Chapter 5: the Self

Chapter 5: the Self

1. self concept

   • beliefs a person holds about his or her attributes and how he or she evaluates these qualities

2. Self-esteem

   • positivity or attitude towards yourself
     • advertising gets you to compare yourself to others.. attractive people in ads

3. real and ideal selves

   • ideal self
     • how he or she would like to be
   • actual self
     • how he or she actually is (realistic)
   • Impression management
     • work hard to manage what others think of us

4. we have multiple selves depending on our situation. different components or role identities

5. Virtual Identity

   • computer-mediated environments that allow users to create avatar or visual identities that range from realistic to exaggerated

6. Symbolic Interactionism

   • relationships with other people play a large part in forming the self
     • pattern out our behaviour due to a self-fulfilling prophecy... act how we assume others expect us to

7. Looking-Glass self

   • reflexive evaluation.. attempt to define the self
     • views can be skewed depending on our perspective

8. Self Consciousness

   • some are more concerned about their image than others... environment plays a large role with this
     • high public self conscious = more interest in clothing and cosmetics

9. You are what you consume

   • attachment to objects that help maintain his or her self concept
   • clothing, food, decorating choices, leisure activities
   • Symbolic self-completion theory
     • people with incomplete self-definition tend to complete this identity by acquiring symbols to go with it
       • ex. teen boys being "macho" with cars

10. Self-Image Congruence models

    • products will be chosen when their attributes match some aspect of the self
      • ex, muslim women wearing head scarves

11. The Extended Self

    • external objects we consider a part of us
      • ex. shoes
      • ex. business cards in Japan
      • Individual level: consumers include many of their personal possessions in self-definition
      • Family level: includes a consumer's residence and the furnishings in it
      • Community level: describing oneself in terms of the neighbourhood or town from which they come
      • Group level: attachments to certain social groups

12. Gender Roles

    • agentic goals
      • for males: stress self-asserstion and mastery
    • communal goals
      • such as affiliation and the fostering of harmonious relations
    • set expectations by society regarding behaviours for men and women
      • brains are wired to view male and females differently

13. Gender vs. Sexual Identity

    • sex-typed traits
      • not determined by biological gender
      • masculinity and femininity
    • sex-typed products
      • sex-typing is created by marketers

14. Androgyny

    • possession of both masculine and feminine traits
    • Gender-bending products
      • selling exclusively to one gender then they promote for the other sex
        • ex. motorcycles for women

15. Female Roles

    • Contemporary yoga mainstream female achievers
      • high feminine role vs. masculine role
    • 3 types: Megan, Allison, Elizabeth

16. Male Roles

    • evolving.. metrosexual
    • übersexual

17. Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Cosumers

    • Super Gays
      • high educated, high income.. activist, complex, individual
    • Habitaters
      • stable, living-together relationship.. serious, down to earth, emotional
    • gay mainstream
      • tend to be conservative.. stable relationships.. gay TV shows
    • party people
      • young and least educated. spend more time and money in restaurants ad clubs
    • closeted
      • older, serious, sideliner, traditional,... need ads that reach out to gay

18. Body Image

    • a consumers subjective evaluation of his or her physical self... not necessarily accurate
    • Body Cathexis
      • emotional significance of some object or idea to a person.. some parts of the body are more central to self-concept than others
    • Ideals of Beauty
      • particular model, or exemplar, of appearance

19. Is Beauty Universal

    • Western Ideal of Beauty
      • affecting around the world... larger dress sizes, blue eyes, mixed blood
    • Beauty Ideals over time
      • changes in ideal waistline. high heels, body waxing, eye lifts. differentiate from males
    • ideal getting real
      • Dove real beauty campaign
    • Male ideas of beauty
      • women prefer less muscle mass

20. Working on the Body

    • Hair and the Self
      • haircuts are regular part of consumption process
      • men more vain with hair
      • image transform
    • Fattism
      • desire to be thin
    • Body Image Distortions
      • distorted body image leads to anorexia and bulimia
    • Cosmetic Surgery
      • breast implants
    • Body Decoration and Mutilation
      • separate group members from non-members
        • teens go out of their way to be different
      • place the individual in the social organization
        • cultural traditions
      • place the person in a gender category
        • female lipstick
      • enhance gender-role identification
        • modern use of heels
      • provide a sense of security
        • lucky charms
      • indicate desired social conduct
        • earrings for men to promote dominance or submissiveness
      • indicate high status or rank
        • feather ornaments to indicate kills
    • Tattoos and piercings
      • sign of adventurous or rebellious people
      • sexier
    • Body piercings
      • popular fashion statement... mean something