Bilingualism in TV advertising in bilingual Malta and its effects on consumers

Abstract

This dissertation focuses on the relationship between the advertising languages in TV advertisements in Malta and their effects on Maltese bilingual consumers. Malta’s history of colonialism points towards the inevitable and unquestionable bilingualism that exists in the country, which ultimately resulted in two official languages, Maltese and English. The majority of the Maltese population is known to enjoy balanced bilingualism, which affects several domains, including TV advertising. As bilinguals process languages and information differently than monolinguals, a particular language used in TV advertising would influence them differently than it would a monolingual, and this study aims to uncover these effects. Indeed, the rising dominance of English in Maltese TV advertising is exposed, along with the de facto situation of bilingualism in the Maltese TV advertising setting. A variety of other language-related topics are explored, including code-switching, the historical context, the use of the lingua franca English in today’s globalised world and advertising, and the beneficial effects of language in connection to bilingual identity, bilingual thought, and emotional responses. Different advertisers offering different types of products or services and reasons for their chosen advertising language will also be explored. Conclusions will be made on three specific research questions: whether one language elicits a stronger emotional reaction than another, whether a language is more appropriate for different categories of products or services, with a focus on luxuries and necessities, and, whether the terminology used in advertising a product or service influences the advertising language chose by the advertiser.