Female Role in Advertisements / 59

Robert A, Peterson and Roger A. Kerin

The Female Role inAdvertisements:Some Experimental EvidenceDo male and female respondents react the same to nudity?

I N recent years widespread attention has fo-cused upon the roles portrayed by women in

advertisements. Considerable research has beenconducted on this issue and, for the most part,study findings have been disparaging of advertis-ing.^ In particular, advertising has been criticizedfor presenting women as simple-minded, non-career oriented, and male-dependent. Essentially,say the critics, advertising perpetuates archaic anddistorted sex role stereotypes.^

While controversy over the occupational andsocial roles portrayed by women in advertise-ments continues to simmer, there is a second, re-lated phenomenon which may possess even morelong run significance both for marketing managersand society in general. This is the trend towardincreasing eroticism and nudity in advertise-ments.

As Wise, et al have previously noted, the useof erotic or sexual appeals in advertisements ishardly new.^ What is new is the intensity of suchappeals and the increasing number and variety ofproducts being marketed with sexual overtones.

Likewise, one need only peruse almost anymagazine to personally observe the increasing useof nudity, primarily female nudity, in advertise-ments. No longer are fringe media, questionableproducts, or shady firms solely associated with

About the AuthorsROBERT A. PETERSON is Associate Professor Mar-keting, The University of Texas at Austin.ROGER A. KERIN is Assistant Professor of Market-ing, Southern Methodist University, Dallas.

nudity in advertising. Now, not only are nudemodels used to advertise well-known consumerproducts such as cosmetics, ski equipment, andwearing apparel, but they are even used bycompanies like Amoco, Arco and Ashland Oil tomarket industrial products. No longer is nudityemployed solely as a shock device or attention-creating ploy. It is increasingly being used in amore sophisticated and aesthetic sense in a func-tional communication role.

Perhaps the epitome of this new"functionalism" is the Faberge advertisement ini-tially appearing in the October, 1976 issue ofCosmopolitan. In this four-color advertisement, awell-known New York model is posed in anabove-the-waist frontal nude illustration for a skinmoisturizer. The general thrust of the advertise-ment is geared directly toward women and can bedescribed as "female communicating with fe-male.'"*

PurposeWhile there has been considerable discussionabout this particular advertisement, and nudity inadvertisements generally, surprisingly little isknown about the effects of employing either nu-dity or sexual overtones in advertising. The fewempirical studies which have been conducted re-lied heavily upon secondary data analyses or wereless than generalizable due to the subjects em-ployed.*

It is readily understandable that companiesemploying nudity or sexual overtones in their ad-vertisements would be reluctant to release sales

60 / Journal of Marketing, October 1977

data permitting direct measurement of the effectsof such advertisements. Still, it should be possibleto partially evaluate the effects of such advertise-ments by means of pertinent attitudinal studies.This is the purpose of the present study.

Specifically, the objectives of this researchwere to investigate consumer attitudes toward:

• An advertisement.

• The product displayed in the advertisement.

• The company producing the product.

All three were viewed as a function of the role ofa female model in the advertisement.

Research DesignTo accomplish the research objectives an experi-ment was designed with three factors or indepen-dent variables. These were product type, adver-tisement content, and respondent sex. The firsttwo factors were manipulation factors, the latterwas a control factor.

Two products were employed in thestudy—a body oil (a personal feminine product)and a ratchet wrench set (an impersonal mas-culine product). The brand name assigned to bothproducts was the same; both products were called

Four advertisements were prepared for eachproduct. The copy was identical for each adver-tisement. Only the illustration differed among theadvertisements.

Product-Only AdvertisementsIn this advertisement the product was presentedby itself on a covered, waist-high pedestal. Thepedestal stood in front of an innocuous brickbackground.

Product and Model AdvertisementsIn three advertisements a professional model waspositioned partially behind the product andpedestal. Her hands rested lightly on the pedestalto the side and rear of the product.

• The Demure Model In one advertisementthe model was dressed in a long-sleeved,medium dark blouse which was completelybuttoned down the front and tucked into apair of tan slacks. This was called the "de-mure model" advertisement.

• The Seductive Model In a second advertise-ment the model was dressed in the same

blouse and slacks. However, in this instancethe blouse was completely unbuttoned, andwas fastened only by knotting the blouse atsternum level. Hence, the blouse was rela-tively open, and exposed some midriff andcleavage. This was termed the "seductivemodel" advertisement.

• The Nude Model In a third advertisementthe .model was completely undressed. Thiswas characterized as the "nude model" ad-vertisement.

Study subjects were 224 middle-class adultsin three southwestern metropolitan areas. Becausesex of subject was an experimental factor, datawere analyzed separately for the 112 males and112 females.

Data collection was carried out by means ofin-home personal interviews. Subjects werehanded a portfolio of three "mock-up" advertise-ments and requested to independently evaluateeach advertisement under the guise of a new prod-uct test. Two of the advertisements were "dum-mies", and were identical for all subjects. The thirdadvertisement was the experimental one.

