The Use of Adjectives in Fitness Coaching Advertisements: Differences Between Male and Female Fitness Influencers

Abstract

This bachelor’s thesis investigates the use of adjectives in fitness coaching advertisements posted on Instagram, comparing the use of adjectives between British male and female fitness influencers. The aim of this study is to reveal any differences between the genders in the adjectives that are the most common in the advertisements as well as in the discourses around these adjectives. As its theoretical background this study utilizes theories on advertising language and gendered language. The data of this research consists of 30 Instagram posts and focuses more specifically on their captions. Differences in the use of adjectives in these captions are examined by employing both content analysis and discourse analysis as the research methods.

The results of this research reveal that there are differences between the genders in the use of adjectives. Although the most frequently used adjectives were all either positive or neutral for both genders, the results show that the female influencers used more positive adjectives, whereas the male influencers used slightly more negative adjectives in their advertisements. When it comes to the discourses around the adjectives, both genders used adjectives to describe the product advertised. However, for the male influencers, the discourses around the most used adjectives focused more on describing physical looks and providing tips on healthy lifestyle habits, while the female influencers used more adjectives to describe feelings and to talk about people in a more comprehensive way.