The Effects of Consumerism on Adults and Children

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The Effects of Consumerism on Adults and Children

Consumers are creatively successful when designing a persuasive advertisement for increased profitability. In a normal household, it’s the parents who have the financial obligations; therefore, it would be wise to grab their attention. On the other hand, it takes less than a strategic mind targeting children because the simplest things fascinate them. Businesses have been perfecting commercials to be effective on the viewers, for years. Although marketing has had an impact on some adults, a more efficient route was discovered. Unfortunately, the effect was more powerful through the vulnerable minds of children. The effects of consumerism damages a child heavier than an adult; therefore, states should have laws protecting children from being commercialized.

Commercials aren’t promotions for the best interest of the people; instead, they are product driven illusions to get people interested. Businesses have successfully been increasing profitability through creations of effective marketing strategies. According to Mr. Kirkpatrick, of CSU Pomona, marketing is defined as “a technological or applied discipline that aims at defining the formal character by which to create, promote and deliver need-satisfying products to consumers” (Kirkpatrick). Thus, for people to be effected by consumerism, a product must be advertised in an appealing way to catch viewer’s attention.

It wasn’t advertisements catching the viewer’s attention many years ago when television hadn’t existed. The first newspaper in North America was created in Boston around 1690 before other forms of newspapers were created and had an influence on people; thus, improving their literacy (Streissguth 13). By 1890 people bec...

... middle of paper ...

...rricular activity was the alternative to watching television.

Another way to stir children is by explaining how advertisements are a consumers’ way of production.

Also the effects of consumerism on natural resources are a great subject to explore for a kid. More than likely the child is clueless as to how the planet is being destroyed as society uses non-renewable resources.

Works Cited

Chase, Dan. “Natural Resources.” Environmental Science. Heald, Fresno. August 2009. Class Discussion.

De Botton, Alain. Status Anxiety. New York: Pantheon, 2004. Print

Kirkpatrick, J. “Theory and History in Marketing.” www.csupomona.edu/~jkirkpatrick/Papers/T&HMkt.pdf.

Streissguth, Tom. Media Bias: Open for Debate. New York: Benchmark, 2007. Print.

Schor, Juliet. Born to Buy: The Commercialized Child and the New Consumer Culture. New York: Scribner, 2004. Print.

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