Real Men Don’t Buy “Mrs. Clean”: Gender Bias in Gendered Brands

Abstract

Our article examines how products are valued differently depending on if the product has a male or female brand representation and if the consumer is male or female. This research extends previous research that categorizes brands as "gendered" (masculine vs. feminine) using stereotypical gender representations ("soft" vs. "hard") by showing that male and female brand names are evaluated with a bias that favors male brands. Across five studies (online, field), using a mixed-method approach (implicit association test [IAT], experiments, sales data), we examine genderneutral product categories (champagne, chips, tea, board games) that have male or female brand representations. We find that men devalue brands with female names, whereas women made no such distinctions, which we explain is due to gender bias created by the "precarious manhood" principle. This bias by men can be overcome using agentic brand descriptions. This research has implications for brand management, marketing communications, and public policy.Léa recently took over the family business from her father, Eric, and would like to refresh the brand name and logo. She wonders if she should keep the brand as is, Eric Humbert, or rebrand as Maison Humbert or, ideally, Léa Humbert. However, would consumers keep buying her products if her brand was clearly identified as feminine?

Gender as moderator of the influence of tourists’ risk perception on destination image and visit intentions

“…Market products are designed with a bias towards the masculine gender and this also applies to the features that are related to the levels of risk involved (Spielmann et al , 2021). The design of destination risk features should carefully consider the different perceptions of gender groups, avoiding the common masculinisation of tourist products and services at destinations and of the risks involved in their consumption and visitation.…”

Masculinity contingency and consumer attitudes toward electric vehicles.

“…Work on gender and consumer choices is common in research on marketing, consumer choice, and leisure (L. Ye et al, 2017), but often is not framed within established frameworks of masculinities theories. The limited work that has been done within such frameworks has been fruitful (Levant et al, 2015;Parent & Cooper, 2020;Rothgerber, 2013;Spielmann et al, 2021). Work on This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.…”

“…Ye et al, 2017), but often is not framed within established frameworks of masculinities theories. The limited work that has been done within such frameworks has been fruitful (Levant et al, 2015; Parent & Cooper, 2020; Rothgerber, 2013; Spielmann et al, 2021). Work on masculinities and consumer choices, with greater emphasis on established masculinities theories from psychology and sociology, can help to advance both men and masculinities research as well as marketing research.…”

“…Work on masculinity contingency has indicated that some men may experience masculinity threat as a trait-like personality feature (Burkley et al, 2016) not requiring a specific antecedent event to spur on fearfulness that one’s actions may cause a perceived “loss of masculinity.” Masculinity contingency threat has been linked with depression, social anxiety, endorsement of traditional gender role attitudes, acceptance of rape myths, and other similar constructs (Burkley et al, 2016; McDermott et al, 2022). Relatedly, work on precarious masculinity has been explored in terms of consumer preferences in reaction to hypermasculine advertisements (Parent & Cooper, 2020), complimenting research that has addressed other masculinity concepts and consumer choices (Levant et al, 2015; Rothgerber, 2013; Spielmann et al, 2021). The aim of the present study is to extend work on masculinities, and in particular masculinity contingency, to understand attitudes toward EVs among men.…”

The impact of dialectical thinking on androgynous brand equity across cultures: the moderating role of brand positioning

“…Nevertheless, how to use brand gender to create positive brand equity across cultures remains unclear. The extant brand gender literature mainly focuses on masculine or feminine brands (Grohmann, 2009;Lieven et al, 2014;Machado et al, 2019;Pogacar et al, 2021;Spielmann et al, 2021). However, Tan (2016) has noted we are in the midst of a "gender revolution" where the very idea of only two genders (male and female) exists is disputable.…”