Sarah Leonard, Research Fellow in Social Marketing, Bristol Business School
Sarah.leonard@uwe.ac.uk
Fiona Spotswood, Lecturer in Marketing, Bristol Business School
Fiona2.spotswood@uwe.ac.uk, 07876380762
Alan Tapp, Professor of Marketing, Bristol Business School
Alan.tapp@uwe.ac.uk
Bristol Social Marketing Centre
Bristol Business School, University of the West of England
Frenchay Campus
Coldharbour Lane
Bristol
BS16 1QY
Title of Paper: Understanding the self-image incongruency of British non-cyclists:
Implications for social marketing
Form of presentation: Seminar presentation
General subject area: Cycling, travel mode
Method: Quantitative nationally significant (UK) online survey
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UNDERSTANDING THE SELF-IMAGE INCONGRUENCY OF BRITISH NON-CYCLISTS:
IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL MARKETING
Abstract
Drawing on primary quantitative research, this paper uses self-image incongruency as a
theoretical framework for analysing the key constructs which form the gap between the self
image of non cyclists and their perception of cycling. The authors argue that branding is a
potentially useful tool for changing the image of short-trip cycling and aligning it with noncyclists actual and ideal self image.
Introduction
British people make only 1-2% of their journeys by bicycle (Gatersleben & Appleton, 2007),
far less than adults in many other European countries (Pucher & Buehler, 2008), yet regular
cycling can contribute to an individual’s personal fitness and health, reduce congestion and
contribute to our ongoing struggle against environmental damage (Gatersleben & Appleton,
2007; Shephard, 2008). Increasing the number of people who exchange driving for cycling on
short regular trips has become a political priority in the UK.
This paper uses the theoretical framework of self-image congruency to explore possible
reasons why large numbers of adequately fit British adults (‘hot and warm prospects’1) do
not make their regular short trips by bicycle. Self Image congruence refers to the perceived
degree of fit between a consumers’ self concept (Actual Self, Ideal Self (Freud, 1965)) and
We examined disposition to take up cycling for short everyday journeys and amongst cyclists to make more such journeys on
their bikes. We asked for agreement amongst non cyclists that ‘I have been contemplating cycling recently for short everyday
journeys’ and/or ‘I have actually made plans to take up cycling for short everyday journeys. We asked current cyclists if ‘you
are seriously thinking of cycling more often for everyday short journeys’. Our ‘hot prospects’ (whether non or current cyclists)
had to strongly agree with either question; our ‘warm prospects’ had to ‘tend to agree’ with either question.
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the user’s image of a brand, product or behaviour (Kressmann et al., 2006). This paper will
present and discuss quantitative research which aimed to understand the self-image
incongruence between ‘prospect’ non-cyclists and their perception of cycling. This research
may provide an opportunity for social marketers trying to produce behaviour change
interventions to improve the numbers of people making regular short trips by bicycle.
Methodology
The survey was conducted using an online interview administered to members of
the YouGov Plc GB panel of 275,000+ individuals who have agreed to take part in surveys. An
email was sent to panellists selected at random from the base sample according to the
sample definition, inviting them to take part and providing a link. The sample definition was
‘GB adult population’ and consisted of 3855 adults representative of all GB adults (aged 16
to 64) by working status, age, gender and socio-economic group. Fieldwork was undertaken
between 27th April and 9th May 2010. The research approach was purely inductive, with the
intention of developing theory during the analysis of this research stage; the first of a multistage mixed-method research programme.
Findings
Research findings suggest there is a gap between some perceived concepts of our prospects’
‘self’ and that of cyclists. Respondents were presented with twenty personality descriptions
and asked to select those that applied to them and then, later on in the interview, those
they associate with cyclists. The result was two lists; those attributes that ranked higher for
cyclists than for themselves and those attributes which ranked lower for cyclists than for
their ‘self’ concept, shown in Table 1. These lists indicate the composition of the self-image
incongruency gap between our prospects and cycling.
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Table 1
We rank the most
frequent descriptions
for self as the basis for
comparison
SELF (I am..)
GB
Hot
(1= most frequent)
Independent
Hard working
Happy
Money conscious
Environmentally
aware
Happy in childhood
Confident
Shy
Adventurous
An achiever
Free spirit
Bit of a rebel
Conventional
Fitness conscious
Poor/ not well-off
Cheeky/rude
Outgoing/extravert
Odd
Daring
Boring
CYCLISTS ARE..
GB
Hot
GB
Hot and
Warm
n=328
Rank
1
2
3=
3=
3=
GB
Hot and
Warm
n=1225
Rank
1=
1=
3=
3=
3=
Rank
3
8
6=
9
2
Rank
3
8=
6=
8=
2
6=
6=
6=
6=
13=
4=
13=
4=
6=
8
4=
4=
6=
6=
1
1
6=
8=
Respondents considered cyclists to be more fitness conscious, environmentally friendly, free
spirited, adventurous, and confident compared with their self perception. Respondents also
considered cyclists to be less happy, less money conscious, less independent and less
hardworking than their self-perception. The implications of these findings to social
marketers will be discussed.
