Ethnic elements in Chinese cosmetic brands: An exploration of digital communication effects on the recognition of Chinese national identity

Abstract

With the growing consumption power of Generation Z and the accelerated development of digital technology in China, the market of domestic makeups is on the rise. Meanwhile, various digital platforms have become the main channel for the promotion of national beauty brands. Therefore, the dissemination of domestic cosmetics information on digital platforms remains a discussion that when social content includes Chinese ethnic elements, whether the audience’s recognition of Chinese national identity can be enhanced. Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) model, with brand familiarity and media richness as independent variables, knowledge of ethnic elements and cognitive cultural intelligence as moderators, as well as cultural perception as mediators, this study investigates digital communication effects on the recognition of Chinese national identity by exploring ethnic elements in different Chinese makeup brands. The research adopts an experimental method and find that: (1) media richness significantly affects audiences’ cultural perception, and cultural perception play a mediating role in the effect of media richness on Chinese national identity; (2) the knowledge of ethnic elements in Chinese makeups negatively moderates the effect of media richness on culture perception; (3) cognitive cultural intelligence intensifies the link between cultural perception and Chinese national identity; (4) brand familiarity positively affects Chinese national identity while it has a negative impact cultural perception. This paper proves the assumptions effectively, and the findings could be expanded to promote digital communication of Chinese culture in the context of national cosmetics brands.