Competent and warm? : examining Asian stereotypes in advertising

According to the Stereotype Content Model (SCM) (Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, & Xu, 2002), competence and warmth are the two key dimensions of stereotype content. Intelligent but nerdy, Asians and Asian Americans have been regarded as high in competence but low in warmth. The purpose of this study is to examine whether consumers perceive Asian models in advertising as more competent but less warm than white models. In addition, an objective is to examine how the model’s race interacts with the model’s perceived warmth and competence to further influence advertising effectiveness. Hypotheses are tested with a (2x2) between-subjects experiment with a national U.S. sample (n=136). Namely, the finding is that compared to White models, Asian models are perceived as both more competent and warmer, regardless of product category. People’s advertising evaluations are less likely to be affected by perceived warmth and competence when ads feature Asian models rather than white models. Indirect results show that: (1) the interaction between a model’s race and perceived competence (warmth) only influences low-involvement (high-involvement) products; (2) for high-involvement products, the influence of a model’s perceived warmth occurs in the opposite direction. For white models, more perceived warmth produces a more positive attitude toward the ad and a higher level of purchase intention for the product advertised. For Asian models in advertising, however, the adverse effect is observed. (3) Ads featuring white models are more likely to be influenced by a model’s perceived warmth or competence levels. More polarized advertising evaluations are found for ads with white models. The main contribution of this study is to the Stereotype Content Model, as it adds evidence that Asian models in advertising are indeed perceived as warm, contradictory to the literature (Fiske et al., 2002). The paper includes implications for theory (building on the Stereotype Content Model and meaning transfer) and implications for advertisers and practitioners of integrated brand promotion.