This study investigates the meaning of advertising through the eyes of the Hispanic consumer and how that meaning is apparent in attitudes and purchase intention. Specifically, the study investigates how ethnic minorities judge print advertisement that feature ethnically diverse models as communication cues. For the first time, data of how minorities evaluate the compatibility of models from different ethnic groups featured together in an advertisement was collected. Qualitative data was collected from Hispanics and typologies of cultural pointers for Hispanics and African-Americans developed. Experimental design, 3x2 within-group analysis, was conducted to test the 14 hypothesized relationships. Finding clearly support the notion that perceived ethnic compatibility of models featured in an advertisement influence resulting attitudes (i.e., toward the actors and advertisement). Of crucial importance is the finding that when viewing an advertisement featuring mixed models (i.e., one Hispanic model and one African-American model), both strong and weak Hispanic ethnic identifiers did not exhibit an intention to purchase the advertised product. This finding challenges the value of multicultural advertising, which feature various ethnic models together to reach several groups simultaneously, to effectively connect with ethnic minorities.

Just as society has changed a lot within the past 100 years, the concept of identity has also evolved significantly. A big factor in the evolution of identity has been the realization that social and group phenomena influence all conceptualizations of identity. In this review, I explore identity through the lens of Optimal Distinctiveness theory (ODT), which proposes that humans have two opposing social motives (distinctiveness and inclusiveness) that position them amidst an internal battle over identity. I start by defining identity and the self, including the distinction between the two. Next, I explore identity formation and different types of identity (personal, social, collective, and organizational). After that, I analyze the central identity motives of belonging and self-expression. Finally, I discuss theoretical approaches to the central question of this paper: when thinking about identity, what is the optimal balance between conformity and individuality? By reviewing the existing literature, I have found that the optimal balance between distinctiveness and inclusiveness is none other than a balancing act. While identity can loosely be thought of as how a person defines themself both as an individual and in relation to others, it is evidently a very complex concept; there are multiple different types of identity, each of which involve balancing the need to fit in with the need to be unique. In order to reach optimal distinctiveness, it is vital for individuals to regularly engage in social interactions, reflect on their identity motives, and recognize the importance of both individuality and conformity.

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Personas är något som används av företag idag inom en mängd branscher och däribland modebranschen. Det används för att skapa en bild av sin kund och rikta sig mot en tydlig målgrupp. Tidigare forskning talar emot att utveckla personas internt inom företag och denna studie har genom en fallstudie, på ett klädföretag som gjort det, undersökt om det går att utveckla personas internt utan extern kundinformation. Modebranschen karaktäriseras av snabba förändringar och befinner sig därmed på en dynamisk marknad. Teorin om optimal distinctiveness menar på att företag på dynamiska marknader behöver anpassa sig till omvärlden för att vara optimalt distinkta, det vill säga att vara distinkta för att sticka ut från sina konkurrenter men uppnå konformitet för att inte bli irrelevanta för det segmentet. Idéen om dessa motstridiga krafter har undersökts för att studera om teorin optimal distinctiveness skulle kunna appliceras på personametoden för att utveckla den, detta genom modellen Optimal Distinct Persona. Fallstudien har genomförts med hjälp av intern information från Företag X, en kvantitativ enkät som genomförts i Företag Xs butiker samt två kvalitativa fokusgrupper. Resultatet från denna fallstudie visade att det går att utveckla personas internt inom företag även fast inte alla kunder stämmer in på samtliga attribut i personabeskrivningen. Resultaten visade även att teorin optimal distinctiveness skulle vara behjälplig för att utveckla personametoden då den i dagsläget kan innebära vissa problem. Modellen Optimal Distinct Persona kan minimera dessa problem genom att använda teorin optimal distinctiveness vid utvecklingen av attribut till personabeskrivningen men även genom att konstant anpassa attributen till omvärlden och kundernas ändrade preferenser. / Personas is something that is used by companies today in a number of industries, including the fashion industry. It is used to create an image of its customer and aim at a clear target group. Previous research speaks against developing personas internally within companies and this study has through a case study, at a clothing company that has done so, investigated whether it is possible to develop personas internally without external customer information. The fashion industry is characterized by rapid changes and is thus in a dynamic market. The theory of optimal distinctiveness means that companies in dynamic markets need to adapt to the outside world in order to be optimally distinct, that is to be distinct in order to stand out from their competitors but achieve conformity in order to not become irrelevant to their segment. The idea of ??these contradictory forces has been investigated to study whether the theory of optimal distinctiveness could be applied to the persona method to develop it, this through the model Optimal Distinct Persona. The case study was conducted using internal information from Company X, a quantitative survey conducted in Company X's stores and two qualitative focus groups. The results from this case study showed that it is possible to develop personas internally within companies even though not all customers match on all attributes in the person description. The results also showed that the theory of optimal distinctiveness would be helpful in developing the persona method as it currently involves certain problems. The Optimal Distinct Persona model can minimize these problems by using the theory of optimal distinctiveness in the development of attributes to the persona description but also by constantly adapting the attributes to the outside world and customers' changing preferences.

