Assimilating technology into culture: perspectives on the role of advertisements

Explores the psychological strategies utilized by magazine advertisements for computer-based technologies, accessories and applications. An analysis of recent advertisements that largely rely upon visual, nonverbal content identifies the following frequently-employed approaches: (A) association, analogy and metaphor; (B) incongruities; (C) appeals to the social motives of affiliation, achievement and influence over others; (D) manipulation of anxiety; (E) visualizing technology within novel settings; and (F) recruitment of new users. Additional strategies employed by television home shopping channels are briefly discussed.