Behavioral Engineering of Girls

[FRED]

Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away.
~ Philip K. Dick

What does this short video have to do with iTulip's mission?

When it comes to influencing how women feel about their appearance in order to sell them products and medical procedures, behavioral engineering starts young.

Much of iTulip's success at projections is not due to careful analysis of technical market factors, although those do provide meaningful indicators at the extremes, but rather to observations and analysis of second order effects of behavioral engineering by the financial services industry selling ideas about mutual funds and other products it sells, concepts like buy and hold, and so on. Also by real estate industry, selling ideas about home ownership.

In finance, when a new product is brought to market, first comes the marketing, then the sales, then the over-extension of the market, then the slicing of the market into ever smaller niches, then exhaustion of the market, then finally the crash. This too is part of the bubble cycle.

Dove does a brilliant job of showing in just over 60 seconds the effectiveness of the perpetual assault on perception by the cosmetics industry. The financial services industry is no less effective in shaping the beliefs of millions of investors, causing investors to buy all kinds of financial products they should not buy and steering them away from many that they should buy. Naturally, the most profitable financial products are the ones marketed the most heavily.

Dove is trying to make a business out of calling attention to cosmetics industry marketing that is designed to sell product to the detriment of women. iTulip hopes to make a business out of calling attention to financial services industry marketing intended to sell financial products to the detriment of investors. This may seem peculiar, but Dove–a cosmetics company–is the model for iTulip, Inc.

Here is Dove's previous ad that we ran here last year titled "Evolution" about distortions of beauty.

[DemonD]

Re: Consumerist behavioral engineering of girls

What does this have to do with anything iTulip?

Behavioral engineering starts young. Dove is trying to make a business out of calling attention to it in the fashion sphere. Maybe iTulip can, too, in the finance and economics sphere.

Fred, you are taking on something that is above and beyond itulip. It's a complete social engineering, and part of it has to do with the complete subordination of men in today's society (especially western society). A large part of the housing bubble occurred, IMO, due to social pressures of women (put on to women and by women). Think it's men watching TLC and home and garden network with "flip this house" and all that crap? I don't think so. Also, over on the HBB they lament the lack of financial education given in public US schools. nothing about compound interest, nothing about saving, nothing about being responsible with finances. It behooves corporations to keep selling their products so they want the US populace to be mindless consumers like this!

It would likely take multiple generations to reverse this, as these trends have been moving towards this for at least the past 200 years in this country if not more.

[Rajiv]

Re: Consumerist behavioral engineering of girls

Fred, you are taking on something that is above and beyond itulip. It's a complete social engineering, and part of it has to do with the complete subordination of men in today's society (especially western society). A large part of the housing bubble occurred, IMO, due to social pressures of women (put on to women and by women). Think it's men watching TLC and home and garden network with "flip this house" and all that crap? I don't think so. Also, over on the HBB they lament the lack of financial education given in public US schools. nothing about compound interest, nothing about saving, nothing about being responsible with finances. It behooves corporations to keep selling their products so they want the US populace to be mindless consumers like this!

It would likely take multiple generations to reverse this, as these trends have been moving towards this for at least the past 200 years in this country if not more.

This was the same reason that I put up Jeff Schmidt's "Disciplined Minds" book reading up and the Susan Rosenthal's book "Power and Powerlessness" for the edification of the Itulip clientele. Susan Rosenthal's book can also be downloaded free from her website - though I would prefer if they buy her book if they find it worthwhile.

Jeff Schmidt was fired from his 20 year job - after his book was published - Though he and his employer have come to a settlement after 7 years of battle.

[mogwai]

Re: Behavioral Engineering of Girls

What a great short film! Thanks for posting it...sent it to my 13 year old daughter and my wife...brilliant ad campaign.

mog

[World Traveler]

Great Analogy and Example

Great and simple example of how the power of advertising influences our belief systems, values, and ultimately our behavior.

Very appropriate to use as analogy re: how the "powers that be" (Wall Street, Real Estate Industry, financial press and advertisers, officials such as Greenspan, etc., etc.) influence our core beliefs on how we define prosperity (owning McMansion), and getting ahead (speculating via Wall Steets Ponzi schemes), and who should be helped when they stumble: (government and Fed bail-outs for Wall Street and hedge funds, but never for Production Economy companies or poor/middle class citizens, whom they tell us need to "take responsibility" for their mistakes and suffer the consequences).

Although I think the American citizenry is waking up now and begining to challenge belief systems that benefit the very few financiers and bankers at the expense of the rest of the country, un-doing the damage already done will take a long time and be costly for all of us.

[leithh]

Re: Consumerist behavioral engineering of girls

It's a complete social engineering, and part of it has to do with the complete subordination of men in today's society (especially western society). A large part of the housing bubble occurred, IMO, due to social pressures of women (put on to women and by women). Think it's men watching TLC and home and garden network with "flip this house" and all that crap?

Wha'chya smokin' thar Demon; kin I git me some?!

Surely those who are remotely coherent on this forum see the fallacy of your first sentence. As for the second and third: home improvement networks are all about padding your nest. They may promote buying a bigger better nest, but they sure as hell dont trumpet flipping the bird[nest]. Indeed, their target audience would find that unappealling. As a financial planner, I can tell you, that the vast majority of clients and prospective clients that entertained "flipping houses" were men. And that backs up just about every behavioral finance study written in the last ten years.

Me thinks you know not of what you speak Demon, and Im guessin that doesnt help with the little women in your life.

[DemonD]

Re: Behavioral Engineering of Girls

What shows besides sports are targeted twoards guys nowadays? Nothing!!!

"A TV is just a Vagina with a cable box."
-Sir Tom Leykis
http://podcast.971freefm.com/klsx1/252254.mp3

Lei, I have no idea what you are reading into what I'm saying. Of course men are going to be more into flipping, as men (in general) tend to involve themselves in investing and finance. Advertising, however, is almost completely targeted to women, and that's all TV is, a big advertising machine. I read somewhere that 90% of healthcare decisions are made by women - so who else are you going to market to?

In terms of what I have stated, while the men might be flipping, it's the women that are watching the show. It's the women that have used all the leverage that they can to subordinate men. Look at laws regarding child support, alimony, community property. Look at social interactions where women still expect men to pay for everything, meanwhile lording their "magical box of power" over men.

Fortunately some of us males have figured out the game that women have been playing over the past 100-200 years and have learned the real deal. Most guys nowadays are what we call "beta males." I could type for hours (and indeed, in other places, I have), but this is not the place for that. I often wonder what effect women's nesting and greed and princess-like behavior has played in the housing bubble, and my guess is that it was significant (not saying they caused it, but added to the effect of the bubble).

It may sound like I'm being conspiratorial, but in reality, there is always a tug-of-war between the sexes. As far as the women in my life - this is not the right place for that, but I can say that since I lifted the veils of TV influence and societal engineering of men, my life has significantly improved and is now very satisfactory in all phases, including relations with women.

[Spartacus]

Re: Behavioral Engineering of Girls

I'm not sure the answer on this question is set in stone

Note the recent finding on Barbie - the old, fully accepted world view was that Barbie is setting all girls up for a lifetime of anguish as they try to cram their bodies into the cookie cutter of their beloved Barbie.

Received wisdom didn't fare too well when tested .

http://www.forbes.com/2005/12/19/bar...acescan15.html

(or just google up barbie mutilation - the Forbes thing was just the first one that came up - there are others that comment in more detail ) and talk about what effects they found on perception and attitude