Esi Abbam Elliot Fall, 2008

1. Cultural Metaphors and enhancement of Product Pleasure Esi Abbam Elliot Fall, 2008

2. RESEARCH QUESTION Consumers are looking for more pleasure in products (Paul Hekkert, 2002) How do cultural metaphors embedded in products enhance representations of product pleasure? • Cultureis the shared beliefs mediated by and constituted by symbols and language of a group or society (Zald, 1996). • Metaphors are an evocation of inner associations among things (Jones 1982). • Cultural metaphors are associations that convey shared beliefs and understandings of a particular group or society.

3. Pleasure in products • Jordan (1997) classified pleasure-seeking of consumers into four categories: Physio-pleasure (pleasure from sensory impressions of sight, smell, hearing, touch and taste), social-pleasure (social relationships and communication that a product enables), psycho-pleasure (pleasure felt when a product helps the user to establish a task) and ideo-pleasure (pleasure derived from values that a product and its use represent).

4. RELEVANCE TO ART AND DESIGN KNOWLEDGE Pleasure- seeking Metaphors Pleasure-dimension Pleasure experience objectification Desires Product Design idealistic ideologies Physio-pleasure Metaphors and intervening affect response system Fantasies Psycho-pleasure communitas Ideo-pleasure Hopes Social-pleasure mystery Dreams Ecstasy and flow ? myth ? commitment

5. Theoretical foundations a) Metaphors and pleasure (Forlizzi et al 2003) : metaphors influencing form, shape, color, materials, graphic and texts of products b) Metaphors, pleasure and culture (Lin 2007): Matching product image to customer image c) Metaphors, pleasure, culture and consumer co-creation (Huang and Deng 2008) d) Culturally differentiated metaphors (McCracken, Grant 1986) e) Culture specific metaphors (Ekinci et al 2006)

6. Cultural metaphors Pleasure giving Pleasurable products Pleasure taking Vitality metaphors Harmony metaphors Communitas metaphors Elegance metaphors Superordinate metaphors Magical metaphors Physio-pleasure Ideo-pleasure Social-pleasure Psycho-pleasure Superordinate pleasure Spiritual pleasure Idealistic ideologies Objectification Communitas Mystery Esctacy and flow Myth Physio-pleasure Ideo-pleasure Social-pleasure Psycho-pleasure Superordinate pleasure Spiritual pleasure Mental imagery Cognitive elements Design elements Imaginative layout Insights Associations Novel Concepts Consumer Mental model Interaction – Consumer story or artwork Emergence of cultural metaphors Product is designed with novel imagery Global consumer merchants (Artisans) as co-creators

7. 1 5 Incremental reshaping of cultural frames End to end universal perspectives 2 Relationships between similar domains Multiple design alternatives from remote domains 6 Cultural metaphors Impersonal associations Personal associations 3 Conservative outcomes Novelty and Elegance in design 4 Overall Model Culturally informed products Non-pleasurable designs Pleasurable designs 1. Ideo-pleasure 2. Physio-pleasure 3. Social-pleasure 4. Psycho-pleasure 5. Super-ordinate pleasure 6. Spiritual pleasure Non-culturally informed products

8. Examples of cultural metaphors in products a) Vitality metaphors (physio-pleasure) in African Textiles “My artwork represents life all its abundance and energy depicted through the vividness and contrast of colors.” b) Elegance metaphor (Psycho-pleasure) in Mexican lowrider cars “My artwork depicts machine beauty and focuses on functionality as well as quality and durability ”

9. Examples of cultural metaphors in products c) Identity metaphors (Super-ordinate pleasure) in American Place dolls “I model my culture in the products I create – that is who I am and how I express myself” d) Magical metaphors (Spiritual pleasure) in African geometric forms “The geometric symbols represent cosmic association shown in in colors, textures and themes”

10. METHODOLOGY • Phenomenological interviews with artists • from Mexican, African and American cultures (effective to studying experiential themes in consumer behavior (Fournier, 1998,) since it provides the emic or informant’s perspective rather than the researcher expectations (Polkinghorne, 1989). • Observations (Videography) of three shops or locations from American, African and Mexican cultures offering African textiles, Mexican Lowrider cars and American products with anthropomorphic forms.

11. Analysis and Evidence • Cluster analysis and affinity diagramming • Mnemonic devices that will enable the comparison of data notes will also be used: Internal states, behaviors, culturally differentiated metaphors and culture specific metaphors (texture, color, shape, form) • This provides categories of key themes and classifies the cultural metaphors that have resulted in the various pleasure dimensions and the customers’ responses to it. Positive relationship between cultural metaphors, product innovativeness and consumer pleasure in different cultural contexts. African artisans are strong in provision of vitality metaphors, Mexican artists are strong in the provision of communitas metaphors and American artisans are strong in the provision of elegance metaphors.

12. QUALIFICATIONS FOR RESEARCH • Product Development Manager in two international banks for four years. • Taken research methods in Art and design course. • Taken Ph.D. courses in New product development and innovation • Lecturer in Global Marketing • Creative person with international exposure in Asia, Africa, Europe and U.S.

13. CONTRIBUTION TO ART AND DESIGN KNOWLEDGE • Culture as a resource for product design • Consumer imagination as a resource for product design • A blend of cross-cultural metaphors to enhance elegance and novelty in product design • Cultural metaphors used to take advantage of product opportunities in the global market.