Current Issue Summary
March 2022 (Vol. 62, Issue 1)

How Male Consumers Respond to “Enlightened Manvertising” Campaigns: Gender Schema, Hostile Sexism, and Political Orientation Feed Attitudes
Reaction to ads gets deeply personal when examining male consumers’ response to what a research duo call “enlightened ‘manvertising’.” Miglena Sternadori (Texas Tech University) and Alan Abitbol (University of Dayton) surveyed 285 U.S. adult males to study advertising messages promoting masculinity as embodying both masculine and feminine traits in a new portrayal of manhood. They found that “men’s gender self-schemas, hostile sexism, support for women’s rights and political orientation are significant antecedents of attitude toward enlightened manvertising messages.” Among the takeaways:

• “Advertisements featuring caring men have the potential to be effective across a variety of contexts, including for masculinity-affirming products rather than only in the context of personal hygiene products.”
• Such campaigns “seem to resonate with masculine and androgynous men.”
• Manvertising messages have greater potential if they are “delivered through channels and contexts that are supportive of gender equality and that appeal to more progressive audiences.”
• Also: “Simply rejecting the ‘antifemininity norm’ of manhood unlikely will have a negative effect, unless it is also accompanied by a perceived attack on masculinity in general.”

Read the full article here.