Infographic: Think Pink?

The July-August 2011 Edition of the Harvard Business Review highlighted an interesting perspective regarding the color pink and if it is helping or hurting the breast cancer movement. Dr. Stefano Puntoni, an Associate Professor of Marketing Management at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, authored an article titled “Defend Your Research: The Color Pink Is Bad for Fighting Breast Cancer“. Puntoni and his research partners—Dr. Steven Sweldens of Insead and Dr. Nader Tavassoli of London Business School—conducted 10 studies over the course of three years to determine if “pink and other gender cues would make campaigns against women’s diseases, such as breast and ovarian cancer, more effective”.  Surprisingly, they found the opposite was true.

The above infographic is an attempt to illustrate the results of the research conducted by Puntoni, Sweldens, and Tavassoli.  It indicates that gender cues (female colors, symbols, and voices/visuals of things associated with women) may be counterproductive to the goals of breast cancer fundraising.  The reason: a psychological reaction called defensive response.

Puntoni writes:

In psychology, there’s a lot of literature on defensive responses. How do we deal with threatening ideas, with things that are existentially difficult to comprehend? What happens is, these set off very strong denial mechanisms. By adding all this pink, by asking women to think about gender, you’re triggering that. You’re raising the idea that this is a female thing. It’s pink; it’s for you. You could die. The cues themselves aren’t threatening—it’s just a color! But it connects who you are to the threats. – Puntoni “In psychology, there’s a lot of literature on defensive responses. How do we deal with threatening ideas, with things that are existentially difficult to comprehend? What happens is, these set off very strong denial mechanisms. By adding all this pink, by asking women to think about gender, you’re triggering that. You’re raising the idea that this is a female thing. It’s pink; it’s for you. You could die. The cues themselves aren’t threatening—it’s just a color! But it connects who you are to the threats.”

What does this mean for for the organizers of breast cancer fundraising who rely on the Pink Ribbon, “Think Pink” campaign slogan, and general use of the color pink as a brand asset?  There is no doubt that since 1991, when the Susan G. Komen Foundation first handed out pink ribbons to participants in its New York City race for breast cancer survivors, that the use pink has increased awareness and strengthened solidarity for the cause. Puntoni’s study suggests that organizers may need to go further to maximize their marketing efforts. Simply relying on the association with color may be leaving more on the table then originally thought.

Indeed, Puntoni and his research partners are getting early evidence that acknowledging the fear seems to offset the defensive triggers brought about by the us of these specific gender cues.

“We’ve seen that the negative effect on perceived risk can be eliminated by helping the audience build a buffer against the threat posed by breast cancer by, for example, boosting their self-esteem by asking them to think about times they helped others.”

Needless to say, this research may be opening a whole new field of study around gender cues and their perceived vs. actual effectiveness on behalf of brands. As it relates to breast cancer and the causes that support its victims, these early findings may serve as important insights to uncovering more effective messaging strategies for driving greater awareness of the disease, resulting in even more human and financial support to find a cure.