'Real beauty' in advertising: Fab or fad? A content analysis of female images in magazine advertising.

摘要

The Dove "Campaign for Real Beauty" launched in November 2004, and created buzz among media, advertisers, and consumers. The campaign featured women of all shapes, sizes, ethnicities, and ages, citing a need for advertisers to break away from using stereotypical models (tall, thin, and young) in their advertising and begin using non-stereotypical women. This study is a content analysis of female models of magazine advertising to determine if body shape and size shifted between 2004 and 2006 as a result of Dove's "Campaign for Real Beauty." The goal was to see if one campaign could set the agenda for other advertisers and to examine how non-stereotypical models were portrayed. This study found that advertisers continue to use more stereotypical models than non-stereotypical models in their advertising, which indicates that trendsetters like Dove have not made a significant impact on the advertising industry and the way it defines beauty.