Identities and Consumption

Warner, Robin. (2003) This is your lifestyle

Initial thoughts: 

• how language is used to create inferences in advertising in which those with different identities will respond.  
• uses contrasting theories to form argument 
• self identity relies on the opinions of others 'no-one can maintain is identity by him-self'
• minor lifestyle discussion reflect your self identity, political opinions build who you our
• have to choose, not restricted by our roles but have to generate a level of coherence within our identities by using choice 
• continuous reflection and analysis is need for self identity 
• self-identity defined by what we buy, do and the way we act 
• uses theories and role models to boost statement and improve sales pitch 
• making the superficial more meaningful in order to construct our identities 
• advertising implys a product can improve someone exisitance
• presents notice that our need for self consistency are not just about use but inherently linked to others,advertiser puts themselves in the position of the other person
• coherence, logical and consistanse within the discursive use of language, language used differently within different languages 
• Use of Spanish shows the powerful message used within the language is understandable in both Spanish and english 
• always aiming towards a coherent project of self identity.
• how are identities are effect by others and the effect our identities have on others 
• opinion element excuses any question of the statement, writing in 3rd person allows questions to be had, have to enforce facts 
• talks about the connectors, emphasising the idea that these things are agreed terms within language.
• excluding connector gives statement more subtle authority as to not discourage the audience  
• Rolex:
• we know you know, not trying to persuade treating sales pitch as unimportant part in relation of rest of statement  
• Hairdresser: 
• Discusses risk, all choices we make are related to our self coherence and identity. Risk in every choice, advertisers present their product too remove risk by praying on the sensitivities of the modern self. 
• inclusion of role models, helps to secure message 
• role of persuasion and manipulation in advertising, way of moving away but not giving up the effectiveness 

Jansson-Boyd, Cathrine V. (2010) Consumer Psychology 

Identity and consumption (summaries each concept) 

Multiple Identities:

• People tend to have more than one personality due to the different roles they play within society resulting in multi-dimensional personalities constructed of the many characteristics people posses. The roles in which we play within society are determined by what we do such as job roles, parental roles, volunteering etc, these all connect to make up a persons self identity. 

How are identities formed 
Indirect learning occurs through the observation of advertising and other cultural influences whereas direct learning occurs through the observation of people such as parents, peers, teachers as well as experiences such as sports and societies. As people develop there personal beliefs about politics, religion, what motivates them, feelings etc. to describe their own self identity. 

Social categorisation:
Person perception, effects the perception of people based on material possessions as it's easier to categorise people by there possessions as these help identify the group people belong too. Where as object perception is the classification of objects, influenced by marketing and advertising. However the categorisation of individuals an lead others to feel depersonalised, lowering self-esteem. As people tend to belong to certain social groups its increasingly easy to identify people through there possessions.

Social Comparison:
Social comparison occurs in two forms, downward social comparison occurs when we compare ourselves to those who we perceive a less well or whom we appear superior to therefor boosting our self esteem. Upward social comparison occurs when we compare ourselves to those who are perceived as better which can have a harmful effect on our self esteem. This usually occurs when we compare ourselves with the media's ideal image and tends to effect younger people more than adults s they tend to be more impressionable as they are still developing there self-identity. 

social identity theory 

Example of brand Identification:
Many users of Apple and PC strongly identify with there prospective brands, however when compared mac was found to be more apart of a users self-concept as they are less commonly used than PC. This creates a connection between users who see themselves as part of a close community, whereas PC users may associate there usage with work availability rather than choice therefore the same community may not be apparent.  

Negative effects on body image: 
Sometimes comparing ourselves to others through physical appearance or our possessions can have a negative impact as we feel we don't meet the unobtainable, digitally manipulated ideals portrayed by the media. This pressure to be perfect starts at a young age through products such as barbies, as children play they see Barbie as a  morphed reality to live up too. However this image is very unrealistic and fails to portray the image of the average woman. Therefor as a child develops into adolescence and fails to live up to these ideals they look for ways to alter there appearance to conform to the medias ideals. This leads to a destructive cycle as they set unreachable targets leading to poor physical and mental health. 

Self discrepancy theory:

Self discrepancy theory seeks to explain why people are unhappy with there physical appearance. Self discrepancy theory includes three types of self–schema, organised sets of expectations. 

• Actual Self:
• the way people are at the present point in time  
• Ideal Self:
• the self we aspire to be, helps use to strive to be our perception of perfect 
• Ought Self:
• the way we think we should be and prevents us from doing things that don't fit who we want to be. 

Its important that there be no discrepancies between each self as discrepancies between the actual and ideal self can lead to feelings of dissatisfaction and disappointment. Those with high discrepancies are much more likely to have low self esteem and engage with identity seeking buying behaviour.