Events

Professor Carlos Torelli
Professor of Marketing
Department Head and Anthony J Petullo Professor of Business
Gies College of Business
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

ABSTRACT

Which brands best symbolize America – brands like Walmart and McDonald’s or brands like Target and Starbucks? In this article, the authors demonstrate that what kinds of brands become icons depends on political ideology and that this association intensifies during highly polarized times. Results from six datasets reveal that conservatives uphold a more stratified/hierarchical society than liberals, and see brands as more iconic when they are aligned with these societal values. We focus on brands embodying horizontal values (e.g., equality, openness to change) and vertical values (e.g., social status, hierarchy, tradition) and show that conservatives (liberals) evaluate vertical (horizontal) brands as more iconic of America. These differences in brand iconicity result in stronger psychological connection with and commitment to ideologically aligned vertical vs. horizontal brands. Critically, these associations are amplified during highly polarized times in society, as evidenced by both individuals’ perceptions of polarization and objective societal political polarization measures. The findings suggest that political ideology provides a powerful lens through which people perceive society and brand iconicity. Our research contributes to understanding how brands become iconic, the effect of political polarization on divergent brand meanings, and the role of horizontal and vertical values in these perceptions.