Sex Roles DOI 10.1007/s11199-011-0101-7

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

An Analysis of Nudity in Chinese Magazine Advertising: Examining Gender, Racial and Brand Differences

Ying Huang & Dennis T. Lowry

# Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2011

Abstract This study gives a most recent view of nudity Introduction in Chinese magazine advertising. Focusing on gender, racial and brand differences, the authors content analyzed Sex has been considered a typical Western cultural value 2,058 models in 19 Chinese consumer magazines from a (Cheng and Schweitzer 1996), and was “exported” to Chinese stratified random sample of four months in 2009. Results commercial culture (Cheng and Schweitzer 1996;Johansson showed that female models were more likely to be 1998, 1999;Laing2004). In the context of increasing sexual shown in different levels of nudity than male models, explicitness in Chinese advertising in recent years (Croll and Western models were more likely to be shown in 1995;Yan2004;Zhang2006), this study examines nudity in different levels of nudity than Chinese models, as predicted. advertisements in Chinese consumer magazines. However, regarding brand origin, although Western Sex-related appeals have been among the most popular advertisers portrayed models in higher levels of nudity, advertising appeals in Western countries (Reichert et al. Western and Chinese advertisers did not differ in their 1999). As a major sex appeal, nudity, defined as the amount portrayals when models were examined separately by of clothing a model wears and the way he/she wears it, has brand origin. Our study suggests that sexism in advertising been widely studied in Western advertising, especially in the is a cross-cultural phenomenon, and Western advertising US (e.g., Reichert and Carpenter 2004;SoleyandReid models are the trend setters of sexual images in Chinese 1988). Nudity is often discussed in the context of gender magazine advertising. Chinese advertising is not only a representations, objectification of female bodies and their “melting pot” of cultural values, but also a “melting pot” negative consequences (Frith et al. 2005; Lin and Yeh 2009; of advertising practices. Stern 1991). China officially promotes gender equality, and Chinese females are supposed to “hold half of the sky” Keywords Nudity . Magazine advertising . Gender (Cheng and Schweitzer 1996). How men and women are representation . China . Content analysis sexually represented in a country that was once extolled for being free of exploitation of females (Broyelle 1977) can reveal the extent of nudity content in one of the world’s largest advertising market. Y. Huang (*) China is a typical Eastern country, where tradition values Department of Communication Arts, College of Arts & Sciences, modesty and non-revealing clothing (Croll 1995;Yan2004; University of West Florida, Zhang 2006). In the commercialization of Chinese society in Bldg 36, 11000 University Parkway, recent years, advertising with sex appeals and explicit nudity Pensacola, FL 32514, USA e-mail: [email protected] has been commonly seen (Cui and Yang 2009), challenging Chinese traditional values regarding sex. While the increase of D. T. Lowry sexual content in the U.S. advertising was related to the more School of Journalism, College of Mass liberal attitude towards sex in the U.S. (Soley and Reid 1988), Communication and Media Arts, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, the increase of sexually oriented advertising content in China Carbondale, IL, USA may similarly reflect the changing social standards and Sex Roles attitudes towards sex in the past three decades (Cheng 1994; (before 1949) (e. g., Arnold 1926;Crow1937; Mittler Cui and Yang 2009;Ji2005; Liu et al. 2006; Liu et al. 2009). 2007;Xu1990). These studies of Chinese advertising As China becomes the largest advertising market in the showed that sexually oriented advertising as a conse- Asian Pacific region (Datamonitor 2010), non-Chinese quence of Western influence is not entirely new; it models and foreign brands are increasingly visible (Liu et started after the turn of the century and flourished in al. 2009). Consequently, scholars cannot obtain a com- the business center Shanghai in the 1920s and 1930s plete picture of nudity in Chinese advertising without (Cheng 2000;Wang1997). differentiating model and brand origin. In addition, since Nudity in visual advertising has been intertwined with values about sex differ across cultures (Nelson and Paek cultural values regarding sex and women’s position in 2005), comparison of Western and Chinese models, and Chinese society since commercial advertising started to Western and Chinese brands can yield insight into how appear at the end of Chinese empires. As early as 1905, elements of “foreignness” contribute to the overall pres- the British Tobacco Company used skimpily dressed ence of nudity. Western women in suggestive poses on its cigarette cards By examining advertising models’ degrees of nudity in in Shanghai (Laing 2004; Mittler 2007). Although ini- 19 Chinese consumer magazines from 2009, the purpose of tially the erotic women in Chinese advertising were not this study was to see the extent to which nudity differed in welcomed by the Chinese public in the early 20th century, by Chinese advertising between different genders, races and the 1930s, eroticized women were frequently seen in Chinese brands. It adds to the understanding of sexual content in art and print advertising in Shanghai (Cochran 2000; advertising in a globalized world. Laing 2004; Mittler 2007). Calendar posters and hangers (yufenpai), the most important form of visual advertise- Model Nudity and Sex Appeal in the Chinese Context ment in the early 1920s China, were strongly influenced by Western advertising and visual convention in form “Sex” as a Cultural Value and “Sexy” Advertising and content. They commonly featured fashionably in Chinese History dressed young females in fitted cheongsam or modern Western clothing, such as bathing suits, and reached all In ancient China, sexual relations were relatively freely levels of society (Chen and Feng 2004;Laing2004). talked and written about. As in many societies, erotic paint- Western influences during that period can also be seen ings also existed in ancient China (van Gulik 1961). During in the poses and hairstyles of female advertising models the Tang Dynasty (618–907), the imperial rulers adopted an portrayed. Some Chinese calendar artists even borrowed open attitude towards other cultures, and the conservative images from magazine advertisements in the U.S. and Confucian codes were not strictly followed. As a result of featured partially nude models (Dal Lago 2000;Laing cultural and economic prosperity, Chinese women enjoyed a 2004; Mittler 2007). high level of personal freedom, and the style of Chinese More recently, during the Mao Era, however, the promo- costumes proliferated in China (Benn 2004; Zhang 2006). tion of gender equality in the Communist way led to the Many poems during that time portrayed women in transparent expectation that Chinese women work and dress like men. or semi-nude dress (Chen and Feng 2004; Wang 2004). The officials celebrated the Iron Girls, “strong, robust, mus- When Confucian values gained more support from the cular women who boldly performed physically demanding rulers from the 13th century on, however, circulation of jobs traditionally done by men” (Honig 2002 p.255). The literature related to sex was restricted, leading to the “secre- promotion of strong women, in fact, resulted in denouncing tiveness of sex matters” (van Gulik 1961 p. XII). The female identity and individual expression. During that time, Confucian values were prevalent in all aspects of Chinese the only type of advertising, posters that promoted socialist society in the succeeding dynasties, which required Chinese ideologies, often featured women in short hair, dressed in women to be obedient and wear non-revealing clothes (Croll army attire or in plain-colored clothes (Honig 2002; Laing 1995;Yan2004; Zhang 2006). In many dynasties, women 2004). Due to the long time suppression of female sexuality, practiced bust-binding to conceal the curves of their figures association between large breasts and femininity is relatively (Zhang 2006). As a result, sex was rarely talked about in the new in China (Johansson 1998). Even the Chinese term for public arena, and seductively dressed women were com- “sexy,”“xin gan” is a relatively new phrase in the Chinese monly considered disrespectful in recent Chinese history vocabulary. (Cheng 1994, 1997a). Although many studies have focused on the fast-growing More Recent Changes in “Sexy” Advertising Chinese consumer market in the past three decades, few scholars have paid attention to the influence of Western Women’s images in Chinese advertising continued to brandsandadvertisinginChina in the pre-Mao period change after China opened its market in the early 1980s. Sex Roles

