Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles (한국의류학회지)

The Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles (한국의류학회)
권호 표지
DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

From Possession to Relationship -An Investigation of the Consumer-driven Anthropomorphism of Fashion Goods-

  • Hur, Hee Jin (Dept. of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design, Seoul National University) ;
  • Kwon, Yoo Jin (Dept. of Human Ecology, Korea National Open University)
  • Received : 2019.06.21
  • Accepted : 2019.10.31
  • Published : 2019.12.31
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

This qualitative study delves into consumers' meanings, perceptions, and behaviors toward the anthropomorphism of fashion goods based on personal experiences. Previous studies focused on consumer responses to the marketer-driven anthropomorphism of products, messages, and brands; however, the present study examines consumers' spontaneous anthropomorphism focusing on personal meanings as a possessor and meanings in their social relationships. A qualitative methodology is adopted that involves in-depth interviews with eleven males and females in their 20s and 30s. Participants stated that were engaged in the anthropomorphic practice of fashion goods on a daily basis. Data analysis was based on grounded theory. Findings on consumer-driven anthropomorphism are discussed at personal and interpersonal levels. At the personal level, anthropomorphic objects are their companions that are often called "baby." Interestingly, anthropomorphism reduces the stigmas of materialism from the participants' side. At the interpersonal level, anthropomorphic practice is a ritual of sharing a common interest and assuring intimacy. Implications and suggestions for future research are also discussed.

