Abstract
This study investigates how drag queen imagery in advertising and mainstream consumers’ tolerance towards homosexuality (i.e., drag queens) affect their attitudes towards the advertisement and brand in the context of beauty brand advertising. Based on the social identity theory, this study posits that implicit (vs. explicit) drag queen-themed imagery and consumers holding high tolerance as an in-group of LGBTQ+ cultures (vs. out-group of lower tolerance individuals) would have greater impact on ad attitude and brand attitude independently and together. A web-based experiment reveals that while different imagery types (implicit vs. explicit) in ads do not differentiate attitudes toward ad and brand, consumers’ individual tolerance of the drag queen culture positively affects such responses. Additionally, the ad imagery and consumer tolerance toward drag queens have an interaction effect on brand attitude via ad attitude in the explicit drag queen-themed imagery condition but not in implicit imagery. The results add insight to a growing body of literature on the LGBTQ+ and social identity theory research and benefit marketers with a better understanding of how to manage drag queen-themed advertisements within mainstream media.
Highlights
In an era of multicultural diversity, marketers are witnessing the widespread presence of cultural and sexual minorities, namely lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and plus (LGBTQ+1) in mainstream media
It is noteworthy that, among the LGBTQ+ communities, we focus on drag queens presented in advertising because they are emerging as key influencers for mainstream media and fashion and beauty marketing
Social identity theory To understand how mainstream consumers respond to drag queen-themed advertising, this study focuses on two factors: (1) the way advertising portrays drag queen imagery and (2) consumers’ individual characteristics relating to the drag queen phenomenon
Summary
In an era of multicultural diversity, marketers are witnessing the widespread presence of cultural and sexual minorities, namely lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and plus (LGBTQ+1) in mainstream media. This lucrative market is growing as the ratio of American adults identifying as LGBTQ+ increased to 4.5% in 2017 from 4.1% in 2016 (Newport 2018), while the purchasing power of this group reached $917 billion in 2015, up from 3.7% in 2014 (Green 2016). According to a recent Gallup Poll, as of 2018, 56% of US adults are satisfied with the acceptance of queer individuals in society, rising 14 percentage points from 38% in 2008. Even for the 38% of those surveyed who indicated their dissatisfaction, there are more people who want to see greater acceptance of gays and lesbians
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