Examination of Chinese official women’s magazines of sexual imagery in advertising. Since the central use showed the promotion of the “modern woman,” who of sex appeals is to attract consumers’ attention and to invests in her beauty and indulges in hedonist consump- elicit their reaction, after they get habituated to sexually tion (e.g., drinking at a night club) (Johansson 2001). provocative messages over time, sexual content has to Although initially advertisements in these magazines cau- get more explicit in order to gain the same level of tiously displayed female models, in the early 1990s, attention as before. On the other hand, some authors more nudity appeared. This change reflected the fact that argued that, since advertising reflects social trends, the Chinese women enjoyed more personal and financial increase of sexual explicitness is consistent with the freedom (Johansson 2001). changing attitude towards sexual relationships in a society In the past decade, notions about sex in China have (Cheng 1994; Reichert and Carpenter 2004; Soley and undergone substantial change, and sex is no longer a Reid 1988). taboo subject. Critics observed that with its growing A recent study found that Chinese consumers favored ads economy and looser government restriction on personal without sex appeals over ads with sex appeals. Consumers life, China is undergoing “a sexual revolution” (China also responded more favorably to ads with Chinese models discovers 2008). Calvin Klein billboards are not new, than Western models when sex appeals were used (Cui and and sex-related news is commonly seen on newspaper Yang 2009). front pages (Liu et al. 2006). In 2006, a McDonald’s quarter pounder commercial that showed finger sucking Predictors of Nudity in Advertising and licking by both a young man and woman was successfully aired (Cebrzynski 2006;Faircloughetal. Scholars have examined a number of factors that may 2006). According to a study by a Chinese sociologist, influence nudity and sex appeals in advertising, including the rate of premarital sex in Beijing has increased from government regulation, masculine/feminine orientation, 15.5% in 1989 to about 60%-70% in 2004 (Zhao 2005). media type, product category, year, gender, brand and Considering sex as a cultural value, Cheng (1994) model origin (Cheng 1994; Nelson and Paek 2005, found it increased from 1982 to 1992 in a convenience 2008; Reichert et al. 1999). Since race and gender are sample of Chinese advertisements in eight magazine among the most prominent factors in media representations, categories (Cheng 1994). In addition, in the Chinese and since global advertisers are keen to know advertising version of Esquire, a global men’s magazine, sex appeal practice in local markets, this study, the first comprehensive increased significantly in recent years (Ji 2005). However, study of nudity in Chinese advertising, examined gender, levels of nudity in Chinese advertising were found to be model race, and brand origin differences. low in comparison with a number of other countries (Nelson and Paek 2005). They proposed that levels of Gender Differences nudity in advertising are related to a country’s govern- ment control, sexual freedom and the masculine/feminine Two studies of 1964 and 1984 print advertising in the orientation of that country. Since China has strict gov- U.S. found that female models were more likely to be ernment control, less sexual freedom and is a masculine- shown as partially clad or nude than male models oriented country, Chinese advertising had lower levels of (Soley and Kurzbard 1986; Soley and Reid 1988). nudity when compared with advertising in six other Eastern Reichert et al. (1999) found that females were three times and Western countries. more likely than males to be portrayed in sexually explicit images in U.S. print advertisements from 1983 and 1993. Data Studies on Nudity in Advertising from an updated study by Reichert and Carpenter (2004) showed that women were more likely than men to be shown Nudity (models in various stages of undress) represents “a as suggestive, partially clad and nude. fundamental type of sex in advertising” (Reichert 2003 p. 14). Gender differences in advertising have been found to be a Previous studies have found an increase in sexual content over cross-cultural phenomenon. A comparative study in U.S. time in both frequency and explicitness in U.S. advertising and French women’s magazine advertisements reported that (e.g., Soley and Kurzbard 1986; Soley and Reid 1988; women were used for sex appeal more frequently than men Reichert and Lambiase 2003). in both countries (Biswas et al. 1992). Arima (2003) inves- Advertisers use sexual content “to attract attention to tigated men and women’s roles in television commercials in their messages, to appeal to audiences that approve of its Japan and found women were more likely than men to be use, and to demonstrate the ‘outcomes’ of buying and using filmed in close-ups which focused on the models’ revealing the Brand” (Reichert and Carpenter 2004 p.824). Scholars clothing. In a cross-cultural study of television commercials used the concept of habituation to explain the increasing use in seven countries (Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, South Sex Roles

