TABLE OF CONTENTS
Cover
page I
Title
page II
Approval
page III
Dedication IV
Acknowledgement V
Table
of contents VI
Chapter
one – Introduction 1
1.1
Background of study 1
1.2
Statement of research
problems 4
1.3
Objectives of study 8
1.4
Significance of the
study 9
1.5
Research Questions 10
1.6
Research Hypothesis 11
1.7
Concept ional and
Operational Definition 11
1.8
Assumptions 14
1.9
Delimitation of study
(sample) 15
Chapter
two – Literature Review 18
2.1
Source of literature 18
2.2
The Review 19
2.3
Summary of the literature 33
Chapter
three
3.1
Research method 34
3.2
Research design 34
3.3
Research sample 35
3.4
Measuring instrument 36
3.5
Data collection 36
3.6
Data analysis 37
3.7
Expected result 38
Chapter
four – Data Analysis and Results 39
4.1
Data analysis 39
4.2
Results 51
4.3
Discussion 53
Chapter
five – Summary, conclusion and recommendations
5.1
Summary 61
5.2
Conclusions 63
5.3
Recommendations 64
Bibliography 68
Appendix 73
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY
Television
advertisement represents one of the several stimuli to which children are exposed,
like other kinds of stimuli existing within their environment. Television
advertisement has a powerful tendency to influence children’s behaviour and
general way of life, thus study examines the kind of influences or effects
advertising on television can have on children.
Seventy-six years ago, in 1928 to be precise, a new dimension
in communication and publicity was introduced into the Nigerian commercial and
social life by the United African Company [UAC]. This new dimension was
advertising. Through its West African publicity, the company was able to
execute and implement its advertising objectives in the whole of West Africa with Nigeria as its headquarters.
During this
period however, little attention was paid to the impact which advertising had
on children, instead emphasis were laid on the eradication of the monopoly
posed by foreign advertisement, creation of awareness among the people of the
new service and the winning and retention of clientele (Nwosu 1.1987).
Nigeria was not
alone in this struggle; even the United States of America has its
own share of society of research in this area of study. In this regard, Brown
(1976) had noted the in-availability of studies in this field when he pointed
out: “surprisingly, little published research exists in this area”.
Investigators in America
have examined the effects of television programmes on children, but they have
not been concerned with television advertisement. However, much research in the
united state of America
has examined the effect of television adverts, but the focus has been on adults
rather than children.
Palmer (1980)
remarks that the concern over the effects of television advertisement on
children can be traced back at least to 1969, when the National Association of
Broadcasters in Britain adopted guidelines regulating toy advertisement on
television to children. However, only within the past few years has children
television emerged as a major national policy issue. Today, the principle that
children are a special television audience deserving special protection in
terms of advertising has been widely accepted by both industry and government
policy makers.
One reason why advertising aimed at
children did not emerged as an issue until relatively recently is that for many
years, broadcasters did not consider their audience of children viewers as a
particularly valuable market for advertisers. For instance, the first major
study on American children and television makes only passing mention of
advertising.
Other surveys of audience attitudes
about effects reported that listeners disliked commercial which used “hard
sell” techniques, commercials which interrupted programmes (lazarsfeld and Kendall, 1948). The
possible adverse effect of TV advertisement on children was not mentioned as an
issue at all. Infact, nowhere in the surveys were children mentioned as a
subject of special concern in terms TV advert.
It was only recently that concern over
the effects of TV advert on children began to draw the attention of some
consumer groups in America,
Britain
and other advanced countries. Planner (1980) acknowledges that concern over the
effects of TV advert on children started as a result of effects by consumer
groups, such as Action for children TV (ACT) in 1971 and the council on
children, media and merchandising with assistance from the accumulated research
evidence on the effects of TV adverts on children.
1.2 STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEM
The
problem associated with the effects of TV adverts on children can be social,
economic, and psychological. According to Earl and Martins (1977), the social
problems associated with it includes, tendency towards drug and violence,
imitation of stereotypes seen on TV and a general tendency towards crime. In
terms of economic costs, it involves the more money required to deal with its
undesirable effects.
Studying the “Incidence of drug abuse
among Nigerian youths”, Jorgenson 1 (1988) found that other
long-term problems which TV adverts might have on children and the family at
large include shattered homes, wreckage on the child and increased societal
lawlessness and crime. Jorgenson further pointed out that such adverts give the
child the feeling that whatever is presented in a TV advert is the absolute
truth.
