The role of advertising in the Soviet Union

Western advertising professionals based their interpretation and definition of advertising in the Soviet Union on a Western model of advertising and its role in free-market economies. Western influence in the restructuring of the Soviet economy also played an important role in how Soviets perceived advertising.

Symbolic interactionism suggests that things have different meanings for different people at different times. This qualitative study discusses (1) the role of institutions as a system of ideas created and shaped by the meanings individuals assign to those institutions, (2) the influence of Russian culture on advertising in the USSR, and (3) the problem of imposing Western concepts of advertising.

This research study was conducted on-site in Moscow, Russia in May 1991. Twenty interviews were audio-taped in Russian with selected government officials, business and advertising industry professionals, academicians and students. Findings suggest that advertising in the USSR was a form of market information between commerce and industry; adaptation of Western-style advertising created conflicts among Soviet economic and social classes; Soviet advertising decisions concerning media, messages and ethical behavior are made on an intuitive basis; and advertising must be viewed from the perspective of a Russian culture in order to be understood.