Korea, Thailand and the United States), Nelson and Paek and Landry 2007). In a study on a random sample of nine (2008) found female models ranked higher in levels of magazines in four categories from 1992, Asian American nudity than male models in all countries under study. In models were found overrepresented in business settings and particular, they reported that Chinese females (N0213, in background roles and were seen less frequently in family M0.24) had much higher levels of nudity than Chinese settings and in social relations (Taylor and Lee 1994). males (N0224, M0.02). Several studies examined foreign and local models in East- In addition, studies that exclusively investigated male sex- ern countries. Morimoto and Chang (2009) for example, found ual images in advertising found their sexual explicitness and that Western models were more likely to be featured in beauty, frequency were limited. Kolbe and Albanese (1996)examined clothing and accessories advertisements, while Japanese mod- sole male advertising models in six U.S. men’smagazines. els were more likely to be featured in health aids, automobile They found that few of them were shown in bare chest, and the and travel product and service advertisements in Japanese majority of them were fully clothed. The “not at all clothed” fashion magazines targeting young adult females. Huang and category was less than 7% in all magazines under study. Lowry (2010) examined Western and Chinese models’ roles in McRee and Denham (2006) explored multiple male images Chinese magazine advertising. They found that Western mod- in four U.S. men’s magazines. They found few scantily els were featured only in 11 product categories, and were ’ dressed males. In addition, Bassett s(2009) study of nine concentrated in clothing (36.4%) and cosmetics (38.1%), while magazines from 2007 to 2009 in the U.S. found only 12.5% Chinese models had a more balanced distribution across 23 of the male models were less than fully clothed or nude. product categories. Western models were also more likely to be Based on these previous studies, it was predicted that in featured in non-working roles, while Chinese models were Chinese magazine advertising, female models (Western and more likely to be featured as working in Chinese brand adver- Chinese) would be shown in a higher levels of nudity than tising (Huang 2011). In sum, these studies found that Western/ male models (Western and Chinese). White models were depicted differently from their Chinese H1: Female models’ nudity levels will be higher than that counterparts. of male models. Modern Chinese commercial advertising is a Western import (Cheng 2000; Wang 1997), and the earliest advertis- H1a: Western female models’ nudity levels will be higher ing models in China were Western, introduced in the early than that of Western male models. 19th century through foreign brand advertising (Crow 1937; H1b: Chinese female models’ nudity levels will be higher Mittler 2007). Those models pioneered clad or partially clad than that of Chinese male models. visual portrayals in Chinese commercial media. When com- mercial advertising returned to China after the Cultural Model Race and Ethnicity Revolution in the early 1980s, advertising utilizing sex appeal was again re-introduced by foreign brands (Cheng Model race and ethnicity have been frequently examined in and Schweitzer 1996). Since global advertising tends to use advertising content (e.g., Frith et al. 2004; Nam et al. 2011). standardized strategies, especially for beauty products (Nelson Race, oftentimes discussed together with ethnicity, has been and Paek 2005), scholars believe that those advertisements investigated on both biological and sociohistorical bases brought the “sexy” Western models with them. (Jandt 2010 p. 29). While the term is difficult to define, More specifically, two studies examined racial difference scholars commonly use race to refer to groups of people in Chinese cultures regarding models’ dress/undress. In a who share the same ancestry and cultural background (Jandt study of women’s fashion and beauty magazines in Singapore, 2010). In content analysis, models’ physical appearance (e.g., Taiwan and the U.S., Frith et al. (2004) found that Western skin tone and facial structure; Peterson 1997) and the infor- female models were more likely to wear seductive dress and mation available in the advertising content (e.g., a model’s be featured in the seductive beauty type than their Asian name) are used to categorize race. counterparts. Nelson and Paek (2005) conducted a content Past research has shown that models who differ in race analysis of degrees of female nudity cross seven countries and ethnicity are portrayed differently in advertising, includ- (Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, South Korea, Thailand ing the settings they are in (e.g.,Taylor and Lee 1994), the and the United States) in Cosmopolitan magazine and product categories for which they speak (Briggs and Landry reported that international models were shown in higher 2007; Morimoto and Chang 2009), and the beauty type they degrees of nudity than Chinese models. Therefore, it was appear in (Frith et al. 2004). For example, a study of seven predicted that Western models would wear less than Chinese categories of top grossing U.S. magazines from 2003 found models in the Chinese context. that African American models were more likely to be present in sports magazines, and Asian Americans were overrepre- H2: Western models’ nudity levels will be higher than that sented in advertisements for technology products (Briggs of Chinese models. Sex Roles

