9781422271063

Advertising and Marketing Psychology Business Psychology Clinical Psychology Criminal Psychology Death and Dying Psychology P S Y C H O L O G Y I N A C T I O N

Family Psychology Media Psychology

Performance Psychology Rehabilitation Psychology

School Psychology Sports Psychology

P S Y C H O L O G Y I N A C T I O N

By Leigh Clayborne Anne S. Walters, PhD, ABPP, Consultant Advertising and Marketing Psychology

MASON CREST Mi ami

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C O N T E N T S

Introduction: What Is Psychology? ������������������������������� 6 Chapter 1: Becoming an Advertising and Marketing Psychologist ���������������������������� 10 Chapter 2: History and Development of the Field ��� 26 Chapter 3: Common and Unusual Issues ������������������ 42 Chapter 4: How Psychology Helps ����������������������������� 58 Chapter 5: Takeaways for Everyday Life ������������������ 74 Series Glossary of Key Terms ��������������������������������������� 90 Further Reading & Internet Resources ����������������������� 93 Index �������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 94 Author’s Biography & Credits �������������������������������������� 96 KEY I CONS TO LOOK FOR : Words to Understand: These words, with their easy-to-understand definitions, will increase readers’ understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with additional educational content to supplement the text. Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there. Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis. Series Glossary of Key Terms: This back-of-the-book glossary contains terminology used throughout this series. Words found here increase the reader’s ability to read and comprehend higher-level books and articles in this field.

What Is Psychology? When we look up the meaning of the word psychology , we learn that it comes from two Greek words—“psyche,” which means “mind,” and “logia,” which means “the study of.” Hence, psychology is “the study of the mind.” (Merriam-Webster.com) Essentially, psychology aims to study and better understand emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, with the goal of benefiting society. Those who choose to study psychology generally have a strong urge to help others, though the definition of “others” can vary across concentric circles of influence, from the individual to the family and then on to broader systems such as a school, neighborhood, or society. That urge to help and understand people and their behavior is perhaps the most basic motivator that leads an individual to want to pursue the study of psychology. Some describe psychology as a “hub science” to depict the way that it links to the social sciences, the natural sciences, medicine, and the humanities. In university settings, however, psychology is considered a social science. Social sciences deal with the study of human behavior in its social and cultural aspects. They include fields such as anthropology, sociology, political science, history, education, and economics. These fields are certainly diverse, and yet one can see the commonality: these disciplines all teach us more about how the individual and society interact and influence each other. Another important distinction is the one between psychology and psychiatry. Simply put, psychologists pursue

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graduate level degrees (master’s or doctorate) in psychology, whereas psychiatrists complete medical school prior to specializing in psychiatry. After medical school (and receiving an MD degree), there are three years of psychiatry training to become an adult psychiatrist. If they want to specialize further (such as in child and adolescent psychiatry or forensics), there is additional training in this specialty field for several years and then they must take a board examination to become certified in their specialty area. Psychiatrists can prescribe medication, and psychologists cannot (although in some rural or underserved areas this is an option for psychologists). Psychiatrists are also uniquely suited to understand biological or medical contributions to mental illness. On the other hand, some day-to-day practices of psychiatrists do not look that different from those of psychologists. What does studying psychology entail? There are so many options! Within psychology, there are multiple fields of study. Some of them you will learn about in these volumes, but it would take far too many volumes to cover all of them. If you’re interested in exploring more about psychology beyond this series, you might consider developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, and comparative psychology. Developmental psychology is the study of development throughout a person’s life, from infancy through old age. Some of the more famous developmental psychologists have been Jean Piaget, who identified stages for the development of cognition in children, and B. F. Skinner, who studied the process of learning and taught us about the concepts of operant and classical conditioning. Another field, cognitive psychology, studies human thought: one famous psychologist in this field is Noam Chomsky, who studied the development of language. Comparative psychologists study animal behavior, and in this area Konrad

Introduction

7

Lorenz studied the process by which baby geese “imprint” on the first object they see after birth. If you Google Professor Lorenz, you may see pictures of goslings following him around the yard. Although there are many ways to cluster the various subfields of psychology, one common distinction is between clinical and nonclinical applications, sometimes also referred to as applied psychology vs. basic research . Clinical or applied psychology focuses on understanding and treating psychiatric disorders that challenge day-to-day functioning. Treatment is derived from an evidence base that assesses outcomes or the ways that a treatment is effective. Establishing an evidence base is an important aspect of the work of a psychologist. Some devote their careers to this work, which can overlap with nonclinical or research applications. Researchers use scientific methods to advance knowledge in the field in a variety of topics. These psychologists work in academic settings as well as industry and organizations. Why would you want to become a psychologist or even to study psychology? The field of psychology has countless applications to everyday life, and as such, it can be a jumping off point for many careers. The reader will learn about different psychology careers in these volumes. What’s more, as a major in college, psychology can be applied to a variety of careers outside of psychology, such as human resources, teaching, criminal justice, and many others. For those who have the option to take an elective psychology course in high school, it can be a wonderful opportunity to get a jump start on the weighty decision of what to major in and to see whether the subject matter interests you. In writing this introduction, I can give you a window into a personal choice. I am a child clinical psychologist and have devoted my career to helping children and their families. I work

