Chapter One Background The Trend in The Present Time in Thai Society Has Created A New Concept
Chapter One Background The Trend in The Present Time in Thai Society Has Created A New Concept
Chapter One Background The Trend in The Present Time in Thai Society Has Created A New Concept
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND
The trend in the present time in Thai society has created a new concept
emphasizing more on personal appearance such as how they look and how attractive
their outfit presents. People who have been most affected are the youths or young
adults who have more concerns about their look. This phenomenon has resulted in the
wide use of some cosmetics among young people. Many have turned to use cosmetic
soap, cream or some skin care that allegedly can whiten the skin or complexion of
users. In order to be in trend with this phenomenon, nowadays some youths especially
those who live in Bangkok have used 'whitening' skin care.
2006). Many companies such as Procter and Gamble (whose brand is Olay), Unilever
(whose brand is Pond’s), Beiersdorf (whose brand is Nivea), are the market leaders.
These companies have developed different formulae of their products to attract and
match their consumers. Moreover, they have many whitening cream products for their
consumers. For example, Pond’s has white beauty detox white-pinkish cream (40g.) at
the price of 135 Baht. Olay has a Total Extra Fair White (40g.) at the price of 128
Baht. Nivea has a Whitening Moisturizer (for men) 5 in 1 with SPF20 (40 ml.), priced
about 169 Baht. These products are believed to help skin to be whiter, reduce scars,
eliminate rough patches, erase dots on skin, smooth skin color and protect skin from
wrinkles and lines. However, some consumers may say that only some of these
benefits are true.
Among consumers, youth are the target market of this type of product. Some
of them are still studying while the others have just graduated and started working.
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However, these people seem to value whitening as being essential in their lives.
According to the comments in Pantip website, some said that there were many Miss
Universe or Miss World who are quite dark so why don’t we focus on the mind and
behavior of persons? whereas others said that among two beautiful ladies, one has
white skin while the other one has dark skin, most people tend to like the first one.
(Pantip, 2007).
Many adolescents believe that if they use all of these kinds of whitening
products, they will become a new person and look better. This in turn has boosted
their self-confidence in socialization. So this information becomes their perceptions.
skin in a few days. Some cosmetics manufacturers lacked accountability and used the
quote because there was no law prohibiting it. (Tnews.teenee, 2007).
Many Thai youth value white skin more than dark skin. According to the
comments in Pantip website, some said that there were many Miss Universe or Miss
World who are quite dark so why don’t we focus on the mind and behavior of
persons? whereas others said that among two beautiful ladies, one has white skin
while the other one has dark skin, most people tend to like the first one.
(Pantip, 2007). This is again a misperception on white skin because the youth believe
that the whiter their skin, the more beautiful they are.
So far, there has been no research which is directly related to the perceptions
of Thai youth on “Whitening Cream”. There are some that related to cosmetics like
“Use of cosmetics among female teenagers: a case study at Samutprakarn Technical
College.” However, some youth who were interviewed about their perceptions on this
said that they believe in the quality of the products which can whiten their skin but not
totally as the ads said. They felt that whitening cream can help their feelings, make
self-confidence and also help them be trendy like their friends. So they like the cream
while others said that there was no need to use the cream because they don’t believe
in the products. They only use cream or lotion for protection purpose. As a result, this
study is made and designed especially to ask Thai youth about their thoughts and
views on the cream.
In this research, Siam Square will be selected as the study area. Siam Square is
considered as one of the most popular shopping places for Thai youth. It is not only a
place for the youth to do activities together like seeing movies, shopping, eating but
also a place for many companies to launch their new products as it is a place that can
represent the trend of consumer behavior. For this reason, the research on perceptions
measurement can be done more accurately in order to know what Thai youth think
about whitening creams.
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In the study, this research will focus on perceptions of Thai youth at Siam
Square on Whitening Cream and identify what the reasons are for their views. If there
are some problems, some suggestions will be presented in order to educate the people
about whitening products. Therefore, this study would reveal perceptions of Thai
youth at Siam Square on Whitening Cream and it can be used as a guideline for the
future research.
In the appendixes, the questionnaire that was used for data collection from the
sample group, is also included.