Dr. Theophilus Okoro2 of the
psychiatric hospital Enugu
addressed the issue, in a paper titled “Advertising, that benefits for
children”, Dr. Okoro observed that TV advert has the ability to make the child
less his true sense of personal judgment. He cited the coca-cola advert as a
typical example in which children that has been exposed to the advert for a
long time to regard and identify every soft drink as simply coca-cola. Libert
et al (1973) have linked this behaviour to the amount of time children devote
to watching TV.
A study conducted in America by
Wright et al (1978) has discovered that the typical child spends more of his or
her time in the company of the TV set. Such children have been found to exhibit
such characteristics as reciting off hand the jingles associated with the
adverts and at times acting in synchronization with the actors as the advert is
relayed on TV. The effects of TV commercials on children give more concern on
realization that many kinds of bejaviour exhibited by children are learned by
observation.
Bendura (1969) has pointes out the
increasing resemblance of children’s social behaviour to that of adult models,
parents and TV stars. Because the child’s age and level of reasoning cannot
enable the child to efficiently evaluate information he is exposed to, he/she
seems to evaluate these aspects of life that seem ideal to his own aspirations.
Thus, the influences and effects are made on the aspirations. Thus, the
influence and effects are made on the child unconsciously, perhaps this is why
Wright et al (1978 ) have cautioned; “children being vulnerable to influence
their case warrants especial consideration”.
It is based on these that the effects of
TV advert on children require an independent and serious study since adverts
influence on the child will affect the family and society at large. Kemiston
(1974) has noted that the wish of parents that their children grow into
responsible and influential members of the society is shattered when children
come into direct contact with external stimuli in their environment. He has identified
TV with his borage of adverts and programmes as an essential instrument in this
formation, noting that the entire societal ecology-from TV to packaged foods
are responsible for the child’s future personality.
Some researchers are however undecided
on the actual effects of TV adverts on children. Wright et al contend that
determining whether TV advert does or leads to the corruption of children by
instilling values which are not acceptable in our society is a difficult
assignment”. Wrights assertion further show why it has become more imperative
to really establish the actual effects of TV adverts on children.
This research therefore, examines the
followings:
1. The extent to which children rely on stereotypes presented
on TV.
2. The various control measures aimed at reducing the
negative effects of TV adverts.
3. The role which a child’s sex, age and other independent
variables play on the child’s belief and attitude towards the TV adverts.
1.3 OB JECTIVES
OF THE STUDY
The
study will focus on selected TV adverts with a view to ascertaining the
followings:
a) To find out the various reasons why children watch TV
adverts.
b) To determine the extent to which the child’s response or
practices behaviours acquired from viewing TV adverts.
c) The study also aims at determining the role of TV adverts
in the child’s socialization.
d) To know the particular advert that interests the children
most in television.
e) To know if children like other adverts apart from TV
adverts.
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Children
constitute an essential fragment of every home, and society. Consequently, the
society and the government in particular pay a lot a attention to all issues
affecting the welfare of the children, the effecs, which adverts have on
children, constitute one of such issues. If not checked, such effects of TV
advert are likely to make the child develop along negative lines.
The significance of this study is a
therefore to outline and examine these factors in a TV advert which negatively
affect the child’s development so that the family, government and society at
large can control and educate them. The second significance is to examine how
effective the various existing machineries aimed at children have been. Hence,
the likelihood is that we shall see greater control by government, the media
and the advertisers of TV adverts, (Wright et al, 1978). To contribute to the
knowledge already existing in this area of study can be said to be another
significance or importance of the study.
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
i)
Are children
portraying positively in TV adverts?
ii)
Do children behave positively
towards TV adverts?
iii)
Are children portrayed as
special television advert viewers?
iv)
DO female perform more in TV
adverts than male?
v)
Do TV advert inspire children
after watching?
1.6 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
H1:
Children are generally portrayed positively in TV adverts.
H0:
Children are not portrayed positively in TV adverts.
H2:
Children behave positively towards TV adverts.
H0:
Children do not behave positively towards TV adverts.
H3:
Children are portrayed as special TV adverts viewers.
H0:
Children are not portrayed as special TV advert viewers.
