Diana -- A Princess in America

 

Why was she so popular?

Psychology and a British Princess

Princess Diana died 31 August 1997. It’s not surprising why we British might be interested in the story. What is surprising to me is her popularity in America from the wedding to decades after her death.

According to Pew Research, close to 90% of Americans followed the news of Princess Diana’s death and 54% reported following the story closely. “No other story this year has come close (1997).”

A Newsweek story a few days ago caught my eye, “How Princess Diana Wanted to Move to America with Harry and William,” wrote Jack Royston (2021, Aug 24). Apparently, she spoke to friends and relatives about moving to the US—a place where she could get away from the press of the press. One remembered quote refers to her belief that there’s no class system or establishment in the US. Whatever her thoughts, it appears she felt welcomed by Americans. And of course, her son married an American and makes news from time to time.

We like friendly people.

People who smile and appear "down-to-earth" are winners (see e.g., Hanson, 2012).

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Last year (2020, Nov 22), Adrienne Gaffney in Town & Country began her article on the Princess and New York. Gaffney mentions the gasp of the audience when she entered an event in 1989—her beauty and her dress capture the writer. But there’s another story. She visited Henry Street Settlement, a transitional housing program. Why was she appreciated here? “She was just so down to earth…nonpretentious,” said Verona Middleton-Jeter. As she held a 7-year-old boy with AIDS, she made an impression on a doctor: “Our own royalty, whatever that is, being a democracy or a republic or whatever, have not done anything nearly so symbolic as these things you are doing today,” she was told by Dr. Margaret Heagarty, the Los Angeles Times reported at the time.” Gaffney closes her piece with a story about her sale of dresses to raise money for charity. A telling quote from Nancy Valentino of Christie’s helps explain the connection. The staff had been prepared about how they should behave. Then: “up the stairs comes this luminous, amazing, sort of angelic, beautiful person... When you saw her, when you were in her presence, you knew you were in the presence of someone who was extraordinary,” she says. “She was warm and friendly, looked everyone in the eye and thanked them.”

We like people of high social rank who are attractive and approachable.

Social status is a factor in desirability. Princess Diana certainly had high status but she didn't flaunt it. Add in other factors as noted below, and it's easy to see why she was and is so popular. Read more in this open text.

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According to Forbes, Princess Diana was the most photographed woman in the world (2021, June 29). It’s her 60th birthday and she’s still making news. Her sons unveiled a new statue. As you scroll through the article, there’s picture after picture of Diana from childhood to middle age.

The exposure effect. We remember repeated images, which can suggest importance and familiarity. She’s one of us. 

Read more about the exposure effect and similarity factor in relationships in this open text.

We take photos of that which is beautiful and pay attention to beautiful pictures. 

A large body of psychological research and marketing experience document the power of a beautiful woman to attract attention and to garner high ratings on desirable qualities (e.g., see Archer 2012). Human have a beauty bias.

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Constance Grady’s piece promises to answer part of my question: “The pop cultural obsession with Princess Diana’s innocence, explained (Vox, 2020, Nov 25). Grady opines: “Diana became famous for being accidentally sexy. The contradiction was fundamental to her image.” Grady sees Diana as the archetype of the innocent young virgin.

Princess Diana was an attractive woman. Attractive women do grab attention.

Sexual attraction is a well-researched factor (e.g., Paris, 2017). Grady might have a point about the sexy innocent virgin; however, a CBS survey data show American men were considerably less likely than women to follow the story about Diana’s death. The opinion about the innocent virgin is an idea that is testable so, I'd say, wait for the data on Grady's specific point, which is different from the features of general sexual attraction.

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 If you are interested in British-American language and culture, you may like the book, Mind the Gap available on Amazon and Google.

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Checking the Boxes

Why was and is Princess Diana so popular in the United States? There are probably many reasons.  One reason not mentioned in the stories is her language. Diana spoke English of course, which makes her seem more like one of us. Another factor hinted at but not explicit were the causes she championed, which added to a sense of moral standing. Based on what we know from social psychology, we have a list of factors that the Princess embodied.

__Attractiveness

__Beauty, beauty bias

__Exposure effect

__Friendliness

__High Status

__Moral standing

__Similarity

__Smiling