The gender relevance of projected animal content

Abstract

Subjects (N = 100) created mental images of 93 animals and reported either a male or a female association for each animal. Independent variables were sex of subject and subject's visualizing ability as measured by the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (Marks, 1973a). Of the 93 animals, 67 were gender associated, with 54 perceived as male and 13 as female. With a few exceptions, the gender associations did not differ according to subject's sex or visualizing ability, Compared to classic interpretations of animal content as symbolic representations of male and female figures (Phillips & Smith, 1953), the present data are consistent with regard to male‐associated animals, but inconsistent with female‐associated animals.

Mediated animal geographies: symbolism, manipulation and the imaginary in advertising

“…Perhaps unsurprisingly, dogs (9) and birds (8) were used in individual advertisements much more frequently than any other animal; cats (3) represented a smaller but still notable presence across the advertisements viewed. In this regard, our findings have strong connections with the wider literature, which suggests that dogs and birds are the most common animal group in television commercials (Lash & Polyson, 1987;Molloy, 2011;Xiang, 2008). The significance of nonhuman animals such as dogs, cats and birds in these advertisements is also not surprising, given that as domesticated and relatively common species these animals are familiar to audiences and can be seen to carry established symbolic meanings.…”

“…During viewing and in subsequent writing of the research diary, the researcher used this technique of gender association to identify the gender of an animal subject according to their initial response to its representation in the advertisement. In line with Lash and Polyson's (1987) broad-based study, there was a clear connection between certain animals and gender imagery -dogs as masculine and cats as feminine.…”

“…Other animals appeared to be represented in different ways -such as birds, which were generally asexual in the advertisements viewed in this research but were ascribed feminine characteristics in the Lash and Polyson's (1987) study.…”

“…This can be seen in an experiment undertaken by Lash and Polyson (1987) where research participants (50 males and 50 females) created mental 282…”

“…The diary was used directly post-viewing every night of research, as a tool with which to reflect critically on what Lancendorfer et al (2008) call 'advertising cognition'; a medium within which to write thoughts and reactions. The research also drew on Lash and Polyson's (1987) method of identifying animal gender associations through mental imagery. This approach is based on research suggesting that individuals commonly identify a specific gender, or no gender, to animal images they are presented with.…”