Advertiser's Relative Reliance on Collectivism-Individualism Appeals

Abstract Previous research has suggested there is a link between the degree of “individualism” in a country (Hofstede 1980), and the type of consumer advertisements most commonly used in that country. Specifically, the literature suggests that countries like the U.S., with a high score on the individualism index, will tend to focus on benefits to the individual. Alternatively, countries with a low score on individualism, will be inclined to portray individuals in a group setting in advertisements and thus suggest social benefits. This study examined advertisements from eight different countries (U.S., U.K., France, India, Japan, Turkey, Taiwan/Hong Kong and Korea) and contrary to previous studies, found the cultural dimension of individualism to be at best only a minor factor in explaining cross-cultural differences in advertisements.