2010年英語(二)試題 第7頁(共14頁)
Text3
Overthepastdecade,manycompanieshadperfectedtheartofcreating
automatic behaviors—habits—among consumers. These habits have helped
companiesearnbillionsofdollars whencustomerseatsnacksor wipecounters
almostwithoutthinking,ofteninresponsetoacarefullydesignedsetofdailycues.
“Therearefundamentalpublichealthproblems,likedirtyhandsinsteadofa
soaphabit,thatremainkillersonlybecausewecan?tfigureouthowtochange
people?shabits,”saidDr.Curtis,thedirectoroftheHygieneCenterattheLondon
SchoolofHygiene& TropicalMedicine.“Wewantedtolearnfromprivateindustry
howtocreatenewbehaviorsthathappenautomatically.”
ThecompaniesthatDr.Curtisturnedto—Procter& Gamble,Colgate-Palmolive
andUnilever—hadinvestedhundredsofmillionsofdollarsfindingthesubtlecuesin
consumers?livesthatcorporationscouldusetointroducenewroutines.
Ifyoulookhardenough,you?llfindthatmanyoftheproductsweuseevery
day—chewing gums,skin moisturizers,disinfecting wipes,airfresheners,water
purifiers,healthsnacks,teeth whiteners,fabricsofteners,vitamins—areresultsof
manufacturedhabits.Acenturyago,fewpeopleregularlybrushedtheirteethmultiple
timesaday.Today,becauseofshrewdadvertisingandpublichealthcampaigns,many
Americanshabituallygivetheirpearlywhitesacavity-preventingscrubtwiceaday,
oftenwithColgate,Crestoroneoftheotherbrands.
Afew decadesago,manypeopledidn?tdrink wateroutsideofa meal.Then
beveragecompaniesstartedbottlingtheproductionoffar-offsprings,andnowoffice
workersunthinkinglysip bottled wateralldaylong.Chewing gum,oncebought
primarilybyadolescentboys,isnowfeaturedincommercialsasabreathfreshenerand
teethcleanserforuseafterameal.Skinmoisturizersareadvertisedaspartofmorning
beautyrituals,slippedinbetweenhairbrushingandputtingonmakeup.
“Ourproductssucceedwhentheybecomepartofdailyorweeklypatterns,”
saidCarolBerning,aconsumerpsychologistwhorecentlyretiredfrom Procter&
Gamble,thecompanythatsold$76billionofTide,Crestandotherproductslast
year.“Creatingpositivehabitsisahugepartofimprovingourconsumers?lives,
andit?sessentialtomakingnewproductscommerciallyviable.”
Throughexperimentsandobservation,socialscientistslikeDr.Berninghave
learnedthatthereispowerintyingcertainbehaviorstohabitualcuesthrough
ruthlessadvertising.Asthisnewscienceofhabithasemerged,controversieshave
eruptedwhenthetacticshavebeenusedtosellquestionablebeautycreamsor
unhealthyfoods.