Färger, former, ljus : Svensk reklam och reklampsykologi, 1900-1930

Sammanfattning: This dissertation examines the rise of an advertisement business in Sweden and the breakthrough of advertising psychology as a field of knowledge. The aim of the investigation is to show first, how the advertising landscape changed in Sweden and, second, how technologies were used in designing the different forms of advertisement that became integrated into media and public environments, during the period 1900-1930. The study raises questions such as: Who were the entrepreneurs behind the outbreak of psychological advertising in Sweden during the early 20th century? How did advertisement become integrated into media and urban landscapes as part of everyday life in Swedish society? How did handbooks in advertising psychology describe the effects of external visual stimuli, such as light, colors and shapes on the viewers’ consciousness and the role of such stimuli in transforming viewers to consumers? The dissertation is written within the interdisciplinary field of visual culture studies. Here the theoretical point of departure combines perspectives from media, film and art studies. Drawing on Crary’s works, the intention of my study is to highlight how such changes resulted in strategies and tools that were used in commercial business and not necessarily in the sciences. The ability to capture human attention and influence her through visual stimuli was also of great interest to trade and industry. Within commercial business the human sense of sight was perceived as an object that could be stimulated for creating consumers. I examine the development of techniques and strategies in commercial business for influencing individuals by external stimuli.