A study into the attitudes towards and the comprehension of the English used in Dutch TV commercials

Abstract

The present study conducts a follow-up of the research executed by Gerritsen et al. in 2000, which tested attitudes and comprehension of the English used in 6 Dutch TV commercials from the mid 1990s. It aims to discover to what extent attitudes towards and comprehension of the English used in Dutch TV commercials have changed since the 1990s. The present study provides the reader with a literature review which describes strategies of adaptation and standardization in international marketing research and the rise of English as a world language globally and in the Netherlands. An online survey was created which tested attitudes, comprehension, and translation skills of 75 respondents for 6 commercials. The present study found similar results to Gerritsen et al.’s (2000). However, no significant differences for education were found. In addition, frequent Internet use did not lead to more positive attitudes towards the English used. The same was true for self-reported competence in English. As was expected, a better comprehension of the English paired with a more positive attitude. Lastly, comprehension and actual translation did not correlate: when someone reported a high comprehension of the English used in the Dutch TV commercials, this did not mean that their translation was correct as well. In conclusion, additional research with an inclusion of the Internet as a medium should be conducted.