Lesson 3. Culture and Ideology

The American culture idealizes what the norm is. Little boys and little girls grow up assuming they should act and feel a certain way. Why would we feel differently when everything surrounding our society emulates the behaviors we should each demonstrate? Throughout my store visits, I have been able to identify and connect products to their intended audience. Hopefully, these examples will provide insight to how society influences marketing to persuade the proposed audience to think "norm."

 

1. Social learning theory  is a cognitive learning process, which means one acquires knowledge through thought, experience, and sense of surroundings. Take, for instance, these toddler toys, both are directed at the same age groups. As one can see, these toys are to plant a seed earlier on to mentally encourage the younger generation to learn their expected place in society. The toys encompass gender specifically by color and intended roles or placement. Manufacturers are persistent in teaching young girls that their expected role is at the home domesticated. It's a stereotype that only boys drive and insinuate control. Therefore, the boys' toys indicate that their future is predestined being in "control of the wheel," future.

2. Androcentrism: centering male human beings or masculine point of view in society. Where men are the focal point of importance and everything else revolves around it. As one can see in this snapshot of a cereal aisle, most of the cereals have male characters on the cover of the boxes. This indicates the dominance of the male presence.

3. With males and females, certain femininiy and masculine behaviors are considered okay for one gender but not the other. This is called gender polarization. For example, on the left there is a pink cape with play heels, this wouldbe acceptable for girls to play dress up with, but not boys. On the right my son is aptempting to build a wall organizer with my husband and dad. In society it is the norm for men to use tools and their hands to build things. However for women, it is not the norm becasue this is considered a man's domain, the garage, whereas the kitchen women have the expectation to bake and cook.

4. Society places specific behavior roles for males and females to abide by. this is considered as Gender role socialization. The picture depicts men who had caught fish. This behavior is considered a man's sport. As one can notice, there are not any females in this picture. Society says it's  the role of a man to provide food. The picture on the right are cook books and the majority have food and women on the covers. This is society's expectation for women to bake and cook, the food that the  men provide. This has been a behavior that has gone back since the caveman age. Not much has really change as it pertains the roles men and women play and set by society.

    

5. Social construction of reality alludes  to  behaviors that are created over time and then become habitual throughout generations. When I think of habitual, I think military soldiers. Thtoughout the decades, men were the primary soldiers  and still to this day remain  to carry a domiant presences. Men were taught that their action of protecing people was thier job and duty to thier country.