Date Thesis Awarded

5-2015

Access Type

Honors Thesis -- Access Restricted On-Campus Only

Degree Name

Bachelors of Science (BS)

Department

Psychology

Advisor

Cheryl L. Dickter & Catherine A. Forestell

Committee Members

Joanna Schug

Raymond W. McCoy

Abstract

The current studies examined whether the perceptions of and intentions to consume and purchase a beverage would differ as a function of the stereotype consistency between the model’s race and the sport portrayed in an advertisement. Advertisements portrayed a Black and a White male model engaging in a stereotypical and non-stereotypical sport. For Experiment 1, the product advertised was a sports drink, whereas in Experiment 2, the product was a soda. Two hundred eighty eight participants in Experiment 1 and 202 participants in Experiment 2 were asked to view the advertisements and indicate their perceptions of and intentions to consume and purchase the product. Experiment 1 indicated that participants found the drink to be more realistic, would pay more for the sport drink, and thought the sport drink would enhance their performance more when the Black model portrayed the stereotypical compared to the non-stereotypical sport. In Experiment 2 Black participants indicated that they would be more likely to purchase and consume the soda when advertised by the White model portraying the stereotypical sport compared to the non-stereotypical sport. While the race of the model and the stereotype consistency between the model and the sport influenced perception and evaluation of the products, results of both studies revealed that Black participants were more influenced by the race of the model than White participants. These findings have implications for enhancing our understanding of the role of race and stereotypes in advertisements and how they affect perception of high-calorie products, especially for Blacks.

Recommended Citation

Josias Sejour, Dahanah, "The Effects of Race and Stereotypes in the Advertisement of Beverages" (2015). Undergraduate Honors Theses. William & Mary. Paper 122.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/honorstheses/122