Keywords

References

  1. Aaker, D. A. (1996). Building strong brands. New York, NY: Free Press.
  2. Aaker, J. L. (1997). Dimensions of brand personality. Journal of Marketing Research, 34(3), 347-356. doi:10.2307/3151897
  3. Aaker, J. L. (1997). Dimensions of brand personality. Journal of Marketing Research, 34(3), 347-356. doi:10.2307/3151897
  4. Aggarwal, P. (2004). The effects of brand relationship norms on consumer attitudes and behavior. Journal of Consumer Research, 31(1), 87-101. doi:10.1086/383426
  5. Aggarwal, P., & McGill, A. L. (2007). Is that car smiling at me? Schema congruity as a basis for evaluating anthropomorphized products. Journal of Consumer Research, 34(4), 468-479. doi:10.1086/518544
  6. Aggarwal, P., & McGill, A. L. (2012). When brands seem human, do humans act like brands? Automatic behavioral priming effects of brand anthropomorphism. Journal of Consumer Research, 39(2), 307-323. doi:10.1086/662614
  7. Arnould, E. J., & Price, L. L. (2000). Authenticating acts and authoritative performances: Questing for self and community. In S. Ratneshwar, D. G. Mick, & C. Huffman (Eds.), The why of consumption: Contemporary perspectives on consumer motives, goals, and desires (pp. 140-163). London: Routledge.
  8. Batra, R., Ahuvia, A., & Bagozzi, R. P. (2012). Brand love. Journal of Marketing, 76(2), 1-16. doi:10.1509/jm.09.0339
  9. Belk, R. W. (1988). Possessions and the extended self. Journal of Consumer Research, 15(2), 139-168. doi:10.1086/209154
  10. Belk, R. W. (1995). Collecting as luxury consumption: Effects in individuals and households. Journal of Economic Psychology, 16(3), 477-490. doi:10.1016/0167-4870(95)98956-X
  11. Beverland, M. B., & Farrelly, F. J. (2010). The quest for authenticity in consumption: Consumers' purposive choice of authentic cues to shape experienced outcomes. Journal of Consumer Research, 36(5), 838-856. doi:10.1086/615047
  12. Blackstone, M. (1993). Beyond brand personality: Building brand relationships. In D. A. Aaker & A. L. Biel (Eds.), Brand equity and advertising: Advertising's role in building strong brands (pp. 113-124). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
  13. Boya, U. O., Dotson, M. J., & Hyatt, E. M. (2015). A comparison of dog food choice criteria across dog owner segments: an exploratory study. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 39(1), 74-82. doi:10.1111/ijcs.12145
  14. Butterfield, M. E., Hill, S. E., & Lord, C. G. (2012). Mangy mutt or furry friend? Anthropomorphism promotes animal welfare. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48(4), 957-960. doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2012.02.010
  15. Cacioppo, J. T., & Hawkley, L. C. (2009). Perceived social isolation and cognition. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 13(10), 447-454. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2009.06.005
  16. Cacioppo, J. T., Hawkley, L. C., Ernst, J. M., Burleson, M., Berntson, G. G., Nouriani, B., & Spiegel, D. (2006). Loneliness within a nomological net: An evolutionary perspective. Journal of Research in Personality, 40(6), 1054-1085. doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2005.11.007
  17. Chandler, J., & Schwarz, N. (2010). Use does not wear ragged the fabric of friendship: Thinking of objects as alive makes people less willing to replace them. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 20(2), 138-145. doi:10.1016/j.jcps.2009.12.008
  18. Chen, R. P., Wan, E. W., & Levy, E. (2017). The effect of social exclusion on consumer preference for anthropomorphized brands. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 27(1), 23-34. doi: 10.1016/j.jcps.2016.05.004
  19. Davis, F. (1992). Fashion, culture, and identity. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.
  20. del Mar Pàmies, M., Ryan, G., & Valverde, M. (2016). What is going on when nothing is going on? Exploring the role of the consumer in shaping waiting situations. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 40(2), 211-219. doi:10.1111/ijcs.12244
  21. Epley, N., & Waytz, A. (2010). Mind perception. In S. T. Fiske, D. T. Gilbert, & G. Lindzey (Eds.), Handbook of social psychology (5th ed., pp. 498-541). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
  22. Epley, N., Waytz, A., Akalis, S., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2008). When we need a human: Motivational determinants of anthropomorphism. Social Cognition, 26(2), 143-155. doi:10.1521/soco.2008.26.2.143
  23. Epley, N., Waytz, A., & Cacioppo J. T. (2007). On seeing human: A three-factor theory of anthropomorphism. Psychological Review, 114(4), 864-886. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.114.4.864
  24. Fetscherin, M. (2014). What type of relationship do we have with loved brands? Journal of Consumer Marketing, 31(6/7), 430-440. doi:10.1108/JCM-05-2014-0969
  25. Fournier, S. (1998). Consumers and their brands: Developing relationship theory in consumer research. Journal of Consumer Research, 24(4), 343-373. doi:10.1086/209515
  26. Ghuman, M. K., Huang, L., Madden, T. J., & Roth, M. S. (2015). Anthropomorphism and consumer-brand relationships: a cross-cultural analysis. In S. Fournier, M. Breazeale, & J. Avery (Eds.), Strong brands, strong relationships (pp. 135-148). London: Routledge.
  27. Gray, H. M., Gray, K., & Wegner, D. M. (2007). Dimensions of mind perception. Science, 315(5812), 619. doi:10.1126/science.1134475
  28. Higgins, E. T. (1996). Knowledge activation: Accessibility, applicability, and salience. In E. T. Higgins & A. W. Kruglanski (Eds.), Social psychology: Handbook of basic principles (pp. 133-168). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
  29. Hume, D. (1956). The natural history of religion. London: A. & C. Black.
  30. Hur, J. D., Koo, M., & Hofmann, W. (2015). When temptations come alive: How anthropomorphism undermines self-control. Journal of Consumer Research, 42(2), 340-358. doi:10.1093/jcr/ucv017
