Study: Consoles elicit varied psych responses

A group of market researchers yesterday released the results of a study of how branding affects children, looking at how boys responded to the PlayStation and Xbox console brands and how girls responded to Barbie and Bratz dolls.

Anderson Analytics, a Stamford, Connecticut-based market-research group, took a number of boys and girls and asked them to write short stories before and after viewing product ads or logos. Then the group's "personality psychologists" used "text-mining software" to compare the stories and measure the "subconscious effects of the brand logo or advertising."

The group found that Microsoft's branding made boys more self-confident and "power motivated" than those who viewed Sony's system. But it also "increased levels of distrust," something Sony's branding did not do, the researchers said.

It is unclear whether the study made a distinction between the Xbox and the Xbox 360 or the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation 3. The number of participants and their ages is also unclear. Anderson Analytics had not responded to a request for comment as of press time.

As for the dolls, Anderson said that every female participant's opinion after viewing the Bratz and Barbie brands swayed. Some girls became "more interested in prestige and status" of the brands, while others became more distrustful or more confident in them. In general, those who viewed Barbie, rather than Bratz, "exhibited a more trusting psychological state," the researchers said.

"Our findings confirm that brand advertising can increase positive attitudes and perceptions," said Anderson Analytics principal Tom Anderson. "The reverse is also true. Some ads actually decrease brand trust in the target market. That's why it's more important than ever for marketers to pay attention to psychological profiles and the power of the subconscious mind."