H4:
Female performs more in TV advert than male.
H0:
Female do not perform more in TV adverts than men.
H5:
TV adverts inspire children after watching.
H0:
TV advert do not inspire children after watching.
1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS/VARIABLES CONCEPTIONAL AND OPERATIONAL
The
variable for this study: “The effects of television advert on children” are conception
ally and operationally defined as follows:
Effects
In this study, effects refer to the
results or consequences of one thing or the other.
1.
Effects can be operationalised as follows:
i)
Positive effects
ii)
Negative effects or
side effects
iii)
Neutral effects
Positive
effects refer to those effects, which are in line with the accepted, societal
standards and values or which tend to encourage the development of the child
along this line.
Negative or side effects refers to those
effects which tend to discourage the child from developing along accepted
societal standards and values.
Several types of behavioural and emotional responses of a
negative or antisocial nature may be associated with TV adverts. Among the
undesirable outcome that have been studied are – parent – child conflict and
child unhappiness: (Palmer 1980).
Neutral effects are those effects, which
are neither positive nor negative; it refers to a situation whereby the advert
makes no impact on the child.
2
Television Adverts: TV adverts refers to a marketing tool or communication
whose aim is to build preferences for advertised brands and services are
transmitted through a visual and audio medium. This can be operationally
defined as:
Adverts that are paid for by the advertiser and aired
through the television.
3. Children: Conceptionally children cab
be defined as persons that have not attained the age of puberty.
Operationally-children can be defined or classified:
Biological and socially.
Biologically, any one under the age of 13 is a child; this
is the age at which a child reaches puberty and thence forth regarded as an
adolescent. Other texts maintain that childhood ends at 12. In his book,
children and television, Brown (1976) divided his studies into those concerning
young children (ages 5-12) and those concerning adolescents (age 13 – 18).
Socially,
most people are regarded as children until they reach their mid teens,
especially the age 16. This explains why some social events and activities such
as admission into Nigerian Universities are restricted to those who are
socially developed at least up to the age of 16.Most nations of the world also
do not give children under the 18 years of age the right to vote at elections.
1.8 ASSUMPTIONS
The following assumptions were made in order to give
direction and strength to the study.
These includes:
a)
That the children in question are normal and are
not mentally retarded and can also reason properly.
b)
That children are exposed to and do watch TV
adverts.
c)
That adverts relayed on TV and to which the
children are exposed together directly or indirectly affect them.
d)
Those children are not isolated; In that they
live in any environment where they can interact with others and at the same
time be exposed to other stimuli that can affect them.
1.9 DELIMITATIONS
OF STUDY
Limitations (Osuala 1982) refer to those factors inherent
in the research situation that might affect the results, which the investigator
must recognize and acknowledge.
In defiance,
to this assertion then and it is common with all behavioural studies that deals
with opinions and attitudes, the researcher cannot but depend on the
cooperation and truthfulness or respondents.
DELIMINATION (SAMPLE)
Osuala (1982)
exposes that delimitations are those factors deliberately removed from a study
by a researcher in reaction to problems of finance, time, and other logistics
essential to the study. In this case, only adverts carried out in television
stations in Enugu Urban will be assessed.
Exposure: This research cannot decide whether it is a good
or bad thing for children to be exposed to various selling techniques or for
children to persuade or for them to want various advertised products. This
limitation becomes apparent when the allegation cannot be tied to any advert
when the allegation cannot be tied to any advert or unfair consequences.
Scope: This research does not study the effect of children
television programmes on children, from the research as far done, it was
discovered that unlike programmes which make a clear distinction between
“children’s programmes” and other kinds of programmes, no such clear
distinction has been made between adverts which deal with children’s products
and services and adverts dealing on goods and services required by older
people.
Advert, as it
concerns children and adults products and services are therefore generally
examined in this research. This is more so when children tend to be influenced
by adverts, which deal with their products as well jas that which deals with
the products and services, needed by older people (Palmer
1980).
What actually
looks a distinction is the examination of the types of products advertised to
children which some researchers have been able to do.
In general,
most researchers agreed that the staples of children advert consist of four
product categories: toys, cereals, candies and fast food restaurants (Kenniston
1977). Robert C heats (1972) admits that half of all children’s adverts in the united States of America sells food, another 30% toys and 10% vitamins
.
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