ADVERTISING RESEARCH

 

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Your name  Space for number XXXX        Claremont Fan Court School 64680   June 2018

OCR Media Studies J526 Individual Media Studies Portfolio B321 Topic: Advertising

In class, we continued our research into Coca Cola and started viewing the TV choice DVD on "The TV Advert: Lara Croft and Lucozade" which we will continue.

PREP:  Continue writing up what you have researched about advertising. You can include the material below on Maslow and Mulvey. You may find adverts that illustrate Mulvey's point (such as a visual of a woman positioned in a particular way) or a slogan that shows that the advert taps into our need for esteem and recognition.

In relation to the Coca Cola advert featuring the gardener, we discussed the ways in which it subverts usual representations of women by making the male gardener the object of the gaze. I introduced you to Laura Mulvey, professor at Birkbeck, feminist film critic and author of Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, who coined the expression 'the male gaze of the camera'.

We also looked at how some advertising, such as that for clothes, perfumes, holidays and possessions, appeals to our need for self-actualization. I order to understand this need, we looked at Maslowe's Hierarchy of Needs. Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a theory in psychology proposed by Abraham Maslow in his 1943 paper "A Theory of Human Motivation" in Psychological Review. Maslow subsequently extended the idea to include his observations of humans' innate curiosity. His theories parallel many other theories of human developmental psychology, some of which focus on describing the stages of growth in humans. We may buy things because we think that they will meet our needs for esteem and self-actualization.

Esteem

All humans have a need to feel respected; this includes the need to have self-esteem and self-respect. Esteem presents the typical human desire to be accepted and valued by others. People often engage in a profession or hobby to gain recognition. These activities give the person a sense of contribution or value. Low self-esteem or an inferiority complex may result from imbalances during this level in the hierarchy. People with low self-esteem often need respect from others; they may feel the need to seek fame or glory. However, fame or glory will not help the person to build their self-esteem until they accept who they are internally. Psychological imbalances such as depression can hinder the person from obtaining a higher level of self-esteem or self-respect.
Most people have a need for stable self-respect and self-esteem. This may include a need for status, recognition, fame, prestige, and attention. or the need for self-respect. For example, the person may have a need for strength, competence, mastery, self-confidence, independence, and freedom. Deprivation of these needs may lead to an inferiority complex, weakness, and helplessness.

Self-actualization

Main article: Self-actualization

"What a man can be, he must be." This quotation forms the basis of the perceived need for self-actualization. This level of need refers to what a person's full potential is and the realization of that potential. Maslow describes this level as the desire to accomplish everything that one can, to become the most that one can be. Individuals may perceive or focus on this need very specifically. For example, one individual may have the strong desire to become an ideal parent. In another, the desire may be expressed athletically. For others, it may be expressed in paintings, pictures, or inventions

PREP "I have researched Coca Cola advertising across the century in order to investigate how this powerful global brand conveys its messages and values...." Start your research into Coca Cola, writing it up as you go.