Which model looks most like me? Explicating the impact of body image advertisements on female consumer well-being and consumption behaviour across brand categories

Abstract

Should brands continue to espouse the traditional thin female models in advertisements or follow the trend towards using larger-sized models? Although the effects of model body size in advertising has been investigated in literature, much inconclusive evidence remains. This study re-examines this important topic from the perspectives of social comparison and self-congruity and investigates the impact of different model body sizes on consumer well-being measures and advertising effectiveness, specifically examining a salient mediating mechanism and boundary conditions to the effect. Across two studies using different brand categories (fast fashion and luxury), we find that, women generally assimilate to an average-sized model over a thin-sized or plus-sized model in advertising. This, however, did not affect their subsequent body satisfaction. Moreover, women’s body mass index (BMI) moderated the mediating relationship between model size and purchase intentions via perceived similarity to the model. These findings implicate more support for realistic model portrayals in advertising.

Keywords:

• Model size
• social comparison
• self-congruity
• BMI
• advertising effectiveness
• consumer well-being

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by Start-up Grant at Nanyang Technological University [Grant Numbers M4081983.060].

Notes on contributors

Chen Lou

Chen Lou (Ph.D., Michigan State University) is an Assistant Professor of Integrated Marketing Communication in the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Her research focuses on consumer behavior, media psychology, and consumer analytics. From this perspective, she has investigated how consumers process information and the mechanisms through which marketing communications affect consumer behavior. Her work has appeared in the Journal of Advertising, International Journal of Advertising, Journal of Interactive Advertising, Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Journal of Product and Brand Management, Media Psychology, among others.

Caleb H. Tse

Caleb H. Tse is an assistant professor of marketing at Nanyang Business School, Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. His research focuses on marketing strategy, international business, and advertising. His work has been published in the Journal of Marketing, Journal of Management, Journal of World Business, Journal of Business Research, Journal of International Marketing, Journal of Advertising, Journal of Advertising Research, and International Journal of Advertising.