Swedes' Attitudes to the Use of English in Swedish Advertising

Abstract: English is commonly used on the Swedish consumer market today. Not only is English present in Swedish print media but it is also highly present in everyday communication amongst Swedes. The aim of this paper is to find out why English is often picked for promotion purposes and to find out if young Swedes have more positive attitudes towards English than Swedish – Both in general and when it comes to advertising purposes. This study investigates the possible advantages as well as disadvantages of using English in logotypes and brand names aimed at a target group that are learners of English as a second or foreign language. The study was performed using a questionnaire divided into two parts. The first part aimed at finding out about the informants’ knowledge of English and attitudes towards English. The second part was about Swedes’ preferences regarding English versus Swedish brand names. To do so six fictional logotypes in pairs of two’s were created: one with all Swedish text elements and one with all English text elements. The informants were to pick their favorite logotype and motivate why they picked it. The results showed that Swedes generally have positive attitudes towards English and that they prefer English brand names to Swedish ones when the English used is on a certain linguistic level. A possible conclusion is that Swedes like English better for commercial purposes but only as long as they experience some familiarity with the words or expressions used.