Sport team fans identify with a team and continually internalize their favorite team as part of their self-concept (Wann, Melnick, Russel, & Pease, 2001). However, individuals simultaneously act different from the group to fulfill a psychological need to be distinct and unique (e.g., Brewer, 1991). The majority of prior studies in sport consumption behavior have emphasized that the sense of belonging to a sport team significantly influences a fan’s attitude toward the team and consequent sport consumption behaviors. Beyond the fan-team relationship, there has been limited research on why an individual fan behaves differently from others in the group, specifically why and how sport fans assert their personal and collective selves while in groups. Furthermore, fans attach not only to their favorite sport teams, but also to a fan community which support the team. Under the optimal distinctiveness framework, group dynamics are conceptualized as perceived interchangeability of group inclusion to the same group and interindividual differences (Simon & Kampmeier, 2001). This notion highlights the opposing forces or needs between fan distinctiveness (FD), to be distinct from other group members, and fan inclusiveness (FI), to be similar to other group members, as mutual determinants of the interpersonal self. Thus, the purpose of this research is to explore the psychological mechanism through which sport fans in a fan group balance two conflicting needs of group dynamics to make a decision on team apparel consumption. This was accomplished through two studies. Study 1 employed a survey design to confirm the established evidence on the effects of team identification on team merchandise consumption behaviors in prior sport management studies. It also uncovered the role of group dynamics in sport fans’ team apparel consumption behavior. Findings of Study 1 showed that the mechanism of group dynamics was induced by a level of FI, FD, or both. With a sequential association from university identification (UID) to team identification (TID), the group dynamics were shown to significantly influence team apparel consumption behavior. Study 2 replicated the findings of Study 1 with undergraduate students and National Football League (NFL) fans across group contexts. Study 2 was implemented with the same measurement items to investigate whether the effect of group dynamics on team apparel consumption are moderated by social visibility as a situational cue as well as a boundary condition. Study 2 provided additional evidence of the mechanism underlying the impact of group dynamics on team apparel consumption across two different research contexts. The overarching theoretical implication is that the mediator (group dynamics) and moderators (social visibility and context) influence sport fans’ team apparel consumption behaviors. The pendulum effect between the opposing forces of FI and FD in terms of group dynamics provide an insightful idea to extend optimal distinctiveness theory (ODT) framework and advance the theory. FD and FI play a key role in predicting fan unique team apparel consumption behavior. Moreover, if one of the needs, either FD or FI, are too dominate, the pendulum effect will help balance the needs out. The existing concept of group dynamics explains why sport fans seek unique team products, but cannot account for the traditional perspective of TID to consumption behavior models. Therefore, the current findings further understanding of why and how individuals within a group of fans consume team products based on their unique balance between group inclusiveness and personal distinctiveness. The findings will provide practical guidelines for both teams and sports brand marketers to understand the desire of sophisticated consumers to signal their individuality and what products and services should be offered according to the context-specific need. / Tourism and Sport