Izza Jaffery

Academic

Verbatim text

Responses Changing Representation A Study of Objectification in Advertising in Pakistan Individuals have been objectified in advertisements in order to serve commercial interests in most countries around the world. There has been a great deal of research in the past related to this phenomenon. However, when it comes to an in-depth understanding of the reasons behind its use, the responses to these appeals and their impacts, there is very limited knowledge available. Our research pertains particularly to analyzing the use of objectifying women, men, and children in advertisements. With that we aim to understand the response of the audience towards such ads, and the impact of this responses on the advertising campaigns in order to gain deeper insights into the matter, all of which was focused specifically on the advertisements of Pakistan aired in the last 5-6 years. Our qualitative research was partially explanatory and partially exploratory. The units of analysis were brand advertisers of the five selected ads (n=5) containing objectification of either women, men, or children, and focused groups of 7-8 viewers of each ad (n=35-40). As per the findings of our study, we concluded why there is a need to use objectification in advertisements, how the responses towards such advertisements vary according to different educational levels, and lastly whether these responses have been impactful enough to create an evolution in the strategies and appeals used by the advertisers. Area of Study: Marketing Supervisor Name: Ms. Sarah Khan Group Members: Izza Jaffery (i17 - 0754)