Morphing anthropomorphism: An update

This is an update of a 2010 paper we published on anthropomorphic consumer perception of brands and marketer attempts to humanize brands through packaging. Since that time a great deal of academic and business attention to the topic of anthropomorphism has resulted in the related work on brand mascots, brand personality, marketplace mythologies, and anthropomorphism in product design and advertising. In addition, new arenas of anthropomorphism have emerged with developments in projective research methods, digital avatars, robot design, digital self-presentation, and conversational digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Siri. Such novel directions have prompted new research questions and further studies. This paper offers a brief update of the evolving issues in the co-creation of anthropomorphic objects and brand interpretations by consumers, designers, roboticists, engineers, and marketers.