Marist’s historical polling data shows that Americans have been making the most popular resolutions in roughly similar numbers for years. Down the list, being kinder, becoming more spiritual, or worrying less received only faint support. In the same poll, almost a third of those intending to make resolutions singled out eating habits, exercise, or weight as the problems they hope to fix, and another 10 percent chose finance-related goals. In the United States, self-improvement often boils down to being thin and amassing wealth. Forty-four percent of American adults intend to make resolutions for 2019, according to a poll conducted in December by NPR, PBS Newshour, and Marist. That’s been especially true since the self-help and personal fitness booms of the 1960s and ’70s, when self-improvement practices that had previously been confined to the fringe started seeping into mainstream use.
Versions of the practice were also common in ancient Rome and medieval Europe, and the concept was carried into modern cultures by religious traditions like Christian watchnight services and the Jewish High Holidays, which emphasize taking stock of the previous year and making amends to move forward.Īs American culture has become more secular, resolutions have been mostly stripped of their religious origins, pivoting instead to focus on the self. New Year’s resolutions have a long history in many forms, dating back at least 4,000 years to ancient Babylon, where people celebrated the feast of Akitu and promised to repay debts and return things they’d borrowed in an attempt to please fickle deities.
Read: New Year’s resolutions are predictions about the future With New Year’s resolutions, the commodification of inadequacy can be explicit in a way that might seem rude during most of the year, and the message is clear: You’ve got some work you should be doing, and these companies have some related products they’d like to show you.
Equinox, a chain of high-end gyms, abandoned its normally sleek, neutral aesthetic for a colorful, blinking GIF advertising its New Year’s Eve membership sale. On December 31, Target’s website featured an array of fitness products under “Wellness for the Win,” which sat directly under an assortment of New Year’s Eve party supplies. The website has infographics about mental health, articles about dietary dangers, and the general vibe of self-improvement that often permeates end-of-year advertising.Īttempts like this abound to influence consumer behavior by reminding you that it’s almost next year, and you’re still the same imperfect person you’ve always been. They’re part of a sweeping campaign that also includes a website and sponsored Twitter trending topic, and that gives the impression Cigna has invested a lot of money in associating itself with the neuroses that haunt Americans as they look to ways to improve themselves in the new year: too much work, a bad diet, not enough adventure.
#How to market healthy menu items to new years resolutioners series#
You might have recently noticed Queen Latifah, Ted Danson, and a Jonas brother in a series of TV commercials, encouraging you to take care of yourself with Cigna health insurance in 2019.
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