James U. McNeal

How Chinese Children's Commercials Differ from Those of the United States: A Content Analysis

Abstract A content analysis was conducted of childrens television commercials from China and the United States that were recorded over a period of eighteen months. We describe how the content of the two sets of commercials differs and the underlying reasons for the differences, including cultural, economic, and social conditions. The results suggest that, for the most part, Chinese childrens commercials reflect Chinas traditional cultural values and its social and economic development level. However, the analysis was able to detect a shifting in power in Chinese society from the elderly to the young, resulting mainly from its one-child policy implemented during the past two decades. We also found some evidence of Western values creeping into Chinese childrens commercials. Limitations are noted, and suggestions are offered for additional research that will corroborate these findings.

Chinese children as consumers: an analysis of their new product information sources

The research reported here was a first attempt to determine where Chinese children as consumers learn information about new products and their attitudes toward different sources of information. Chinese children’s usage of the mass media was also examined, as was the relationship between mass media usage and information sources. The findings show that Chinese children utilize a wide variety of information sources to learn about new products including parents, retail outlets, and the mass media, and surprisingly they consider the newest medium, television, to be the most important of all. The effects of gender, age and family occupation were also considered. Some important marketing implications are suggested.

Development of consumer behavior patterns among Chinese children

Explores the consumer behavior patterns of urban Chinese children as a primary and an influence market. Examines, as primary consumers, their income, spending and saving patterns. Finds that they have two different types of income, save over half of it, and spend the rest on snack items, play items, and the largest portion on school‐related items. Analyzes their influence on the spending behavior of their parents and grandparents among 25 product categories and the results reveal that they influence around two‐thirds of parents’ purchases. Also considers role of age and gender on children’s consumer behavior. Discusses some marketing implications.

Parent‐child communications about consumption and advertising in China

The current study examines how mainland Chinese parents communicate with their children about consumption and advertising. A survey of 1,665 parents of children aged six to 14 in Beijing, Nanjing and Chengdu was conducted in December 2001 to March 2002. Using Moore and Moschis’s typology of family communication patterns, Chinese parents are classified into four types including laissez‐faire, protective, pluralistic, and consensual parents. Results indicated Chinese parents are classified primarily as consensual in type with both high socio‐ as well as concept‐oriented communication. Family communication patterns differ among parents of different demographic groups as well as among different dyad relationships. Parents with a higher education level and families with a higher household income engaged more frequently in concept‐oriented communication. Pluralistic and consensual parents discussed with children about television commercials more often than laissez‐faire and protective parents. Consensual parents perceived they have a greater influence on children’s attitude toward advertising than laissez‐faire parents. Implication for marketers and advertisers are discussed.

Consumer behavior of Chinese children: 1995‐2002

Chinese children’s consumer behavior and their influence on the consumer behavior of their parents are examined in a manner that allows comparisons with major findings reported seven years ago. Most noticeable differences are that the children’s income has doubled and their spending has almost tripled during the time period. Additionally, their independent store visits have increased 32 per cent and the number of stores shopped independently, 81 per cent. Their influence on parent’s regular purchases reached 68.7 per cent and on durable goods purchases, 23.3 per cent.

Chinese children’s attitudes towards television advertising: Truthfulness and liking

This benchmarking study examines Chinese children.s perceived truthfulness of and liking for television advertising in three Chinese cities with different developmental levels of advertising. An in-person survey of 1758 children (ages 6 to 14) was conducted between December 2001 and March 2002 using a structured questionnaire. Results indicate that a majority of children perceive half of the television commercials to be true, although this varies by grade and geography. Children in Beijing perceived television commercials to be more trustworthy than did children in Nanjing and Chengdu. The percentage of children who perceive all commercials to be true declines consistently with grade in all three cities. There is a high proportion of first graders who perceive all commercials to be untrue. The basis for judgement varies predominantly by grade. Children in higher grades depend more on brand and user experience while children in lower grades rely mainly on authority (i.e. parents or teachers). A high proportion of first graders hold both a strong liking and disliking for commercials. These strong feelings towards advertising decreased with grade, being replaced by a marked increase in neutral or indifferent feelings. Gender and level of television viewing do not show a consistent impact on perceived truthfulness and liking for commercials. Perceived truthfulness of television advertising is related positively with liking for commercials.

Children’s perceptions of television advertising in urban China

Explores the attitudes to TV advertising of Chinese children, the “little emperors/empresses“ who now have enormous influence on the market, largely as a result of the one‐child policy that China adopted in 1979; like children elsewhere, they appear to pay less attention to commercials as they get older and become more sceptical about their truthfulness. Outlines the methodology used in the research, differences between Hong Kong and mainland children, children’s favourite commercials, and their views of advertised versus non‐advertised brands. Moves on to regulation of children’s advertising: unlike many Western countries, there is a lack of specific regulation of TV advertising to children, and the rapid though uneven growth of TV advertising in China has led to irresponsible practices.

Children as consumers: A review

Can children be characterized as consumers? This question appears to linger in the minds of consumer advocates and regulation agency members. An answer is attempted here through a review of some basic findings about the consumer behaviour of children.

Children and media in China: an urban‐rural comparison study

Purpose – The current study aims to examine how media ownership, media usage and attention to advertising vary among urban and rural children in Mainland China and also to collect information about the contexts of media usage and time spent on various activities including media usage.Design/methodology/approach – A survey of 1,977 urban and rural children ages six to 13 in the four Chinese cities of Beijing, Guangzhou, Nanjing and Shanghai, and in the rural areas of the four provinces of Heilongjian, Hubei, Hunan, and Yunnan, was conducted in March 2003 to May 2004. Questionnaires were distributed through 16 elementary schools and local researchers were selected and trained to administer the data collection.Findings – Media ownership and media exposure were high for television, childrens books, cassette players, VCD players and radios among both urban and rural samples. In general, media ownership, exposure and usage were higher among urban children than among rural children. However, television ownershi...

Effective packaging management

Abstract A products packaging is a crucial part of its appeal today, and the authors say that, because of that, a greater emphasis needs to be placed on managing the packaging process.