H2a: Western female models’ nudity levels will be higher Defining Nudity than that of Chinese female models. H2b: Western male models’ nudity levels will be higher Nudity is the key variable in this study. Reichert et al. (1999) than that of Chinese male models. defined nudity as “the amount and style of clothing worn by models in ads” (p. 8). Similarly, Soley and Reid (1988) Brand Origin defined nudity as “thedegreeofdressofadultmodels depicted in the sample advertisements” (p. 961). Overall, Some authors defined brand origin as “the country in nudity is related to the amount of clothing a model wears, which the headquarters of the brand’sparentfirmare and the way he or she wears it. located” (Balabanis and Diamantopoulos 2008 p. 41), Some scholars operationalized nudity into three categories while others considered it as the place where consumers to designate varying levels of nudity for both women (Peterson perceive the product to belong (Thakor and Kohli and Kerin 1977) and men (Reidenbach and McCleary 1983)in 1996). In this study, brand origin refers to the country experimental studies, including the demure model, the seduc- where a brand is originated, no matter where a product tive model and the nude model. More studies operationalized is manufactured. In the currently globalized market, many nudity into four levels for both men and women (e.g., Reid et Western luxury brands were produced in developing countries, al. 1984; Reichert et al. 1999; Soley and Kurzbard 1986;Soley including China. and Reid 1988), including the demure, suggestive, partially Scholars have been interested in examining the role of clad dress and nude. It was treated as an ordinal variable with brand origin in advertising content (Cheng 1994; Cheng and “nude” representing the highest level of nudity and “demure Patwardhan 2010;HungandLi2006). Their findings sug- dress” representing the lowest. Piron and Young (1996) mod- gested that in Chinese advertising, domestic and international ified Reid et al.’s(1984) coding categories, adding “sexy lips” brands use different appeals and portray models differently. between the “demure” and “suggestive” category. Later Nelson Three studies are directly related to sex appeal and nudity and Paek (2005, 2008) added “0” to indicate no sex appeal. between foreign and Chinese brands in Chinese advertising. Although this scale was originally developed based on televi- Cheng and Schweitzer (1996) found that in commercials from sion commercials (Reid et al. 1984) for both male and female three Chinese TV channels, imported, joint-venture and models, it has been tested and employed in magazine advertis- domestic products used different proportions of sex value ing, in other Western countries and in Asian countries, includ- (11.4%, 1.6%, and .5% respectively). Similarly, in a study of ing China (Nelson and Paek 2005, 2008). Therefore, the five commercials from two Chinese TV channels in 1990 and categories used in Nelson and Paek’s(2005, 2008) studies were 1995, Cheng (1997b) reported that imported, joint-venture adopted and modified in the current study. These categories and domestic products differed in their use of sex value include no nudity, subtle nudity, moderate nudity, partial (2.2%, 2.0%, and 0% respectively). In both cases, joint- nudity, and nudity (see Appendix B for details). venture and imported products were more likely than domes- tic products to feature the value of sex. Nelson and Paek (2005) conducted a content analysis of degrees of female Method nudity across seven countries. They found that international advertisers employed higher degrees of nudity than Chinese This study used content analysis to examine the degrees of advertisers in the Chinese version of Cosmopolitan magazine. nudity of Chinese and Western advertising models in 19 Chi- Therefore, it was predicted that in Chinese magazine adver- nese magazines, including men’s (three titles, all international), tising, Western advertisers would portray models in higher women’s (seven titles, with three domestic and four interna- levels of nudity than Chinese advertisers. tional ones) and general interest magazines (nine titles, with eight domestic and one international). Women’s and general H3: Western brands will show models in higher levels of interest magazines included both domestic and the Chinese nudity than Chinese brands will. language versions of international magazines. While men’ and H3a: Western brands will show Western female models in women’s fashion and lifestyle magazines target young and higher levels of nudity than Chinese brands will. educated urban youth, the general interest magazines target H3b: Western brands will show Western male models in professionals and people of all ages who are interested in higher levels of nudity than Chinese brands will. current affairs. Their selection was based on a combination of H3c: Western brands will show Chinese female models in factors, including advertising spending, popularity, magazine higher levels of nudity than Chinese brands will. parent company (some top listed magazine titles were exclud- H3d: Western brands will show Chinese male models ed if another magazine with the same parent company in the in higher levels of nudity than Chinese brands same magazine genre was already included) and availability. will. Although it is a purposive sample of magazine titles, it was Sex Roles based on the most reliable data available and gives a fairly from analysis, even though both countries share racial and comprehensive view of Chinese magazines. While the authors cultural proximity with China. When necessary to determine tried to include an equal number of international and domestic brand origin, Internet searches were conducted based on the titles in each magazine genre, the status quo of the Chinese brand name and company information in an advertisement. magazine industry is that the Chinese language versions Model origin was operationalized as: (1) Chinese (people of international magazines are highly concentrated on wom- from China, including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan), and en’s and men’s magazines, and few in the general interest (2) Western (Whites of European or North American origin, genre. Therefore, only one international title was included in with Native Indians excluded). Since White is the “stereotyp- the general interest category, and no domestic titles were ical” Western race in the Chinese context (Johansson 1998), included in the men’s category (See Appendix A for details). and it is hard to determine whether foreign non-White models The sampling time frame was January 2009 to December are from Western countries, they were excluded from analysis. 2009. A stratified random sample of 4 months (with 1 month In addition, models from other Asian countries, such as Japan from each quarter) was drawn. All ads with a display space of and South Korea were excluded from analysis. Japanese and one-third page or larger in the sampled issues were selected, South Korean models were recognized by their names in the including advertorials. Since the purpose was to study ads to advertising copy. Other cues used to determine model origin which the average Chinese readers were exposed, ads presented and race included skin tone, eye and hair color, facial features, more than once were counted separately. Although previous and sometimes a background check when the model’sname studies have commonly used a full-page or larger ad as the was available. standard for ad selection, the authors believed this standard did Level of nudity was defined as the proportion of the not suit the nature of the sample in the current study. In Chinese model’s bare body exposed and the type of clothing he/she domestic magazines, advertisements normally occupy less than wore. Modifying Soley and Kurzbard (1986), and Nelson a full page, and many occupy only a third of a page. If only and Paek (2005, 2008), nudity was operationalized into five full-page or larger advertisements were selected, a significant categories. They were: (0) No nudity (the model was fully number of Chinese advertisements would have been excluded. clothed; (1) Subtle nudity (the model’s body—e.g. legs and In the next step, only ads with Western and Chinese adult upper chest—was slightly uncovered; (2) Moderate nudity models were selected for further analysis. Following Piron (the model’s shoulders, chest area or thighs were exposed; and Young (1996), ads with only children, illustrations of (3) Partial nudity (underwear, bikini, swimming suits, and humans and animated characters, body parts (e.g., hands, legs, images that suggested being topless); (4) Nudity (bare bodies, eyes, lips, torsos and so on) of human models were not including those slightly covered by a towel or a piece of cloth). analyzed. In addition, intentionally blurred images, crowds (See Appendix B for details.) of people, human models appearing on packages, book covers After preliminary examination of data, we found the ma- or computer and cell phone screens in an ad were excluded for jority of the male models fell into the “no nudity” category, analysis (Huang and Lowry 2010). and the other four categories had very low counts (see Table 1). In order to give a complete view of the number of Therefore, we collapsed “subtle nudity”, “moderate nudity”, models, the authors coded up to four models within a single “partial nudity” and “nudity” into “some nudity” in the advertisement (Huang and Lowry 2010). Their selection hypothesis testing. was based on their relative size; if more than one model The first author coded all 2,058 human models on four ranked fourth in size, one of them was randomly selected for variables (nudity, gender, model origin, and brand origin). analysis. The reason to code more than one model in a single Conventionally, a subset of 10%-25% of the sample is ad is that many sampled ads had multiple models without an required to calculate intercoder reliability (Wimmer and obvious dominant one, and readers are exposed to all of them. In addition, many previous studies employed this Table 1 Distribution of levels of nudity by gender (N02,058) strategy (e.g., Belkaoui and Belkaoui 1976; Courtney and Lockeretz 1971; Knobloch-Westerwick and Coates 2006). Female Male Brand origin was defined as the country where the brand is originated, no matter where the product is produced. It Count % Count % was operationalized as: (1) China (including Mainland China, No nudity 299 24.2 675 82.1 Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan), and (2) Western countries Subtle nudity 474 38.3 125 15.2 (including the U.S., Canada, Western European countries, Moderate nudity 233 18.9 13 1.6 Australia, and New Zealand). Since this study was designed Partial nudity 223 18.0 3 .4 to see the contrast between China and the West, advertise- Nudity 7 .6 6 .7 ments for brands from Japan and South Korea, and magazine Total 1,236 100 822 100 titles originated from Japan and South Korea were excluded Sex Roles

