BMI Affects Advertising Comprehension for Children

A study was conducted to examine how children’s BMI and perception of their body shape contribute to their ability to understand and intelligently appraise advertising. It suggests that while age has been an influential factor, the BMI and body shape of children significantly impact on their advertising literacy. 

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Age has often been assumed as the major factor that contributes to the development of advertising literacy among children. Several researches had been conducted to study how children develop the ability to grasp and intelligently appraise advertisements. This ability, called advertising literacy, is important in the development of young individuals into adult consumers who are able to judiciously discern the true value of advertisements. Previous studies within a particular age bracket, however, showed inconsistencies in this widely-held assumption.

This gave rise to a study conducted by Julia Spielvogel and Ralf Terlutter which was designed to introduce a set of criteria, such as BMI, body shape perception and dietary habits, and examine the effects of these to the children’s ability to handle advertising. The participants to the study were children with ages 7-11 from three Austrian primary schools.

The findings reveal that body mass index (BMI) and perception of body shape affect the self-esteem of children. Self-esteem, in turn, affects the child’s attitude toward advertising. Children who prefer unhealthy food products, such as those high in fat, sugar, salt and additives, tend to have less critical attitude about advertised unhealthy food.

This study is very relevant because the population of overweight and obese children all over the world has reached 170 million per 2012 data from the World Health Organization (WHO). Food products make up almost 40% of advertisements and children gobble these visual marketing strategies from printed and broadcast media. It significantly matters that they have high advertising literacy to discern truth over promotional stunts.

According to the researchers, media competence must be developed in these children. Special trainings could be given to increase awareness about nutrition and to heighten critical thinking when it comes to consumerism and product advertising. Foremost, too, is the need for parents to understand that they are their children’s models, whether they like it or not. Advertising competence and support to proper nutrition must first be demonstrated by the parents at home, long before children would hear about these matters from trainings or school.

Reference:

Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt | Graz | Wien. “Are overweight children less able to handle advertising?.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 11 December 2013. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/12/131211070213.htm>.