Study Task 4

This is your Lifestyle - Robin Warner

General Overview:
-Adverts in relation to role models in order to boost the sales pitch.
-The manipulative text used in advertising.
-Spanish examples are used which work in both Spanish and English.

The way we identify with others through things that we purchase/ what we wear.
Choice on the surface are seen as a good thing yet we have no choice but to choose. Our roles in society aren't given to us, we have to make choices.
Products can be presented as life changing yet there is no guarantee.
Always aiming towards a coherent project of yourself, a coherent identity and how this has an effect on other people.
Our need for consistency and identity development isn't just down to us its down to the developer.
Coherence - being logical and consistent. A key element of self identity.
The advertiser always has to circumvent the doubt people have towards advertising.
Personal expression can't be questioned as everyone is entitled to their own opinion therefore it doesn't have to  be factual.
Connectors are agreed terms in language, sometimes on a subconscious level. Advertisers don't want to highlight when they are trying to be persuasive. Connecters give some personality and a subtle authority to a statement.
Advertises sometimes play on this and sometimes over exaggerate their product because they know it has a prestigious stance in society already therefore advertising isn't too important to them.
A burden of choice: every choice we make has an element of risk as every choice we make has an impact on our 'togetherness' and the way we are perceived in society. Some products present everyday risks we face and show us a risk free solution such as choosing a perfect hairdresser.
This is done again with the dog biscuit add, they present a problem which is related to people who care about their dogs and spend a lot of time with them.
A role model helps secure the message from the brand.

Identity and Consumption

Multiple identities and how they formed?

Our identity forms early in life and continues to develop throughout, we begin to recognise ourselves at 2 years old and from then on our recognition of ourselves becomes more complex. We are influenced by our parents, siblings, friends, teachers and other things going on in our life at an early age. When we reach adulthood our identities start to incorporate our feelings, beliefs and motivations. The combination of so many different characteristics to express ourselves makes our multi-dimensional identities.

Social Categorisation

Humans categorise things in relation to themselves. Our perception  of people is often affected by peoples material possessions, we categorise individuals in terms of what they own rather than what they're like as a person. This depersonalises the process and often leads to us comparing ourselves to others.

Social Comparison

We often compare our similarities and differences to others, this often boosts our self-esteem when comparing ourselves to people who are worse off than us. Simple things such as having a better car than the people in your social circle can make you feel better. However this can also have a negative impact when comparing yourself who you consider better off than you such as having a better car, clothes or other materialistic items.

Social Identity Theory

Socialising in a group is important to people identities as it helps them grow and define who they are as well as boosting their self esteem and general well being, this is known as the social identity theory.


Brand Identity Examples
> Apple
> American Eagle
> Mercedes

Negative effects on body image

Many studies have found that both women and men do not believe that their current body form is attractive, men tend to think their bodies are not too far off what them deem to be the ideal shape. These negative thoughts are likely to come from the media portraying an unrealistic 'ideal figure' which has been photoshopped.

Self- discrepancy Theory 

A theory as to why people become unhappy with their physical appearance, it proposes that people have 3 different types of self-schema.
1. Actual self - the way people are at the current point in time
2. Ideal self - the self we aspire to be
3. Ought self - the way we think we should be
The ideal self helps us strive in a way that we see as perfect whereas the ought self stops us doing inappropriate things. There should be no discrepancies between actual and ideal self or actual and ought self as this would lead to a feeling of dissatisfaction in the person and emotions such as anxiety and fear. People with high discrepancies are likely to suffer from low self esteem and engage in identity seeking buying behaviour.