Culture at Arm’s Length: The Effects of Analytic-Holistic Thinking on Visual Aesthetics in Brand Selfies Taken by Chinese, Russian, and U.S. Consumers

We investigate visual aesthetic style in user-generated content (UGC)—the brand selfie—across cultures (China, Russia, United States), which reflect cultural variations in thinking style (analytic, holistic). Consumers composed three types of brand selfies that differed in perceptual focus, which were later analyzed for aesthetics related to cultural thinking style. Results of two studies show that consumers in these markets tended to design selfies in accordance with culturally ascribed thinking style. Consideration of culture remains important as technology continues to shape consumers’ UGC and brand engagement.