Dominick 2006 p. 167). In this study, a random sample of When examining Western and Chinese models separately 418 individual models (about 20% of the sample) was coded (H1a and H1b), chi-square tests showed their differences by a second coder. The second coder was a Chinese native were also significant between Western female and Western male speaker who did not know the purpose of the study. A set of models, and between Chinese female and Chinese male models. 50 advertising models in the sample and 50 from other H1a and H1b were supported. This means both Chinese and Chinese magazine advertisements were used to train the Western females were more likely to be featured in some level second coder. About 15 h of training session and discussion of nudity than their male counterparts, as shown in Table 3. were conducted. Using Cohen’s Kappa, the intercoder reli- ability was .972 for nudity, .995 for model origin, .98 for Model Origin brand origin, and 1.00 for gender. All reached acceptable reliability levels according to Neuendorf (2002). H2 predicted that Western models would be shown in higher levels of nudity than Chinese models. A chi-square test showed a significant difference, and H2 was supported. Results When comparing Western and Chinese models for each gender separately, the differences were also significant: 82.4% Sample Overview of the Western females and 69.6% of the Chinese females were shown in some levels of nudity; 25.6% of Western males As indicated in Table 2, 2,058 models were included in the and only 13.1% of Chinese males were shown in this category. analysis, 1,188 in the advertisements for Chinese brands (869 Thus, H2a and H2b were supported. Both Western females Chinese models and 319 Western models), and 870 in the ads and males wore less than their Chinese counterparts. for Western brands (276 Chinese models and 594 Western Brand Origin models). A chi-square test showed that the association between model origin and brand origin is significant: Chinese adver- H3 predicted that models in Western brand advertising would tisers were more likely to use Chinese models, while Western wear less clothing than models in Chinese brand advertising. advertisers were more likely to use Western models. The The results indicated that 48.7% of the models in Chinese brand gender of Western models was highly unbalanced, with almost advertising and 58.2% of the models in Western brand adver- 0 0 twice as many females (N 601) as males (N 312), while the tising showed some levels of nudity (χ2018.2, df01, p<.001). number of males and females among Chinese models was Chinese advertisers employed lower degrees of nudity than more balanced (510 males vs. 635 females). Western advertisers. H3 was therefore supported. H3a and H3b predicted that Western advertisers would Gender Differences show Western female and male models in higher levels of nudity than Chinese advertisers. Surprisingly, there was no H1 predicted that female models would be shown in higher difference between Chinese and Western advertisers’ portrayal levels of nudity than male models. Since the majority of the of Western female and male models (χ202.2, df01, p>.05 for male models were not shown in any level of nudity (82.1%), Western females; χ201.5, df01, p>.05 for Western males). As “ ” level 1 to level 4 were collapsed as some nudity for both shown in Table 4, H3a and H3b were not supported. male and female models. A chi-square test showed that over- H3c and H3d predicted that Western advertisers would all, female models were more likely than male models to be show Chinese female and male models in higher levels of shown in some levels of nudity. Thus, H1 was supported. nudity than Chinese advertisers. The differences for Chinese female models (χ201.1, df01, p>.05) and for Chinese male Table 2 Sample overview: number of models by brand origin and χ20 0 model origin (N02,058) models ( 0, df 1, p>.05) were not significant, and H3c and H3d were not supported. Chinese brand Western brand

