicate that it is beneficial for advertisers to use culturally adapted
value appeals because they are more persuasive than standardization in advertising
appeals. Incorporating value appeals directed towards the individual and independence
will be more attractive to the consumer and reinforce this fundamental American value.
Croteau and Hoynes explain that American individualism refers to the way that “it is
portrayed as a kind of dreamland where individuals can fulfill (or buy?) their desires”
(p.183). They explain that the images in advertising are based on the ideology of
“individuality and freedom” that are characteristic of the American dream. In present day
advertising, the American dream translates to an individual’s ability and freedom to buy a
product.
Geoffrey Lantos (1987) takes Hornikx and O’Keefe’s (2009) research findings on
the persuasiveness of American individualistic value appeals a step further; examining
the extent to which such advertisements create a materialistic culture centered on the
individual. He discusses the controversy over consumer advertising and its true affects on
societal values. The critics claim consumer advertising is said to instill certain social
values on culture, yet advocates say that ads are merely a product of consumer needs.
These advocates say that “creating new desires is said to be beyond the marketers ability”
and that the persuasive influence of an ad is small compared to the many other influences
in society that elicit change, such as technology (Lantos, 1987, p. 105). Lantos supports
this claim with a study done by Bauer and Greyser (1968) that was influential because the
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findings proved that attitudes towards advertising are “relatively stable” (p.109). Their
argument is that a consumer need has to already exist for a new product and ad to be
created. The opposition to advertising claims that it “corrodes our fundamental values,
appealing to our lower needs rather than our higher motivations” (Lantos, 1987, p. 104).
In other words, advertising is replacing our higher social values with materialistic needs.
It is easier for an advertiser to play on “weak psychological drives such as vanity, greed,
envy and insecurity” over more complex values like friendship or love (Lantos, 1987, p.
110). The constant change and creation of new products makes them only satisfactory
for the moment, because consumers will want the next best thing in only a few months. It
is ultimately creating a society consisting of people that are never happy with what they
have. Therefore, the constant change and desire for “the new and improved” has become
customary in American culture. Critics of advertising say that by promoting this culture
of consumption, advertisers are overvaluing goods to the point that they become more
important than people. This romanticizing of material goods “is seen as having serious
side effects for our personalities; a social effect of displacing affect from people to
objects and an alienating effect where the self is perceived not as a child of God or as a
element in community, but as an exchange commodity” (Lantos, 1987, p. 105). The value
of material items has been inflated to the point that it impacts our perception and self-
identity.
Croteau and Hoynes (2014) believe that the media impacts our identity because it
plays such a huge role in socialization. The authors say that people have learned to
“internalize some of the values, beliefs, and norms presented in media product” (p.16).
Similarly, Russel Belk and Richard Pollay (1985) claim that advertisers have created
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materialism by strategically associating the self-image and materialistic consumer values
with a particular product. Belk and Pollay (1985) discussed the high prevalence of
materialism in America and identified the following major forms. “Instrumental
materialism” is the identity involved with using the product, while “terminal
materialism,” which is more destructive and based on simply “having” an item (Belk &
Pollay, 1985, p. 394). It’s destructive because it’s more likely to yield materialistic traits
such as envy, greed and jealousy. Historically, he says advertising moved away from
promoting hard work to focus more on hedonistic values such as leisure, comfort, status
and luxury in the early twentieth century. Advertising strategy began to associate familiar
symbols of high status with new products so that consumers believed that by obtaining
the object, they are inherently given more status. His content analysis of United States
magazine ads in the nineteenth century revealed materialistic themes have increased
while utilitarian, or practical appeals, have decreased. In his analysis, he examined
whether instrumental or terminal materialism was present during this time. The study’s
sample included popular American magazines during most of the twentieth century;
randomly sampled from a total of 2000 ads. Ads were coded by images such as number
of materials and values shown within a sample of home advertisements. The themes were
associated with “having” an object, doing an activity with an object, what the consumer
will become from owning it, as well as it’s luxury, status and utilitarian value. For
example, ads that appealed to luxury read, “Life’s so bright when the air’s just right,”
when advertising an air conditioning product (Belk & Pollay, 1985, p.396). Generally,
the results indicated more of a presence of instrumental materialism with an overall
increase in materialistic appeals across the twentieth century. Instrumental materialism
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encompassed prevalent themes of housework and leisure activities associated with the ad
image. Belk’s study shows that advertising materialistic values has increased in American
culture.
The literature expanded knowledge on advertising value appeals to include it’s
impact on the online community. Xigen Li & Lin Zhunag (2007) conducted a
longitudinal study on the major cultural values shown in banner ads from the top 100
United States web sites at three time points between the years 2000 and 2007. The
researchers agree that ad success is dependent on incorporating cultural values in
association with the product. They explain that, “consumers grow up in a particular
culture and become accustomed to that culture’s value systems, beliefs and perception
processes. Consequently, they respond to advertising messages that conform to their
culture” (p.59). Li and Zhunag (2007) predicted that Internet advertising would reflect
utilitarian value appeal more than symbolic appeals. Utilitarian appeals are those that
appeal to product function and practicality, related to values of convenience, economy
and effectiveness. Symbolic appeals suggest “human emotions such as enjoyment,
individualism and social status” (p.64). They used a content analysis to examine U.S.
banner ads at three points in the time frame from a random sample of 100 websites
ranked in 2000. At years 2000, 2003 and 2007 they sampled the home page banners on
these top sites for approximately ten days; coding for utilitarian or symbolic appeals. The
findings confirmed their hypothesis that Internet ads use utilitarian appeals more than
symbolic appeals because two-thirds of banner ads reflected utilitarian appeals. While
Russel Belk and Richard Pollay’s (1985) research on magazine ads found a decrease in
utilitarian appeal, Li and Zhunag’s findings most likely showed an increase because of
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the nature of the Internet. Users are actively searching for information and this leads to a
necessity for short, direct statements. Furthermore, the data analysis shows six main traits
across the time points including: economy, incentive, effectiveness, convenience,
enjoyment and informative. From 2000 to 2007, they noted that “effectiveness” and
“enjoyment” increased and “informative” and “incentive” decreased. Li and Zhunag
(2007) explain that they found many ads appealing to enjoyment because hedonism, or
pleasure, is a characteristic feature of American consumer culture. The researchers
indicate that, “consumers in the United States are inclined to value benefits (e.g. luxury,
prestige, enjoyment) beyond the product’s basic functions” (p.68). Therefore, hedonistic
consumption values such as these are incorporated into Western advertising to increase
sales.
