Decisive Role of Fairness Products in Advertising: A focus groups study covering negative psychological effects on women due to marketing of fairness products

Abstract

It is widely accepted now a day’s that television advertisements of fairness creams do not only promise lighter skin tone but also associate skin tone with success, and as a result they create inferiority complex in dark skin people who are the major part of our society. Through use of shock bureau theory technique, the advertisements do not only create false ideas but also create discrimination among people.
Today a number of advertisements keep portraying that a dark skin tone female is not needed and they all are depress and after using a fairness product their life changes on 180 degrees she gets married to handsome prince, she gains self-confidence and even she becomes successful in her professional career. According to recently published report, "India Fairness Cream & Bleach Market Overview, 2015-2016” more than half of the revenues of the $180m skin care products in the market are generated by skin whitening products. In Pakistan situation is almost similar.
The ideal beauty in subcontinent is fair skin tone. The aim of this study is to scrutinize how fairness products are creating complex psychological problems in society. Qualitative data were gathered from six districts of Karachi through focus group interviews. These focus-group interviews with Pakistani women (age limit between 19 to 29 years old) stated that their obsession with fairness increases after seeing fairness cream advertisements. Many participants said that the connection between beauty and fair skin arises from historical beliefs like lighter skin tone is symbol of elites etc. that are now being reinforced through whitening products advertisements. However selected population does not rate fairness as a main ingredient of beauty but they are aware of the benefits of being fair.