Discussion
Research has identified a gap between the image of cycling and the perceived self-image of
adults who could (but do not) make their regular short-trips by bicycle. A working hypothesis
from this preliminary research is that cycling is viewed as inaccessible for those who have
serious jobs and do not view themselves as having time to become ‘super fit’. Perhaps this
group are not ‘free spirited’ or ‘adventurous’ because they are weighed down by the daily
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juggling of deadlines, meetings and conflicting priorities. Perhaps cycling is incompatible
with their drive for success through hard work, discipline and responsibility. It is therefore
one of the tasks of social marketing to shift their perception more in line with the ‘reality’ of
short-trip cycling; that it is healthy, convenient and environmentally responsible.
Branding is a key technique which commercial marketers have used for decades as a
mediating construct to build positive and long-standing relationships between their
customers and products (Evans & Hastings, 2008), and it will be argued that social marketers
targeting travel mode shift can also use branding to shift people’s perceptions of cycling.
From a customer’s perspective a brand is a set of associations which reside in their minds
about a product or behaviour (Basu & Wang, 2009). Through marketing, the perception of
the brand becomes the ‘reality’ for the customer and so branding has been used as a
technique for creating an image of a product portfolio which can add a perceived sense of
glamour, exclusivity or desirability (for Prada, for example) or perhaps quality, affordability
and tradition (for M&S, for example) to a product.
When people consume a product, the brand image appeals to their self-image (Sirgy, 1986)
and so there is self-image congruency. The degree to which the consumer feels bonded to
the brand depends on how closely they feel it fits their perceived self image (Aaker &
Joachimsthaler, 1997). It is important to note that the ‘self’ in question could be the actual
self or ideal self, although if the image appeals to an extreme version of the ideal self it may
be viewed as out of reach (Spotswood & Tapp, 2010).
Social marketers have been late adopters of branding, but the case for its use is growing
(Basu & Wang, 2009; Keller, 1998; McDivitt, 2003) and successes such as ‘Truth’ (Sly et al,
2001) and ‘Verb’ (Banspach, 2008) are well documented. The result of good branding is a
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strong relationship between consumer and brand (McDivitt, 2003) which strengthens all
other marketing activity. The authors contend that branding may be a powerful technique
for social marketers as they try and shift the perception of cycling more in line with the
target group’s self-image and encourage non-cyclists to view cycling as congruent with
having the responsibilities and fulfilment that come with having a successful career.
There are difficulties with this approach, however. The crux of self-image congruence is that
consumers will choose brand personalities that are most congruent with their own (Sirgy,
1982), and yet the ‘self’ is dynamic and is derived from numerous self perceptions that are
activated intermittently depending on the situation (Aaker, 1999). For example, a senior
business executive may perceive herself to be ‘successful, professional and a high achiever’
at work, ‘relaxed and family-oriented’ at home and ‘exciting, fun and adventurous’ with her
friends. These selves are not mutually exclusive but are accessed with different intensities in
different situations. It may be that the perception of commuter cycling is currently less
congruent with the ‘high-achiever’ self. Through rebranding, social marketing may bring the
image of short-trip cycling more in line with the actual, ideal or social selves of this group.
Cycling itself has multiple forms; from being an extreme training activity to an occasional
leisure activity or convenient mode of transport. Here, however, we are interested primarily
in regular ‘commuter’ cycling and the challenge of aligning the brand image of this form with
the actual or ideal self of our target group. This suggests that careful segmentation of cycling
is as important as a careful segmentation of the target population.
Conclusion
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Research suggests that self-image incongruency is one of the reasons so few British adults
make regular short trips by bicycle. Cyclists are seen as less hardworking and less happy than
‘the self’ and more fitness conscious, independent and adventurous. We hypothesise that
for people who prioritise their work, commuter cycling may be seen as unappealing because
it implies a lack of focus, responsibility and maturity. By carefully branding short-trip cycling
(as a result of further primary research and rigorous concept testing), social marketers could
aim to realign the image of short-trip cycling with the actual or ideal self-images of the
‘prospect’ group. However, people have multiple selves which they access in different
situations and also there are multiple types of cycling. Thus, we conclude that for branding
to be successful, segmentation of cycling types is essential so the brand can be specific to
‘commuter’, ‘sports’ or ‘leisure’ cycling and also social marketing work must be targeted to
different ‘situations’ to access different variations of the self-concept.
Note
YouGov were responsible for the data collection but analyses and interpretation are the
responsibility of The Bristol Social Marketing Centre (BSMC) at UWE and any enquiries
should be directed to Professor Alan Tapp (alan.tapp@uwe.ac.uk). BSMC would also like to
thank South Gloucestershire Council for part-funding the research.
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