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in an academic medical center, which means that although I do clinical work, I also teach and supervise psychology students at many phases of their career. In addition, I write for various venues and conduct applied research into the outcomes of the treatment we provide. I am also an administrator, and as such I attend to aspects of psychology as a “business”: hiring and training those who do the work in our setting and tracking our budget, to name a few examples. One of the best things about this career is that every day is different, and yet the common experience is of helping others. In producing this series, we hope that we can provide a window into the varied choices you can make with a degree in psychology. From professor to therapist, working with toddlers or the elderly, teaching business psychology or conducting family therapy, there is likely at least one application of the subject of psychology that will appeal to you. I hope the exploration is rewarding!

Anne S. Walters, PhD, ABPP Clinical Director Children’s Partial Hospital Program Clinical Professor Alpert Medical School of Brown University

Introduction

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A target audience is a group of customers with shared characteristics.

WORDS TO UNDERSTAND

For-profit business: A company that exists primarily to make money. Internship: A short-term, hands-on learning experience that prepares a person for their career. Marketing campaign: A strategic group of advertisements that communicate a clearly defined message about a company or a specific product. Target audience: A group of potential customers with shared characteristics, whom a company tries to convince to buy something.

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For many people today, a diamond engagement ring signifies love and commitment. But that wasn’t always the case. Fewer than 80 years ago, the idea of an engagement ring with a precious stone did not exist. What’s more, people certainly wouldn’t have considered a boring, clear stone like a diamond for that purpose. They would have preferred a colorful ruby, sapphire, or emerald. The year was 1948. Enter a diamond company called DeBeers. It had mines overflowing with diamonds that no one wanted. Diamonds were, of course, known for being the hardest rock on the planet. They had practical purposes in factories and mining; however, there wasn’t a lot of money to be made in those applications. Without a broader target audience to sell their rocks to, they wouldn’t make much money off the mines. They needed a plan. The company decided to convince people that diamonds were desirable, rare, and valuable so they would be willing to pay Becoming an Advertising and Marketing Psychologist

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A diamond company called DeBeers had mines overflowing with diamonds.

a lot for them. Toward that end, DeBeers hired an advertising agency, which developed the slogan “Diamonds are forever,” along with imagery of happy couples in love. They promoted the idea that if a person wanted their happy marriage to last forever, they needed to seal the deal with a stone that would last forever. As a result of this marketing psychology, the diamond began to represent love in people’s minds. What’s more, the size or quality of the diamond represented how much someone loved someone else. Through advertising, the company created an expectation that a man would buy a diamond engagement ring to give to a woman when he proposed marriage to her.

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DeBeers also used the glamor and romance of Hollywood to further the idea that a diamond is desirable. Hollywood actresses were the social media influencers in their day. People wanted to be like them and to buy the things they wore. The company’s advertising agency kept track of which celebrities were wearing diamonds, and how large those diamonds were. The company’s photographers would take pictures and provide them to fashion magazines, which would publish this information as important fashion news. That may all seem old-fashioned by current standards, but in the 1940s, it did the trick. As a final piece of its impressive marketing, DeBeers only released a small number of diamonds from their mines each year. That made the diamonds seem rare, and people were therefore willing to pay even more for them. Because of this persuasive advertising, most women of the time came to believe that a man had to prove his love by purchasing an expensive diamond engagement ring. Both men and women associated a diamond with a promise for a forever marriage. DeBeers tapped into the emotion of love and a desire to keep up with societal expectations, even though these expectations hadn’t existed before the campaign. The advertising was so effective that very quickly people began to believe that this tradition had always existed. Few people questioned it. The truth was that the diamond company was using psychology to manipulate everyone. However, the marketing was so effective that the public did not feel manipulated and believed that the diamond engagement rings made them a happier couple. If a company can make someone believe they’re supposed to be happy because of owning something like a diamond ring, they really can become happier but only for a short time. Although the diamond engagement ring trend has declined over the last 20 years, the marketing and advertising team at DeBeers put a lot of effort into understanding their customers,

Chapter 1: Becoming an Advertising and Marketing Psychologist

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People “have” to have it because a social media influencer has it.

and it worked. Their marketing campaign completely changed how people see diamonds and influenced behavior for generations. They applied marketing psychology to accomplish that nearly 80 years ago. Most people today have experienced psychological manipulation like that. They may have purchased, or asked someone to purchase, something because they felt that they couldn’t live without it. They “have” to have it, because a social media influencer has it, or they keep seeing an advertisement that tells them they need it. Maybe all of their friends are talking about it, too, because they all see the same advertisements. Then they buy the thing. It’s nice for a while, but the happiness fades. They now start looking for something else

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