  31. Jeon, E.-j. (2012). A linguistic analysis of slang, which is registered in 'Youth Slang Dictionary' in smart-phone application. The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea, 20(1), 267-293.
  32. Kim, M. (2014). The role of brand personification in building consumer-brand relationship. Management & Information Systems Review, 33(4), 77-97. doi:10.29214/damis.2014.33.4.006
  33. Kim, S., & McGill, A. L. (2011). Gaming with Mr. Slot or gaming the slot machine? Power, anthropomorphism, and risk pe rception. Journal of Consumer Research, 38(1), 94-107. doi: 10.1086/658148
  34. Kim, Y.-J. (2014). The influence of anthropomorphised message on donation intention: The construal level effect. Korean Journal of Consumer and Advertising Psychology, 15(4), 649-663. doi:10.21074/kjlcap.2014.15.4.649
  35. Kivetz, R., & Simonson, I. (2002). Earning the right to indulge: Effort as a determinant of consumer preferences toward frequency program rewards. Journal of Marketing Research, 39 (2), 155-170. doi:10.1509/jmkr.39.2.155.19084
  36. Landwehr, J. R., McGill, A. L., & Herrmann, A. (2011). It's got the look: The effect of friendly and aggressive "facial" expressions on product liking and sales. Journal of Marketing, 75 (3), 132-146. doi:10.1509/jmkg.75.3.132
  37. Leem, J.-H. (2008). The notion and embodiment of anthropomorphism. Journal of Korea Design Forum, 21, 65-76. doi:10.21326/ksdt.2008..21.006
  38. Leyens, J.-P., Cortes, B., Demoulin, S., Dovidio, J. F., Fiske, S. T., Gaunt, R., … Vaes, J. (2003). Emotional prejudice, essentialism, and nationalism The 2002 Tajfel lecture. European Journal of Social Psychology, 33(6), 703-717. doi:10.1002/ejsp.170
  39. Mugge, R., Schifferstein, H. N. J., & Schoormans, J. P. L. (2010). Product attachment and satisfaction: understanding consumers' post-purchase behavior. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 27(3), 271-282. doi:10.1108/07363761011038347
  40. Muniz, A. M., Jr., & O'Guinn, T. C. (2001). Brand community. Journal of Consumer Research, 27(4), 412-432. doi:10.1086/319618
  41. Murray, J. B. (2002). The politics of consumption: A re-inquiry on Thompson and Haytko's (1997). "Speaking of Fashion". Journal of Consumer Research, 29(3), 427-440. doi:10.1086/344424
  42. Okada, E. M. (2005). Justification effects on consumer choice of hedonic and utilitarian goods. Journal of Marketing Research, 42(1), 43-53. doi:10.1509/jmkr.42.1.43.56889
  43. Puzakova, M., Kwak, H., & Rocereto, J. (2009). Pushing the envelope of brand and personality: Antecedents and moderators of anthropomorphized brands. In A. L. McGill & S. Shavitt (Eds.), NA - Advances in Consumer Research: Vol. 36 (pp. 413-420). Duluth, MN: Association for Consumer Research.
  44. Ricoeur, P. (1981). The rule of metaphor: Multi-disciplinary studies of the creation of meaning in language (R. Czerny, Trans.). Toronto: University of Toronto Press. (Original work published 1978)
  45. Schau, H. J. (2000). Consumer imagination, identity and self-expression. In S. J. Hoch & R. J. Meyer (Eds.), NA - Advances in Consumer Research: Vol. 27 (pp. 50-56). Provo, UT: Association for Consumer Research.
  46. Schifferstein, H. N. J., & Zwartkruis-Pelgrim, E. P. H. (2008). Consumer-product attachment: Measurement and design implications. International Journal of Design, 2(3), 1-14.
  47. Schultz, S. E., Kleine, R. E. III, & Kernan, J. B. (1989). "These are a few of my favorite things" Toward an explication of attachment as a consumer behavior construct. In T. K. Srull (Ed.), NA - Advances in Consumer Research: Vol. 16 (pp. 359-366). Provo, UT: Association for Consumer Research.
  48. Shen, Y.-C., Bei, L.-T., Yang, C. W.-H., & Lee, C. T. (2014). I anthropomorphize therefore I am: a metaphorical explanation to the reflectional functions of product anthropomorphism. In J. Cotte & S. Wood (Eds.), NA - Advances in Consumer Research: Vol. 42 (pp. 570-571). Duluth, MN: Association for Consumer Research.
  49. Staske, S. A. (1999). Creating relational ties in talk: The collaborative construction of relational jealousy. Symbolic Interaction, 22(3), 213-246. doi:10.1525/si.1999.22.3.213
  50. Spradley, J. P. (1979). The ethnographic interview. New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
  51. Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1990). Basic of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
  52. Sun, G., D'Alessandro, S., & Johnson, L. (2014). Traditional culture, political ideologies, materialism and luxury consumption in China. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 38 (6), 578-585. doi:10.1111/ijcs.12117
  53. Tan, T. M., Salo, J., Juntunen, J., & Kumar, A. (2018). A comparative study of creation of self-brand connection amongst wellliked, new, and unfavorable brands. Journal of Business Research, 92, 71-80. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.07.011
  54. Thompson, C. J., & Haytko, D. L. (1997). Speaking of fashion: Consumers' uses of fashion discourses and the appropriation of countervailing cultural meanings. Journal of Consumer Research, 24(1), 15-42. doi:10.1086/209491
  55. Turner, M. (1987). Death is the mother of beauty: Mind, metaphor, criticism. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
  56. van den Hende, E. A., & Mugge, R. (2014). Investigating genderschema congruity effects on consumers' evaluation of anthropomorphized products. Psychology & Marketing, 31(4), 264-277. doi:10.1002/mar.20693
  57. Wallendorf, M., & Arnould, E. J. (1988). "My favorite things": A cross-cultural inquiry into object attachment, possessiveness, and social linkage. Journal of Consumer Research, 14(4), 531-547. doi:10.1086/209134
  58. Wang, L. C., Baker, J., Wagner, J. A., & Wakefield, K. (2007). Can a retail web site be social? Journal of Marketing, 71(3), 143-157. doi:10.1509/jmkg.71.3.143
  59. Waytz, A., Cacioppo, J., & Epley, N. (2010). Who sees human?: The stability and importance of individual differences in anthropomorphism. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 5(3), 219-232. doi:10.1177/1745691610369336