The collective research illustrates that ads employ value-appeal strategies that
debatably, reflect or create American values of materialism, pleasure and individualism
Regardless of whether advertising is initiating or responding to values in American
culture, all sides can agree that advertising assists in teaching people “basic values, ideas
and lifestyles” (Lantos, 1987, p.106). Ads attempt to connect to the consumer by
associating identity or values with a product. For example, many beauty product
advertisements depict women laughing and smiling, and this is done with the intent to
connect with the consumer’s self-image and vanity values. Lantos looks at the types of ad
campaigns and their impact on society, concluding that advertising is indirect in affecting
change rather than direct. From his research, Lantos believes ads may not necessarily
increase the frequency of spending but instead skillfully refocus our attention to spending
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on other products. Lantos discusses both sides of the controversy but ultimately says that
advertising has at least a minimal impact on the consumer culture.
Critique
All four articles discuss American consumer values in relation to advertising and
it’s potential impact on society. They all touch on the debate over whether advertisements
are a product or instigator of social change. In addition, all agree that values are a
significant part of consumer culture and advertising strategy and collectively view
America as an individualistic, pleasure-oriented society.
Not only were these studies different in the type of methodology they used to
measure American values, but they also differed in the values and ad medium utilized.
Jos Hornikx and Daniel O’Keefe (2009) conducted a meta-analysis that generally
evaluates the persuasive impact of culturally adapted print ads, specifically looking at
cultural values such as American individualism. In comparison, Xigen Li and Lin Zhunag
(2007) choose a longitudinal study to evaluate U.S. websites across time to note major
cultural values such as enjoyment, and their changes between 2000 and 2007. Continuing
to differ in methodology and cultural values, Russel Belk and Richard Pollay (1985) used
a content analysis of magazines to measure the increase in materialism during the
twentieth century. Finally, Geoffrey Lantos differs because he didn’t conduct research;
instead he reviewed the existing literature on advertising and consumer culture and drew
his own conclusions. In sum, the research designs from all four studies ranged from
literature review, content analysis, longitudinal study and meta-analysis, and included
print and online ad mediums. I think it is beneficial that the studies examined values such
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as materialism, individualism and pleasure because it gives a more comprehensive idea of
America’s consumer culture. The studies are also beneficial because they are spread out
across time, as opposed to concentrated in one period. Lantos’ review includes research
pre-dating the 1900’s while Belk’s research covers the twentieth century, up until the
twenty-first century with Li and Hornikx’s studies.
The major criticism of all these studies is summarized by Geoffrey Lantos (1987),
who says that trying to make definitive conclusions based on observations of advertising
and society is virtually impossible. There are a variety of factors that impact consumer
decisions and values that cannot be accounted for or measured in research. It is also
important to note that it is very hard to make generalizations to society as a whole. The
inability to make definitive conclusions or generalizations applies to Russel Belk and
Richard Pollay’s (1985) study because the materialistic themes chosen do not account for
the frequency of advertising, availability of a variety of products as well as other societal
factors that exist in a certain time period. I found Lantos’s (1987) literature review to be
hard to follow because he was so back and forth showing each side of the arguments and
did not take a clear personal stance until the end. It would have made a stronger
argument if he had conducted his own systematic research instead of making inferences
from previous studies. The major criticism of Li and Zhunag’s (2007) Internet ad study is
that the consumer mostly controls ad exposure, so the impact of particular ads would be
hard to discern. Also, their research would be less applicable today because users can
now install browser ad-ons to avoid advertisements such as banner ads. Furthermore,
Internet ads can’t be generalized outside of cyberspace to include print ads. Jos Hornikx’s
and Daniel O’Keefes (2009) results corroborate the idea that advertising impact on
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consumers is hard to measure and often has a small effect size because there are so many
situational factors. In the future, I think more research needs to be done on the association
between values and behaviors, because having a certain value may not be directly related
to the way an ad is perceived. Due to the fact that most of the studies relied on existing
research and ad types, it would be helpful to conduct research the values that exist in
new, modern day ads. The evolution of ad values could be examined up into present day
2015.
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References
Belk, R. W., & Pollay, R. W. (1985). Materialism and Magazine Advertising During the
Twentieth Century. Advances In Consumer Research, 12(1), 394.
Croteau, D., & Hoynes, W. (2003). Media society: Industries, images, and audiences (3rd
ed.). Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Pine Forge Press.
Hornikx, J., & O'Keefe, D. J. (2009). Adapting Consumer Advertising Appeals to
Cultural Values. Communication Yearbook, 3338-71.
Lantos, G. P. (1987). Advertising: Looking Glass or Molder of the Masses?. Journal Of
Public Policy & Marketing, 6(1), 104-128.
Li, X., & Zhunag, L. (2007). Cultural Values in Internet Advertising: A Longitudinal
Study of the Banner Ads of the Top U.S. Web Sites. Southwestern Mass Communication
Journal, 23(1), 57-72.