Chinese 869 276 Discussion and Conclusion Male 376 134 510 Female 493 142 635 This study set out to give a comprehensive and up-to-date view of nudity in Chinese magazine advertising. Centered Western 319 594 on the differences between gender, race and brand origin, it Male 107 205 312 showed both expected and surprising results. Female 212 389 601 As predicted, results for H1 showed that female models Note. χ2 0358.084, df01, p<.001 for the cross tabulation between wore less than male models, suggesting that sexism in adver- brand origin and model origin tising media is a cross-cultural phenomenon. Similar to studies Sex Roles

Table 3 Proportions of levels of nudity by gender and model origin (no nudity vs. some nudity)

Western female Western male Chinese female Chinese male

Count % Count % Count % Count %

No nudity 106 17.6 232 74.4 193 30.4 443 86.9 Some nudity 495 82.4 80 25.6 442 69.6 67 13.1 Total 601 312 635 510

Note. χ2 0664.5, df01, p<.001 for the difference between female and male models χ2 0283.4, df01, p<.001 for the difference between Western female and Western male models χ2 0365.3, df01, p<.001 for the difference between Chinese female and Chinese male models χ2 069.9, df01, p<.001 for the difference between Western and Chinese models χ2 027.4, df01, p<.001 for the difference between Western female and Chinese female models χ2 020.6, df01, p<.001 for the difference between Western male and Chinese male models conducted on advertising in other countries (e.g., for the U.S., 1991; Reichert and Lambiase 2003). Since this study showed Soley and Reid 1988;Reichertetal.1999; for Brazil, Canada, that less than 20% of the female models were portrayed in Germany, South Korea, Thailand, Nelson and Paek 2008), partially nude and nude (Table 1), we may conclude that the females showed higher degrees of nudity than males, support- extent of female objectification is limited. However, when we ing Reichert et al.’s(1999) statement that “women invariably compare the slightly more than 1% of men in these two are portrayed in more sexually explicit ways than men” (p. 9). categories, the difference is striking. As gender identity is It is also consistent with Nelson and Paek’s(2008) study on constructed partially through advertising (Jhally 2009), the nudity in Cosmopolitan magazine in China. much higher percentage of overt nudity of women (in com- Since the Chinese government began promoting gender parison with men) does not seem to promote an equal gender equality only three decades ago (Cheng 1997a), sexually relationship for Chinese consumers. In addition, advertisers explicit images of women were absent before China started generally portray these sexual images as desirable, feminine, its economic reform (Broyelle 1977). One could speculate and the standard of beauty. When Chinese female consumers that gender portrayals in Chinese advertising may not be the are exposed to these images, according to social cognitive same as those in other parts of the world; however, based on theory (Miller 2005), they may internalize what is promoted the gender differences found in this study, Chinese advertisers in advertising: being sexy is feminine and beautiful. They may are now no exception to practicing sexism in advertising. possibly learn to dress like those models. The gender differences we found held true for both Chinese Also as predicted, results for H2 suggested that Western and Western models (H1a and H1b), something not investi- models showed higher levels of nudity than Chinese models. gated in previous studies. When it comes to depicting sexual When we examine different genders separately, Western images, no matter whether the model is Western or Chinese, females and Western males showed higher degrees of nudity female models use sex to sell more than do males. In fact, than their Chinese counterparts (H2a and H2b). Since Western many of the male models (both Chinese and Western) were races are not native to China, and the majority of Chinese dressed in suits and business attire that fall into the “no nudity” consumers do not have firsthand experience with Westerners, category (82%), while female models were much less fre- according to cultivation theory (Morgan and Signorielli quently shown in formal dress or fully clothed (24%). 1990), they build their perceptions of Westerners mostly Scholars have criticized the overt sexual explicitness of through mass media, of which advertising is an important both females and males as a form of objectification (Stern part. Therefore, those “sexier” Western models are probably

