study task 4 - Identity and consumption

What is meant by multiple identities?

Having an identity is a subjective concept of how individuals view themselves. With knowing who you are, it allows people to answer questions such as where they fit in and where they belong. Having multiple identities is where people may play different roles in life, for example having a daytime job and then coming home as a mother of three. These identities are different yet identify who we are, with some being more integral to our identities than others. People can use different types of products to represent them.

How are identities formed?

The forming of identities starts at 2, thereafter recognition and concept of self gradually become more complex as humans grow older. They’re continually moulded and influenced by parents, siblings, friends, peers, school, advertising and other cultural influences. Once an adult people tend to incorporate feelings, political belies, motivation, religious beliefs, physical appearance and material possessions they own to describe themselves.

What is social categorisation?

Social catergorisation is when you categorise the world in relation to themselves. With categorising it is easier to find similarities or differences between themselves and those they are categorising. Research shows that brands and products can indeed be used to generate accurate opinions about what others are like. 

What is social comparison?

Social comparison is about how people learn about themselves by comparing similarities and differences to others. The continuous comparison to others is driven by a need to maintain and sometimes increase positive self-esteem. 

What is social identity theory?

Social identity is described by Tajfel as ‘that part of the individuals self-concept which derives from their knowledge of their membership of a social group together with the value and emotional significance of that membership’ (Tajfel, 1981). It is common that groups use consumption to signal to others that they somehow belong together, by the use of brands and products to differentiate themselves.

What is an example of strong brand identification?

The Macintosh brand was found to be more likely to be a part of consumers self concept, with them perceiving themselves as more closely linked to Apple computers and in turn links the computer to other positive attributes. As Macintosh computers are less commonly used it makes the user think of themselves as a part of a close knit community, with a strong social bond and deep rooted loyalty.

What are the negative effects on body image?

With the media displaying the message that physical appearance is important, there becomes a pressure to be ‘picture perfect’ of which starts at a young age. Products such as Barbie dolls reinforce this idea and influence young girls, with them idolising the doll as an influence of how to look themselves. With societies idea of perfect, teenagers may embark to change their appearance but as its impossible to achieve their set targets it leads to poor physical and mental health.

What is self-discrepancy theory?

The theory offers an explanation to why people become unhappy with their physical appearance. The theory proposes that people have three types of self-schema(organised sets of expectations and associations about an object) 

1. Actual self - the way people are at the present point in time
2. Ideal self - the self that we aspire to be
3. Ought self- the way we think we should be 

The ‘ideal self’ helps us to strive to be in a way that we think is perfect while the ‘ought self’ prevents us from doing things that are not in line with what we should be like.