After viewing the advertisements, respon-dents were asked to indicate on 7-point scale:

• whether the advertisement itself is appealing . . .unappealing.

• whether the product advertised is high quality. . . low quality.

• whether the company which produces theproduct advertised is repMfflb/e . . . not reputable.

As shown in Exhibit 1, there were 16 differentcells in the experiment with each corresponding toone particular treatment combination:

Sex (2) X Ads (4) X Products (2)

EXHIBIT 1Experimental Design

Product Respondents

BodyOil

RatchetSet

Male

Female

Male

Female

Type of Advertisement

ProductOnly

1

5

9

13

DemureModel

2

6

10

14

Seduc-tive

Model

3

7

11

15

NudeModel

4

8

12

16

Female Role in Advertisements / 61

EXHIBIT 2Significance Levels for Experimental Effects

Effects

Product (P)

Respondent (R)

Advertisement (A)

P X R

P X A

R X A

P X R X A

Dependent Variables

Adver-tisementAppeal

N.S.

.000

.10

N.S.

.02

.01

N.S.

ProductQuality

N.S.

.001

.000

N.S.

.000

N.S.

N.S.

CompanyReputation

N.S.

.08

.000

N.S.

.02

N.S.

N.S.

EXHiBiT 3Advertisement Illustration Evaluation

Fourteen subjects were randomly assigned to eachcell. For example, cell 1 contained 14 males whowere exposed to a body oil advertisement in whichthe illustration consisted solely of a container ofbody oil.

ResultsData were analyzed by means of standard analysisof variance (ANOVA) techniques. This was doneseparately for each of the three dependent vari-ables. Exhibit 2 contains summary findings fromthese analyses. In general:

• There were no differences between the man-ner in which the two products—body oil andratchet set—were perceived.

• Males were more favorably disposed towardthe advertisements, products and producingcompany than were females.^

Most important, significant differences werefound in subject perceptions as a function of adver-tisement type. Exhibit 3 portrays, in diagrammaticform, the main effect due to type of advertisement.Across products and respondents, the advertise-ment containing a nude model was consistentlyperceived as the least appealing, while the as-sociated product and producing company were per-ceived as, respectively, possessing the lowest qual-ity and being the least reputable.

Additionally, there was a consistently sig-nificant product-by-advertisement type interactioneffect. As can be noted in Exhibit 4, the SeductiveModel/Body Oil treatment combination was simul-taneously perceived as the most appealing adver-tisement containing the highest quality productproduced by the most reputable company. The op-posite was true for the Nude Model/Body Oil treat-

100 | -

60

»

I 50

»

nK

40

30

20 -

HighProductQuality

Highly —ReputableCompany

VeryAppealingAdvertisement

Product Demure Seductive NudeOnly Model Model Model

Type of Advertisement lilustratlon

Computed by dividing appropriate mean score by Its scale baseand multiplying the result by 100% .

ment combination. This combination resulted inthe least appealing advertisement with the lowestproduct quality and least reputable company.

Finally, there was one statistically significantRespondent X Advertisement type interaction effect,and that was for advertisement appeal. Males per-ceived the Seductive Model/Body Oil advertisementto be the most appealing, while females evaluatedthe Nude Model/Ratchet Set as least appealing.

ImplicationsIt is tempting to broadly generalize the results ofthis experiment, especially those relating to adver-tisement type. However, restraint must be main-tained, and findings interpreted in light of the usualstudy caveats—subjects, manipulation effective-ness, and data collection. Still, statistically sig-nificant findings were obtained. The fact that thenude model consistently elicited the least favorableevaluations of advertisement, product, and com-pany is, to say the least, intriguing, and certainlymerits further investigation.

One general issue which obviously requiresattention is that of consistency. While prior re-search has demonstrated the need for advertise-ment/audience consistency—the need for an adver-tisement to be appropriate for a given targetaudience—this study suggests the need forproduct/model congruency within an advertisementas well.

62 / Journal of Marketing, October 1977

EXHIBIT 4PXA Interaction Effect for All Dependent Variables: Means and Standard Deviations

Type ofAdvertisement

Product Only

Demure Model

Seductive Model

Nude Model

Ad

fVI

4.25

5.08

3.68

5.33

Appeal

SD

1.75

2.21

1.63

1.87

Body Oil

ProductQuality

M SD

3.82 1.73

3.46 1.77

4.42 1.71

2.07 1.33

Type of

CompanyReputation

M SD

3.59 1.84

3.51 1.91

3.15 1.52

5.41 1.90

Product

Ad Appeal

M

4.48

4.14

4.92

4.88

SD

2.20

2.12

1.76

2.15

Ratchet Set

ProductQuality

M

3.71

3.75

2.36

2.65

SD

2.07

1.09

1.28

1.63

CompanyReputation

M SD

3.54 2.01

3.93 1.70

4.82 1.85

5.07 1.57

The smaller the Mean, the more appealing the advertisement, the lower the product quality or the more reputable the company was perceived to be.

