A Research On 'Hypnotic' Effect Of "Cosmopolitan"

This year is the 31st year ever since the China's reform and opening-up. China's Economic is developing fast, and people's material living standard has been improved dramatically. The rapid socio-economic development creates the social environment for consumer lifestyle magazines. At the same time, socio-economic development help stimulate the social stratification, the middle income class emerged. This group focuses on the pursuit of quality of life. This group became the audience basis for this kind of magazine. During China's reform and opening-up, the rapid development of China's economy made some people in the society to measure the value of people by his possession of material. This social psychology provides development space for this kind of magazine. The above three conditions is the necessary conditions for the appearance of fashion consumer lifestyle magazines in our country.The research object in this paper is magazine of < Cosmopolitan >. This magazine is superintend by the National Tourism Administration, and is running by the National Tourism Association. The magazine's guideline is'international perspective, local awareness'. For its elegant taste, unique style and novel layout, this magazine guide new trend and advocate fashion. In 1998, < Cosmopolitan > cooperate with the most profitable fashion magazine in the United States in copyright, which makes < Cosmopolitan > more international in content, and more important, which brought < Cosmopolitan > a full set of advanced running concept, marketing strategies and management experience.According to survey about journals in'MediaSearch.cn', (excellent website in mainland to provide news monitoring, marketing intelligence searching service, and to release advertisement monitoring and market data, and have database for advertisement information.), in the same kind of magazines, the circulation for < Cosmopolitan > are always in the top three in the recent years. The magazine of < Cosmopolitan > got a considerable amount of attention over the past few years. Advocated by such magazines, fashion information, lifestyle, consuming taste has been accepted by audience. The magazine could lead audience to faithfully follow the advocated fashion trend. This paper borrows the concept of'hypnosis'in psychology field, because there are similar characteristics with'hypnosis'activities during the < Cosmopolitan >'s dissemination process. Therefore, this paper believes that there are'hypnosis'effect between such magazines and its readers, and would analysis < Cosmopolitan >'s dissemination process and effect from this point of view. At the end of this paper, there would be analysis on the effect and its value for audience by the'hypnosis'effect of < Cosmopolitan > magazine. Since this article is only in mass media journalism research area, not a real sense of clinical hypnosis in psychology, the'hypnosis'in this article is always marked by quotation to show distinction.By the combination of theoretical and empirical research methods, the paper is divided into three chapters. The first chapter is concept analysis for'hypnosis'effect. In this chapter, section I, there would be theoretical background for'hypnosis'.'Hypnosis'is a concept in psychology, which is similar with communication, that both are psychological implication to people. Secondly, in the communication,'Mimicry environment'strengthened the'hypnosis'effect of the magazine. A higher level the'Mimicry environment'is, the easier the'hypnosis'becomes, so that the audience becomes easier to believe, then the'hypnosis'effect becomes more remarkable. After the theoretically background analysis, the paper would give the viewpoint for the'hypnosis'effect in Section II: the purpose of < Cosmopolitan > is to spread a series of concept into audience'mind, so that to make psychological implication s to audience through the content of the magazine, then repeat timely, and strengthen the impact already had. At the same time, the magazine built the'Mimicry environment'extremely well, deeply penetrates this thought into audiences'minds. When audience contact the magazine for a long period, the concept would be gradually established in the audience minds, so that the magazine could strengthen or re-establish the fashion concept in audience's minds, then finally drive the audience to make actions accordingly, then satisfied the purpose of the magazine.The second chapter is the main part of this paper which analyzed the process of'hypnosis'effect of the < Cosmopolitan > magazine. Section I is about the subject body of'hypnosis'behavior: < Cosmopolitan>magazine. magazine give continuously psychological implications to audience by a large amount of articles or pictures, which provide audience strong visual stimulation and psychological satisfaction. When the magazine introduce commodities, there would be another network around composed by social environment, lifestyle viewpoints, or specific culture value, which drives audience be deeply immersed in, and get some kind of spiritual illusion by their so-called modern and fashion suggestion and promise. Section II is about the object body of'hypnosis'behavior. This paper analyzed the readers'age stratification, education level, occupation distribution through several charts in this section. Also, this paper analyzed the group characteristics of audience and the reason that they are easy to be'hypnotized'. Section III is about the < Cosmopolitan > way of'hypnosis'. These approaches are particularly important to the process of'hypnosis'. Only when the approaches are right, the'hypnosis'effect could come up to the expectation. The'hypnosis'approaches are divided into four kinds in this paper, they are through'suggestions stars', through topics, through pictures, through columns.In the third chapter, there would be the role and value analysis of the magazine'hypnosis'effect. Through investigation data for readers'loyalty on website, the results certify that the'hypnosis'effect has influenced audience, then to change audiences'behavior. Section I is about the influence on target audience groups. According to the degree that the audiences are'hypnotized', the audience actions are divided into three categories: shallow, moderate, in-depth. Shallow actions are represented by imitating; moderate actions are represented by consuming; and the in-depth actions are represented by'material deficiency'symptom. There is value analysis on'hypnosis'effect in section II. The'hypnosis'effect have positive and negative impacts. The positive impact is the magazine meets audiences'pursuit. And the magazine represents trans-cultural consume culture. The negative impact is the magazine advocate material, with the nature of stealth advertising.Therefore, through above analysis, the conclusion viewpoint for the < Cosmopolitan > magazine'hypnosis'effect is: the basic purpose of < Cosmopolitan > magazine is to plant a series of concepts to the audiences'minds through continuous implication by magazines'contents, and through philosophy repeating and strengthening. At the mean time, the magazine stresses on'Mimicry environment'establishment in order to penetrate a kind of concept into audiences'minds. The magazine try to rebuild the audiences'fashion concept through long-term contact with the magazine, and the final purpose is to make the audiences make decisions as the magazine suggests. There is another clear point of view that < Cosmopolitan > magazine in some extent build people's requirement, satisfaction, and also happiness feelings on the basis of consumption. It is a way to realize selfhood; however, there are many other ways to realize selfhood, and many other assessment standards. Even though < Cosmopolitan > magazine keeps a kind of mutual supporting relationship with consumerism, the magazine needs to find its equilibrium point in this relationship. In this way, the true fashion could resume its original look and well-known.