Detailed Proposal

1. Topic Area
Advertising

2. Proposed title, question, hypothesis
How are car adverts specifically engineered to target both genders?

3. Teacher approval granted, in principal?
Yes

4. Principle texts (if text based study)
- Gillian Dyer - Advertising as Communication
- Jib Fowles - Advertising and Popular Culture
- William Leiss - Social Communication in Advertising
- Judith Williamson - Decoding Advertising (photographs with detailed analysis)
- The Morgan : The Art of Selling a Unique Sports Car


5. Reason for choice
Car adverts are often the most entertaining ones you see on television
They are available on many different media platforms
I have a personal interest in cars
I watch a lof of Top Gear
Adverts for cars are always cleverly created and are always different
They always make you think and contrast heavily with most other adverts
They usually have a replay factor where you can watch them repeatedly.

6. Academic context for this study (similar research, relevant theory, named theorists)
Gillian Dyer, Jib Fowles, William Leiss, Judith Williamson, The Morgan

7. Institutional context for this study (industry focus, other texts for comparison, named practitioners, relevant theory, issues, questions)
- Focusing on how the car industry present their latest car models in order to attract a certain gender.
- Looking at certain car producers - honda, ford, toyota, kia, skoda, bmw, mercedes, nissan and how their adverts and cars target gender.
- the works of Nick Velody - worked for 'Ford' adverts
- the works of Leighton Ballet - workds in car advertising


8. Identify the audience context for this study (audience profile, access to audience, potential sample)
A comparison between genders
Mainly targeted at adults because they are the ones tha adverts are aimed at
Easy to access to adults through family friends and teachers.
Samples taken from these various adult groups

9. How will the 4 key concepts be relevant to your study (audience, institution, forms and conventions, representation)?
audience - my primary reseach is based on audiences responses to questions relating to car adverts. therefore this is a primarty concern of mine. i will seperate my findings into gender, as well as seeing if there is a difference relating to ages of genders and what they like.
institution - as the car companies are the ones who are producing the adverts i will be studying, it is crucial that i research into the companies themselves and their intentions. my whole project is based on the cars produced by these companies.
representation - representation of genders through car advertising. are car adverts aimed at the stereotypical man and women? do stereotypes still exist? do they play a part in car advertisin? how are the cars represented?
forms and conventions -

10 Potential research sources (secondary): secondary academic books and websites, secondary industry books and websites, secondary popular criticism. Please identify specific examples you have come across.
- Gillian Dyer - Advertising as Communication
- Jib Fowles - Advertising and Popular Culture
- William Leiss - Social Communication in Advertising
- Judith Williamson - Decoding Advertising (photographs with detailed analysis)
- The Morgan : The Art of Selling a Unique Sports Car


11. Potential research sources (primary): audience reception research, your own content/textual analysis etc
- Analysis of car adverts from the television
- Analysis of car adverts from magazines and newspapers
- Focus groups - getting audiences to respond to certain adverts
- Gender analysis - getting responsess from both men and women on car adverts and comparing them.
- Questionairres

12. Modifications agreed with your lead teacher
none


13. Potential limits/obstacles/problems?
- not enough material around on my actual topic
- getting enough samples from adults on cars.
- finding a time when adults are available to talk about cars. they generally are busy with work and children so it will be hard to find a time.


14. Teacher concerns


15. Teacher approval