The indirect effects of promotion : an exploratory study of food consumption with children, parents, and peers / y Michele Roberts

2010

[Truncated abstract] There is an abundance of literature concerning the effects that food advertising has on children's diets. Several reviews of the literature have concluded that this body of research provides sufficient evidence that advertising has modest, direct effects on what children eat. However, the Australian Senate and the Australian Communications and Media Authority argue that there is insufficient evidence to justify further regulation of food promotion in Australia. It would appear that new avenues of enquiry are needed to understand the influence of food promotion on children's diets and to inform policy decisions dealing with child obesity. Researchers have suggested that studies of indirect effects could provide evidence of greater promotional influence on children's diets. However, these indirect effects have yet to be explained and measured. The aim of this study was to identify the indirect effects of promotion on children and to explain how these effects occur. This will allow future research to measure these effects, thereby providing evidence of a dimension of food promotion that has previously been ignored in policy discussions. As very little is understood about the nature of indirect promotion effects, a grounded theory approach was taken to develop a substantive theory of children's food consumption. ... The core category identified in the grounded theory was psychosocial eating, which is the term used in this study to describe how children and their parents reported habitually making food consumption decisions based on social and psychological needs, with secondary consideration given to physiological needs. Data from the interviews and projective techniques suggest that this psychosocial eating was reinforced by food promotion. The indirect effects of promotion have previously been defined as those effects that are mediated by another

variable. The key mediators in this study were identified to be parents, siblings, and peers.

Schools and supermarkets also had an important influence. There are two major theoretical contributions of this study. Firstly, the grounded theory provides an analysis of children's food consumption behaviours, including insight into how these behaviours are influenced by food promotion, in the context of other influences in children's lives. Secondly, a model of the direct and indirect effects of food promotion is proposed. The study also extends various conceptual domains, notably the role of siblings in consumer behaviour and gift giving. There are also important managerial contributions made by this thesis. Firstly, it suggests that attempts to address child obesity need to take account of the psychosocial uses of food that are prevalent amongst children and their peers and supported by many parents. Initiatives that focus solely on education (such as improved product labelling) could have limited effect if consumer motivations remain unchanged. Secondly, the study provides insights for child health advocates and policy makers. The findings suggest that the use of emotional and social appeals in promotion and the use of product spokespersons/spokescharacters are important areas for review by policy makers. They also suggest that schools are playing an important role in mediating the effects of food promotion, which merits further review by education authorities.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Australia, 2010

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