A glimpse of my dissertation…
‘An analytical look at the shift in the way the female body is being used in advertising within Western society’
The study gives an understanding of how the female body has been dipicted in advertising over the last decade. The primary research was aimed at finding out how women feel about the way women are generally being portrayed within adverts. The secondary research looked at some of the ways images can be used to exploit viewers’ attitudes and demonstrates the changes taking place including the concern for moral values within advertising and the negative effects still lingering from previous advertising strategies.
Findings - The primary research demonstrates that 89% of participants don’t feel that the slim women used in ads represent Western women in general. 70% of participants want to see larger women used in ads and 58% believe the portrayal of women’s bodies significantly affects how women feel about themselves. The literature shows ways in which images are used to manipulate viewers’ response tendancies. Trends are apparent in the way the female body image is being used to sell within Western culture, from voluptuous to super-skinny and now a u-turn seems to be taking effect.
Conclusions - It is evident from the research gathered that considering the best interests of those being targeted can have a positive impact on the success that can be attained for a company. More focus needs to be put on the relationship between advertisers and the public. Advertising, as a medium must respond to the needs of the public as much as the public responds to the needs of advertising. From voluptuous to super-slim, it seems women will alway find something to strive towards. Women these days are associating beauty with bones, but perhaps this is a stage in advertising that is becoming outgrown and Big may be Back! There is definitely a shift taking place in the way women’s bodies are being portrayed, whether this is to be a long-lasting change within Western culture or simply a short-lived advertising strategy remains to be seen. Growing pressure from the public and the media may be leading these changes, altering the way we may view the female body in advertising in the future. Can we use realistic, instead of idealistic images to claw back the confidence and self-belief of Western women?
Advertisers are judging how consumers feel largely in terms of whether their products are selling successfully, but this research proves that sales alone cannot be relied upon to give an accurate understanding of consumer attitudes towards adverts. The public may still be making purchases, but the study indicates consumer behaviour doesn’t always directly correlate with consumer attitudes. By this, consumers are still buying products despite not being particularly satisfied with the marketing strategies being used to sell to them.
I read an article recently in an issue of 