Chapter One Background The Trend in The Present Time in Thai Society Has Created A New Concept

CHAPTER ONE
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.
Currently, 'Whitening' cream is one of the commercial products circulated for

wide use among the Thai population. It has been well known to the public as a skin
care product. The total market size of skin care products in Thailand in 2006 was
about 6,100 million bath, and 51% of this was whitening product (Bangkokbiznews,
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.
2
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.
In marketing, perceptions are more important than reality as it is the

"perceptions" that affect consumers’ actual behavior (Kotler & Keller, 2006). The
perceptions of consumers have played a vital role in buying commercial products.
Each individual person is motivated to buy a product when the product matches his or
her needs. For example, Miss A needs her face to become whiter. After she was
informed by her friend about the benefits of the product B (whitening cream) and she
also saw the ads on television, she decided to buy product B. This is because she had
good perceptions on product B in terms of benefits and it matched her needs.
“Perceptions of Thai youth on Whitening Cream” is important to their

decisions on buying or not buying the products. Among Thai youth, there have been a
few people who know the real attributes or benefits of them. This is because many
companies use ads as a tool to convince consumers to buy their products. Using a
movie star or singer to show the differences between before using and after using the
products is a persuasive way to make people believe in what they want to. According
to Professor Doctor Pakdee Pothisiri, a former Secretary General of Food and Drug
Association, there are no herbs that can whiten face. In the past, there were some
cosmetics ads which advertised that they could whiten faces within 6-10 days. Some
users might get allergies and dots on their skin after using the products. This is one of
misperceptions of the youth on this that some herb’s ingredients can help whiten the
3
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.
4
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.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

1.2.1 What are Thai youth perceptions on whitening cream?
1.2.2 How often do Thai youth use whitening cream?
1.2.3 What are the factors that influence Thai youth to use whitening
cream?
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1.3.1 Main Objective
To study perceptions of Thai Youth at Siam Square on Whitening
Cream.
1.3.2 Sub-Objectives
1. To identify the problems (if any) of misperceptions the youth
have on whitening cream; and
2. To obtain their suggestions in order to educate youth in terms of
perceptions.
1.4 VARIABLES AND DEFINITIONS

Variables and Definitions of the terms of this study are the following:
1.4.1 Independent variables
Conceptual Definition
Sex: Biologically identified
Age: The duration that one has been living, starting from birth
Education: The level of education one has received or the process of
receiving or giving systematic instruction, especially at a
school or university
5
Occupation: A job or profession that one does in order to earn a living

Income: Amount of money one earns for a living
Operational Definition
Sex: Biological sex determined at birth
Age: Complete years as of the last birth date
Education: The level in school and university a person has achieved
Occupation: The job or business a person does to earn a living
Income: Amount of money received in payment for goods or
services or from other sources
Indicator
Sex: Male and Female
Age: 15-24 years of age
Education: Less than Bachelor’s Degree, Bachelor’s Degree
Occupation: Students as identified by the respondents
Income: 0-12,500 Baht
1.4.2 Dependent variables
Conceptual
Variable Operation definition Indicator
definition
Perception Feelings of a A feeling someone will have Positive or negative
person to to an object or thing in this response to the use
something context, the facial cream of the facial cream
Facial Some substance Aromatic substance to apply Facial cream that has
cream that is applied on face to make it smooth or been on sale to the
to the face bright public such as
Nivea, Pond’s
1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

1.5.1 The target population of this study is Thai youth.
1.5.2 This research covers only Thai youth aged 15-24 years old at Siam
Square
1.5.3 The sample size is 150.
1.5.4 Questionnaire is a tool for this study.
6
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

1.6.1 This research is aimed to investigate perceptions of Thai youth at Siam
Square on Whitening Cream which is one of popular creams they use. The result of
the study could be used as feedback to companies who are in the whitening cream
industry to understand more about what the youth think.
1.6.2 This study would be a sounding board to the relevant parties to help
solve the problems of any misperceptions or suggestions the youth have on whitening
cream.
1.7 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY

The study of perceptions of Thai youth at Siam Square on Whitening Cream in
this paper is divided into five chapters: Introduction, Review of Literature,
Methodology, Results and Conclusions. The first chapter provides general ideas of the
study, including introduction, problem statement, objectives, definitions of terms,
scope of the study, and significance of the study. The second chapter states the related
theories and other relevant topics. The third chapter discusses the methodology of the
study with details on subjects, instruments, procedures and data analysis. The fourth
chapter presents the results of the study. Finally, the fifth chapter summarizes the
study, the findings, discussion, conclusion and recommendations for further research.
In the appendixes, the questionnaire that was used for data collection from the
sample group, is also included.

Chapter One Background The Trend in The Present Time in Thai Society Has Created A New Concept

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter One Background The Trend in The Present Time in Thai Society Has Created A New Concept

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter One Background The Trend in The Present Time in Thai Society Has Created A New Concept

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

CHAPTER ONE

Currently, 'Whitening' cream is one of the commercial products circulated for

In marketing, perceptions are more important than reality as it is the

“Perceptions of Thai youth on Whitening Cream” is important to their

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1.4 VARIABLES AND DEFINITIONS

Occupation: A job or profession that one does in order to earn a living

1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

1.7 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY

You might also like