Research briefFood Advertising Targeted at School-Age Children: A Content Analysis
Introduction
Concern that young children cannot comprehend television advertising and that it could have undue manipulative effects on them was first raised in the 1970s.1 Advertising targeting children is emerging once again as a public policy issue, this time in the context of the childhood obesity epidemic.
Many studies have shown that children who spend more time with media, particularly television, are more likely to be overweight.2 Television viewing may displace less sedentary activities3 or lead to increased energy intake, since the consumption of greater amounts of food overall, and specifically high-fat and high-sugar foods, may be encouraged through advertising.4 Many studies indicate that advertising influences children’s food preferences and consumption patterns.5 The World Health Organization considers food marketing aimed at children to be a probable causative factor contributing to the obesity epidemic.6 Even 30-second messages have been shown to influence children’s food preferences.7
Our first goal in undertaking a content analysis of television advertising targeting school-age children was to determine whether physical activity and athletic ability were associated with the product more often in food ads than in those for toys and games. Advocacy groups and academics have suggested that the food industry deflects attention from its possible role in the obesity epidemic by emphasizing physical activity.8, 9 Others have suggested that associating physical activity and athletics with nutrient-poor foods may mislead children to believe that these foods are healthful.10 However, to our knowledge, the association between physical activity and food advertising has never been quantified. To explore these claims, we compared the frequency of moderate to vigorous physical activity in food ads with that in toy and game ads. The logic is that to play with a toy or game is no more likely to involve physical activity than eating or drinking.
Our second goal was to explore the nature of the persuasive techniques used in advertising to children. Previous research has indicated that advertising for food products is most often associated with fun and happiness.1, 11 However, very few content analyses of children’s television advertising in the United States have been published since the early 1990s. Of 5 studies identified that were published since 1995,4, 11, 12, 13, 14 only one examines the persuasive techniques that were used.11 More in-depth and current research is warranted to determine which persuasive techniques to sell food to children have persisted since the most recent analyses were conducted; to examine a broader range of persuasive techniques used to sell food; and to identify any new strategies that may have emerged in recent years.
Although we do not have direct evidence of the effectiveness of the advertisements evaluated in the present study, we do know that advertising to children does influence their choices.5 For that reason, health educators may want to adopt some of the strategies used by the commercial sector to promote more healthful foods. This information may also help inform media literacy training to enable children to critically evaluate media messages to understand their implicit purpose and impact. Finally, as the debate continues about whether the United States should implement policies that limit or change the nature of food advertising targeting children, as has been done in other countries, a systematic study of advertising would help inform policy decisions.
Section snippets
Study procedures
A total of 31 hours of children’s programming was videotaped during one week in late September 2003 in the metropolitan Boston area, on stations and time slots that were most popular with children, according to Nielsen data.15, 16 Children’s programming is increasingly found on cable rather than network television,17 and in the United States, most households with children have cable television.18 Therefore, two cable stations (Nickelodeon and The Cartoon Network) and one network station (WB)
Findings
There were a total of 987 advertisements and promotions in the 31 hours of children’s programming, or an average of approximately 32 per hour. Because ads and promotions were 15 to 30 seconds each, this number represents approximately 12 minutes of nonprogram content per hour. Promotions, defined as announcements for upcoming shows, movies, concerts, and contests, accounted for 28% of the 987 advertisements. Excluding promotions, there were 711 ads, of which 39% were for toys and games, and 35%
Discussion
This study confirms the anecdotal observation that food advertisers link their products with physical activity. Physical activity was depicted in one of every two food ads, but in just one of every five toy or game ads. Likewise, food was associated with increased athletic ability in more than one in three food ads, but in just one in eight toy and game ads. These findings raise several concerns. At best, these portrayals of physical activity could encourage children to become more active. At
Implications for research and practice
Health educators can use some of the persuasive techniques identified in this study to formulate messages for nutritious foods targeted to school-age children. For example, based on these findings, a public service announcement (PSA) that promotes a healthful food such as broccoli to school-age children would associate the food with fun and happiness, and would imply that it tastes good. Well-designed interventions to test whether these techniques will work to increase consumption of more
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