Table 4 Proportions of nudity levels by brand origin, model Brand origin Western female H3a Western male H3b Chinese female H3c Chinese male H3d origin and gender (no nudity vs. some nudity) Chinese Western Chinese Western Chinese Western Chinese Western

No nudity 44 62 84 148 155 38 327 116 20.8% 15.9% 78.5% 72.2% 31.4% 26.8% 87.0% 86.6% Some nudity 168 327 23 57 338 104 49 18 79.2% 84.1% 21.5% 27.8% 68.6% 73.2% 13.0% 13.4% χ202.2***, df01 χ201.5***, df01 χ201.1***, df01 χ200***, df01 Note. *** p>.05 Sex Roles considered by Chinese consumers as representing people in Western influence, based on their judgment on what would Western societies. Miller (2005) suggested that stereotypes in be the best way to sell Chinese products. If how models are advertising contribute at least partially to the misconception of shown in ads for Western brands reflects what is deemed ethnicity, social and sex roles. Emphasizing Westerners as appropriate for Chinese consumers by Western advertisers “sexy” may ignore their other important characteristics. (Westernization), how models are shown in ads for Chinese On the other hand, since a recent experimental study brands reflects the Chinese perception of appropriate repre- showed that Chinese consumers responded more favorably sentations of different genders and races (local assimilation). to ads with Chinese models than ads with Western models Based on the little difference in nudity levels between Western when sex appeal was used (Cui and Yang 2009), the decision and Chinese brand advertising (H3a-H3d), we suggest that to portray Western models in higher levels of nudity may not Chinese advertisers are catching up with Western advertisers. actually be as effective as using Chinese models. Cheng and Schweitzer (1996) suggested that Chinese In fact, sex appeal overall should be used with caution. advertising was a “melting pot” of Eastern and Western cul- Sexual content is generally used for the strong attention it is tural values. Since Chinese advertisers do not lag behind expected to generate. However, strong attention and reactions Western advertisers in their use of nudity, this study suggests elicited from sex in advertising do not mean they are always that Chinese advertising is not only a “melting pot” of cultural favorable (Belch et al. 1981). Studies focused on U.S. con- values, but also a “melting pot” of advertising practices. sumers suggested that the use of overt sexual content can have negative effects regarding brand recall and purchase intention Limitations and Future Research (Grazer and Keesling 1995; LaTour and Henthorne 1994; Simpson et al. 1996). The effects also varied by the gender Focusing on gender, racial and brand origin differences, this of the respondent (Peterson and Kerin 1977; Reidenbach and study examined the prevalence and degrees of nudity in McCleary 1983), gender of the model (Peterson and Kerin current Chinese magazine advertising. We believe this 1977; Reidenbach and McCleary 1983), degree of explicit- study advances the understanding of sexual advertising in ness (LaTour and Henthorne 1994) and product type (Peterson a newly developed and fast growing advertising market. and Kerin 1977; Simpson et al.1996). Future studies on Since it focused on China alone, it did not provide any Chinese consumers may suggest similar patterns. direct comparison between China and other countries. A When we examined models appearing in ads for Chinese cross-cultural study between China and other countries can brands and Western brands separately, a different and surpris- give a clearer picture of differences and similarities in a ing pattern was revealed. Although Western advertisers variety of markets. depicted models in higher levels of nudity overall, supporting Building on previous studies on nudity in advertising, the H3, it is not the case when we examined different races and coding categories of the core variable, nudity, were modified genders separately (H3a-H3d). In particular, Chinese and somewhat for this study. Therefore, the discrepancy in find- Western advertisers portrayed Western females, Chinese ings between this study and previous studies may have females, Western males and Chinese males in a similar fashion originated from the operational definitions, besides the dif- in terms of nudity, which is not consistent with finding from a ferent samples chosen. Therefore, a coding scheme that is previous study (Nelson and Paek 2005). In particular, they applicable to different contexts needs to be developed to reported Western advertisers portrayed female models in higher make comparison among studies possible. levels of nudity than Chinese advertisers in Cosmopolitan Product category is an important predictor of nudity in magazine. The discrepancy in results may be due to the type advertising (Nelson and Paek 2008). Because of its focus on of magazine(s) included in the samples, and the fast changing the Chinese-Western comparisons, this study did not include nature of Chinese advertising industry. product category in its analysis. In addition, the sampling of The limited difference between Chinese and Western magazine titles was not without bias— the distribution of advertisers’ use of nudity may reflect the consumers’ attitude domestic and international titles was highly unbalanced in towards nudity in China and Western societies. In a cross- two of the three genres, making it difficult to compare country study among the U.S., Australia and China, Chinese nudity levels between Chinese and international magazines. consumers’ responses to ads with sex appeals were found to A study that incorporates product category and magazine be similar to that of the U.S. consumers and more favorable origin could give a more comprehensive view of nudity in than Australian consumers (Liu et al. 2009). Chinese advertising. On the one hand, scholars have used the concept of West- Furthermore, this study did not measure any possible ernization to refer to the influence of Western advertising on effects, such as how Chinese consumers perceive variations the practice and content of advertising in non-Western of nudity represented by different models. Experimental stud- countries (Mueller 1992; Nelson and Paek 2005). On the other ies in the future can yield insights into consumers’ responses hand, Chinese advertisers can also assimilate or reject the regarding recall and attitudes, and how those images influence Sex Roles their self-perceptions and gender identity. Also, because of the to be conducted to bridge the gap between incentives and limitations of content analysis, this study provides no informa- content. Lastly, while this study provides the most recent tion on the rationale for choosing these advertising images. picture of how nudity is employed in China, longitudinal Survey research or interviews with advertising executives need studies are of course needed to track the trends over time.

