Marketing To Children

1048 Words3 Pages

Marketing to children is a social problem, as the constant solicitations influences the choices they make. It is unethical to target young children, as they don’t have the cognitive ability to distinguish between television or advertisements (Kasser, & Linn, 2016). The media has a negative impact on children as it takes away from their individuality and shapes their mindset into whatever they please. The beginning of this essay will explore how children are exposed to too much media and how they cannot escape it. I will then discuss how the media over sexualises children. I will also explain how marketing acts as bad influence on children through media. Furthermore, I will discuss children and materialism. Lastly, I will talk about possible …show more content…

From a young age, girls are exposed to celebrities who dress inappropriately and see dolls and photoshopped images in magazines of what they feel they are “suppose” to look like (Barbaro, & Earp, 2008). When children play with Barbie’s and Bratz dolls that are considered thin, perfect and beautiful, they can develop low self esteem (Kasser, & Linn, 2016). Low self-esteem can make kids buy items they do not need such as brand name clothing or makeup to make them feel beautiful. Ads make dressing inappropriately or more mature seem cool. Marketing persuades young children to look older than they are, as there are many mature clothing options for young consumers. Younger audiences like ten to twelve-year old are reading 17 Magazine, exposing themselves to makeup, photoshop, relationships and things they do not fully comprehend (Barbaro, & Earp, 2008). Low self esteem can give children a negative view on their body image, which can lead to eating disorders like anorexia or bulimia. Children should not try to look like anyone but themselves, to accept their individuality and be happy with who they …show more content…

When new games systems, shoes, clothing lines, and toys come out, every kid wants to have it so that they can be seen as popular and liked by others. Children start to rely on items to make them happy and feel accepted by others. Children stray from being unique when they think they need the same things as everyone else. Studies indicate that children who are materialistic have decreased personal well-beings (Kasser, & Linn, 2016). Children need to be taught that satisfaction does not come from materialistic item, so that they can feel happy without having unnecessary

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