Comfort As Advertising

Comfort For Everyone? 

I admit to being puzzled by the Hanes ComfortBlend – Softer Than A Kitten Video even though the entire campaign supports the importance of comfort in its simplest form.  And we know from nursing research that Comfort is a basic human need; further, it is important for Strength in our patients and ourselves…but 25 years of Comfort Theory development (Kolcaba) tell us that comfort is also related to performance, as measured by better outcomes, goal achievement, or productivity. 

So Hanes, please tell us, what is the purpose of comfortable underwear?  

Strength of erection comes to mind, but that could be inconvenient in the workplace (LOL). Other possible purposes might be to concentrate on a task, to get rid of that unpleasant distraction of underwear that is NOT soft (LOL??), or to encourage sociability.  

From the Research 

Comfort Theory also presented types of comfort revealing that:  an important part of comfort was the ability to transcend, overcome, or rise above stressful situations in order to achieve optimal health outcomes.  The theory states that if nurses helped patients with their comfort needs in the context of health care, then patients were strengthened to engage more fully in health seeking behaviors. Later, the application for nursing was broadened to include all the healthcare disciplines, both for patients and practitioners. 

Comfort Applied to the Health Care Industry 

For practitioners, Comfort Theory was utilized for improving their working environment – that is, for healthcare teams to create a “comfort zone” for each other in which renewal occurred following experiences with multiple life and death stressors. During those times of stress, health care providers had to come out of their comfort zones in order to perform at their highest levels, and often for prolonged periods of time.   When those situations were resolved, practitioners could then return to their comfort zone, both at work and hopefully at home for renewal. 

But Comfortable Underwear?

If comfort is a basic human need, and it is linked to the desired outcomes of strengthening or renewal for patients and health care providers,  what is the desired outcome for men wearing soft underwear?  And do we dare ask if comfort is limited only to patients in hospitals or for those who buy Hanes?  

If we want our fellow citizens to have good outcomes, shouldn’t comfort be available for all of them, too? There are many guides for what constitutes comfort including food, shelter, clothing, meaningful work, warmth, rest, safety, compassion, support, and hope. These essentials are provided during hospital care, but what about afterwards?  

How do we as citizens address the comfort needs of our vulnerable brothers and sisters and children and elders so that they can all do better?  

Comfort as a Basic Human Value for Everyone

Where are our values placed as a society, as evidenced by how money is spent?  If we value comfort, as advertisers want us to do, let’s also value the purpose of comfort---for everyone.  Let’s put our money where our values are!!

Let me know what you think. Post your comments and share the discussion. I'd like to hear from you about your reactions.

(sigh...) If only comfort was as simple as having soft underwear…..

- Kathy Kolcaba

Links of Interest

• Kolcaba's Comfort As Advertising Video Response http://youtu.be/bi9P87fFtWI
• Hanes ComfortBlend – Softer Than A Kitten Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2ph3eoLGf4 
• Hanes ComfortBlend http://hanescomfortblend.com/ 
• Ads of the World http://adsoftheworld.com/media/tv/hanes_comfortblend_softer_than_a_kitten 
• Adweek August 7, 2012 Ad of the Day: Hanes Brand's ComfortBlend T-shirts are even softer than wearing kittens http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/ad-day-hanes-142582

 

Find, Friend and Share Comfort Is Strength!

• The Comfort Line http://thecomfortline.com/
• Blog http://comfortisstrength.blogspot.com/
• Daily News http://paper.li/KathyKolcaba/1339102308
• Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ComfortIsStrength
• Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/kathykolcaba/
• Google+ https://plus.google.com/111152426790972245527
• Klout http://klout.com/kathykolcaba
• Livestream http://www.livestream.com/comfortisstrength
• Scribd http://www.scribd.com/KathyKolcaba
• Slideshare http://www.slideshare.net/KathyKolcaba
• Twitter https://twitter.com/kathykolcaba
• You Tube http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWbUr6J85eSZQaY5CC0HVVQ

Copyright 2012 Katharine Kolcaba, RN, MSN, PhD. Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Katharine Kolcaba, RN, MSN, PhD, The Comfort Line, Chagrin Falls, Ohio 44022. E-mail: kathykolcaba@yahoo.com Phone: 440-655-2098 Web: http://thecomfortline.com/

- Betsey Merkel, The Comfort Line and Comfort Is Strength Communications