2009/10/07 by Anne M. Brumbaugh
Social Sciences · #Gender Roles and Identity Studies #Media, Gender, and Advertising #Social and Intergroup Psychology
paper · pdf · doi:10.1002/mar.20308
openalex publication_date 2009/10/07 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Abstract Three quasi‐experimental studies with nonstudent samples reveal that one's ability to identify with a character shown in an ad based on shared race depends on the construction of the ad and the context in which characters are depicted. Results show that race‐based identification overshadows both gender‐ and role‐based identification for a racially targeted ad for distinctive black subjects but occurs for both black and white subjects for a culturally ambiguous ad. Further, results show that race‐based character identification is absent when black and white characters are depicted in a mainstream inclusive ad and that dominant cultural norms predominate. Theoretical and managerial implications regarding the contextuality of race‐based identification, processing of source cues, and construction of ads in a pluralistic society are discussed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.