Appendix A

See Table 5.

Sampled magazines

Magazine name Origin Publication frequency

Women’s magazine Bosom friend (知音) Domestic Three times/month Female friend-campus (女友-校园) Domestic Monthly Nukan Binengpai (女刊-白嫩派) Domestic Semi-monthly Shanghai style (上海服饰) Domestic monthly Bazaar (时尚芭莎) International Monthly Elle (世界时装之苑) International Monthly Cosmopolitan (时尚-伊人) International monthly Men’s magazine Esquire (时尚男士) International monthly Men’s health (时尚健康-男士) International monthly For him magazine (男人装) International monthly General interest magazine Financial & business Caijin (财经) Domestic Semi-monthly China entrepreneur (中国企业家) Domestic Semi-monthly Global entrepreneur (全球企业家) Domestic Semi-monthly CEOCIO China (IT 经理世界) International Semi-monthly News & current affairs Life weekly (三联生活周刊) Domestic weekly China newsweek (中国新闻周刊) Domestic weekly New weekly (新周刊) Domestic weekly Oriental outlook (瞭望东方周刊) Domestic weekly Popular science China national geography (中国国家地理) Domestic monthly

Note: 1. According to Li (2007), Bazaar, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Esquire, and Caijin were among the top 10 magazines in terms of advertising spending in 2006. The rest of the top ten magazines that were not in our sample were all global women’s magazines. The three global women’s magazines in our sample (Bazaar, Elle, Cosmopolitan) were the top three in advertising spending 2. According to China Advertising Net (http://www.a.com.cn), Life Weekly and China National Geography were among the top 20 magazines in advertising spending in 2006. The rest among the top 20 list were not chosen due to the fact that some of them were not mass circulated (e.g., Forbes is by subscription only, China Eastern Airlines is an in-flight magazine), and some of them were not available in the local public library where the majority of our samples were from 3. Based on an informal interview with an editor working for a men’s fashion magazine in China, Men’s Health and For Him Magazine had good advertising spending as of 2009 4. Female Friend-Campus, Shanghai Style, China Entrepreneur, Global Entrepreneur, CEOCIO China, China Newsweek, New Weekly, and Oriental Outlook were all sampled magazines in Hung and Li’s(2006) study on images of women in Chinese magazine advertising. Their sample included top four magazines in ad spending in four magazine genres (both domestic and international magazines) in 2002–2003 5. Since there is no other data available on the advertising spending or circulation of domestic women’s magazines, Bosom Friend and Nukan Binengpai were chosen based on their availability. They were also among the most read women’s magazines according the local librarians Sex Roles

Appendix B

See Table 6.

Operational definition of nudity

Female Male

(0) No nudity Only model’s face or head is shown; The model is fully Only model’s face or head is shown; the model is clothed, e.g., long sleeve tops, turtle neck tops, full fully clothed, e.g., long sleeve tops, turtle neck length pants or skirts; short sleeve tops, three quarter tops, and full length pants; short sleeve tops. sleeve tops. (1) Subtle nudity: Close shot of a face and bare neck (including a small V-neck tops or scoop-neck tops that show a small part of shoulders); v-neck tops, scoop-neck tops, portion of the chest; shirts with the top button(s) shirts or blouses that show a small portion of the unbuttoned while upper chest revealed; chest; sleeveless/tank tops while other parts are sleeveless/tank tops; shorts at the knees or covered, including where the front of the model is slightly above the knees. covered by her hair; tights under above knee skirts; solid, longer than knee tights; longer than knee pants or skirts (excluding full length); skirts or pants at the knees or showing the knees (without showing the thighs). (2) Moderate nudity Dresses or tops that expose one shoulder, or both Open blouses or shirts which expose lower chest shoulders, e.g., tube tops (tops without shoulder area; sleeveless/tank tops; tight clothes which straps) and camisoles (tops with thin shoulder straps); enhance the figure; abs partially exposed; open blouses, shirts, halter tops or dresses that expose short running shorts. a large portion of the chest area or cleavage; tops or dresses that expose the upper part of the backs; above knee skirts (e.g. mini-skirts), dresses or shorts (excluding short shorts). (3) Partial nudity Bikinis or swimming suits only; bras and panties only; Briefs; bare shoulders while below shoulder area bare shoulders while below shoulder area un-shown un-shown (suggesting topless); partial bare back. (suggesting topless); tops or dresses that expose the lower part of the back; short shorts, dresses or skirts that expose upper thigh/lower hip. (4) Nudity Bare body or bare back; full shot where the model Topless; bare back. wears nothing but covered by a towel, a sheet, a piece of cloth or ribbons.

Note. If a model fits two or more categories at the same time, she/he takes the one that shows the highest level of nudity

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