Young children are often thought to process advertising messages peripherally by focusing on superficial features like colors and sounds. However, this study found evidence that 5-6 year olds can engage in deeper processing of advertising messages featuring food endorsements in three ways: 1) They can elaborate on the conceptual relationship between an endorser character and the endorsed food product. 2) Their attention can be directed to thinking about the food product itself rather than just the endorser. 3) They are able to recognize weak or inconsistent arguments, such as when an endorser promotes an unhealthy food. The study suggests young children have the ability and motivation for thoughtful processing of advertising messages targeted at them.
Simultaneous cross-media advertising: the role of involvement
Young children's deep processing of endorsement marketing
1. @TimSmitsTim
Traces of deep processing in
young children’s reactions to
healthy and unhealthy food
endorsements
Tim Smits (KU Leuven)
Heidi Vandebosch (UAntwerp)
Acknowledgements to student researchers:
Kim Deweirt – Carole Steger – Badia Idrioui
2. Kidsvertising: literacy
“
Historically dominant research topic in communication sciences:
Advertising literacy
the skills of analyzing, evaluating, and creating
persuasive messages across a variety of contexts and media
YOUNG (2003)
Two developmental markers:
1. Ability to distinguish ads from content
2. Recognize the persuasive intent of ads
Source: #google #ngram
CTC2012: Traces of DEEP processing in children
3. Kidsvertising: effects
Effects research typically in other disciplines (until more recently)
Medicine
Marketing and consumer research
Only scant attention to developmental markers
A series of studies demonstrated that marketing persuasiveness exists
among children, but little was known about age effects
Effects seem to be possible among all age groups
So, are there age differences in the cognitive underpinnings
of these manifest effects?
The same apparent effects can be due to different underlying
mechanisms
Focus of this paper: the persuasion process for 5-6 year olds?
CTC2012: Traces of DEEP processing in children
4. “
Prior claims in literature: Young children = PERIPHERAL PROCESSING
It can be hypothesized that less media-literate viewers (generally
younger children) are more interested in such superficial or
peripheral features of advertising as celebrity sources, jingles, and
colorful and entertaining images
LIVINGSTONE & HELSPER (2006)
“
But interest in “superficial” message aspects does not preclude
deep processing
more media-literate children (or older children and adults) are
more attentive to the creativity or informative nature of the
commercial or to the value of the product in their lives and are
thereby more influenced by the quality of the arguments and
claims
LIVINGSTONE & HELSPER (2006)
As if younger children are not able to think thoroughly…
Empirical research:
Very limited (exception Te’eni-Harari et al., 2007)
… despite calls for such studies (e.g. Buijzen, Van Reijmersdal
& Owen, 2010)
Traces of DEEP processing in children
5. Central Hypothesis
Young children possess the capacity to process messages centrally,
though they might lack the capacity to counter-argue
Prior evidence:
Children (4-6 yo) presented with a character-endorsed carrot
display more positive attitudes towards that carrot if the endorser
is conceptually relevant.
DE DROOG, VALKENBURG & BUIJZEN (2012)
So, children do elaborate on the “superficial” marketing technique
and go beyond the mere fun factor of endorsement
Why would this be important?
Multi-method examination of processing styles of food ads
featuring endorsers that promote healthy or unhealthy foods
Traces of DEEP processing in children
6. Q1: Can young children elaborate on the
relation between endorser and product
Focus groups: 14 children (50/50 boys & girls; 5 years old)
Semi-structured
Questions on different healthy foods, different known endorsers,
and the explicit relation between both + explanation of answers:
What would character X eat?
Given a certain fruit/vegetable, which character would best fit?
Which one of characters X1 and X2 best fits a given food?
Results:
Conceptual as well as perceptual relevance spontaneously given as
a rationale for a match between character and food
Pirate (Piet Piraat) – Exotic island – Banana
Pink “superwoman” (Mega Mindy) – Most pink-like food – Strawberry
Conclusion: On a conscious level, deep processing of the endorser
is possible Traces of DEEP processing in children
7. Q2: Can young children redirect their
attention from the endorser to the product
“
<> Centration hypothesis
… under about 6 years of age, children obey the principle of
‘‘centration,’’ reacting to a single prominent attribute of a product
(e.g., color or sound) to determine whether they like it or not
(Carruth et al., 2000; Valkenburg & Cantor, 2001)
LIVINGSTONE & HELSPER (2006)
Experiment: 65 children, aged 6
Manipulation: Cookie picture presented with-without an endorser
Measurement: Cognitions about the presentation + Food attitude
Results:
Cognitions on both the endorser and the product
Endorser does not seem to jeopardize thinking about the product
Anecdote: Even divergent cognitions recorded about the cookies
Conclusion: Deep processing even to the extent that they show
some adult-like scrutiny Traces of DEEP processing in children
8. Q3: Do young children recognize a weak
argument (an incongruent endorser)?
Recent research clearly demonstrates the persuasiveness of endorsers
among 4-6 year olds.
Ten papers, 12 studies, mostly published since 2010 (Smits et al., submitted)
Some of these studies demonstrated differences: certain endorser-food
combinations are more persuasive than others.
e.g. De Droog et al. (2012): Most incongruent combination -> lowest attitudes
None of these studies designed to demonstrate inverse persuasiveness.
Experiment: 74 children, aged 6, repeated measures design
Baseline measurement without endorser
Follow-up measurement with endorser
Apple – Chocolate
Bart Simpson - Sportacus
DV: Amount of each food they say they want to eat
Traces of DEEP processing in children
9. Results Study 3
5
4,5
4 Apple Sportacus
Appel Sportacus
3,5
Appel SimpsonSimpson
Apple Bart
3
Chocolate
Chocolade
2,5
Sportacus
Sportacus
2
Chocolate
Chocolade
1,5
Bart Simpson
Simpson
1
0,5
0
Baseline
basislijn Withendorser
met endorser
10. Conclusion s
Young children can have the motivation and the ability to think
thoroughly, also concerning the commercial messages targeted at
them
For a part, they can neglect the visual/cognitive attraction of the
often used endorser, such that they could engage in deep
processing of the link between the endorser and the endorsed
product.
They are even able to think in a divergent (counter-arguing) way,
resulting in negative attitudes for inconsistent endorsements.
Thanks for your attention, remarks, and questions!
Traces of DEEP processing in children
11. @TimSmitsTim
Traces of deep processing in
young children’s reactions to
healthy and unhealthy food
endorsements
Tim Smits (KU Leuven)
Heidi Vandebosch (UAntwerp)
Acknowledgements to student researchers:
Kim Deweirt – Carole Steger – Badia Idrioui
12. Contact
Tim Smits is an assistant
professor in persuasive and
marketing communication at KU
Leuven. He is a PhD in Social Heidi Vandebosch is an associate
Psychology and MSc in Statistics. professor at the University of
He teaches courses on persuasive Antwerp. Her research focuses on
communication, marketing youngsters, (new) media and
communication, advertising, and health related problems (e.g.
research methodology. obesity, cyberbullying). She teaches
courses on media sociology and
health communication.