Product/model congruency can be concep-tualized as lying along a continuum, shown in Ex-hibit 5. At one extreme, the model serves a com-municative role; his/her presence is integral to con-veying the message desired. Depending upon theexact copy employed, this functional role might bebest illustrated by treatment cell 8 (body oil, femalerespondent, nude female model).

The exploitive end of the continuum is rep-resented by "cheesecake" advertisements in whichthe model only serves a titillating function. Thisadvertisement type is represented in the presentstudy by treatment cells 12 and 16; the nude modelhas no relationship to the product advertised otherthan physical proximity.

In the middle of the continuum the modelfills a decorative role, neither strictly communica-tive nor exploitive. This is perhaps the mostcommon model role in an advertisement, and it isillustrated to a certain extent by both the demureand seductive model advertisements for the bodyoil product.

To a limited extent the above notion ofproduct/model congruency was empirically sup-ported by the data in the present study. Analysesof those advertisements containing the femalemodel indicated that perceptions were morefavorable when the product was body oil as com-pared to the ratchet set. Indeed, more favorableratchet set evaluations were obtained when theproduct was presented with no model in the ad-vertisement. Needless to say, however, suchfindings must be replicated prior to formulation ofany substantive conclusions.

A second aspect worth briefly mentioning re-lates to a broader issue of whether advertising re-flects or causes (or simultaneously does both)

EXHIBIT 5Product/Model Congruency

•* Functional Roie of Model-

Communicative Decorative

HighCongruency

Exploitive

LowCongruency

societal values. While there appears to be a trendtoward increasing nudity in advertisements, albeit"functional" or "tasteful" nudity, in the presentstudy use of a nude model resulted in the leastfavorable perceptions. Hence, at this time it isperhaps appropriate to question whether market-ers are making a fundamental mistake by employ-ing nudity in their advertisements. Rather thanappearing as innovative (fashionable?), the use ofnudity may ultimately produce deleterious effects,not only regarding perceptions toward the firm'sadvertisements, but even towards its productsand corporate image.

ENDNOTES1. Donald E. Sexton and Phyllis Haberman, "Women inMagazine Advertisements," Journal of Advertising Re-search, Vol. 14 (August 1974), pp. 41-46; Ahmed Bel-kaovi and Janice M. Belkaovi, "A Comparative Analysisof the Roles Portrayed by Women in Print Advertise-ments: 1958, 1970, 1972," Journal of Marketing Research,Vol. XIII (May 1976), pp. 168-72; Alice E. Courtney andSarah Wemick Lockeretz, "A Woman's Place: An Anal-ysis of the Roles Portrayed by Women in Magazine Aci-vertisements," Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. VIII(February 1971), pp. 92-95; Louis C. Wagner and JanisB. Banas, "A Woman's Place: A Follow-up Analysis ofthe Roles Portrayed by Women in Magazine Adver-tisements," Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. X (May1973), pp. 213-14.

Female Role In Advertisements / 63

2. Mary Harvey, "Images of Women in Advertising,"The Corporate Examiner (July 1975), pp. 3A-3D.3. Gordon L. Wise, Alan L. King and J. Paul Merenski,"Reactions to Sexy Ads Vary with Age," Journal of Ad-vertising Research, Vol. 14 (August 1974), pp. 11-16.4. "Faberge Uses Nude Woman in Ad to Women," Ad-vertising Age, September 27, 1976, pg. 8.5. Bruce John Morrison and Richard C. Sherman, "WhoResponds to Sex in Advertising?" Journal of AdvertisingResearch, Vol. 12 (April 1972), pp. 15-19; Major Stead-man, "How Sexy Illustrations Affect Brand Recall,"Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 9 (February 1969),

pp. 15-19; Robert Danielenko, "Do Sexy Ads Sell Prod-ucts?" Product Management, (February 1974), pp, 21-26;Wise, et al, same as reference 3 above,6. The brand name Vade has been shown to be an in-nocuous name. See Robert A. Peterson and Ivan Ross,"How to Name New Brands," Journal of Advertising Re-search, Vol. 12 (December 1972), pp. 29-34.7. There were no statistically significant effects for the"dummy" or control advertisements (median p = .59).This attests, in part, to the internal validity of thestudy.

Alarketing AlemoThe Social Responsibility of Business and Business Greed

The contention that business has an overriding "responsibility" to devote its resourcesto the resolution of certain "social problems," raises another question with long-term impli-cations: Is the basic purpose of business to promote the interests oi owners of the business, orthe interests of non-owners? The popular response may be to opt for the latter, with theargument that businessmen should elevate their motives above the "greedy" pursuit ofmaterial gain, and, instead, use their resources to serve others. But since such a responsenormally comes from non-owners who might anticipate benefitting from such a reordering ofbusiness priorities, one might conclude that their definition of a "greedy" person is "onewho puts his selfish interests ahead of mine."

Butler D. Shaffer, "The Social Responsibility ofBusiness: A Dissent," Business and Society,Vol. 17 Number 2 (Spring 1977), pp, 11-18, atpage 13.