Advertising has had a significant role on people and especially on children. Their young and developing mind is very influential and everything they see is considered to be real and true. Television has become a great part of every child’s life, not to mention the internet and the extreme amount of ads that can be found there. Often, children are suscepted to uncontrollable TV and internet usage and so, great care should be applied when allowing children to watch TV (Metroka-Kirkham 30). Commercials and different advertisements can prove to be harmful but at the same time, there are things that are very positive and mind stimulating. Lego is one of such things; it is a toy, a puzzle that allows children to use their imagination. The building blocks of the constructor can be compared to the building blocks in the mind that develop in the process of child’s play. It has been proven by numerous studies that play and games are an important and crucial part in the development of a healthy individual. Pretend play and toys are a large part of children’s life and childhood.
The paper/study will focus on the effects of Lego and other toy’s advertisement on the desire of children to receive the above products. The specific focus on Lego will examine the type of toy and the benefits that it might have for the children, as well as some disadvantages. The advertisement also has to have specific qualities in order to attract potential customers, so a close look at the parameters of advertisements will also be analyzed. The advertisement industry is familiar with the effects it has on children and it is used by manipulating colors, voices, themes, products, presence of other children or already known characters that children will respond to.
The method of the study will be a close look at the qualities and details of the advertisement. One of the criteria will be the story or theme that is being used in the advertisement. For example, if it is Lego with a pirate theme then it is mostly directed towards boys. The same is true if there are cars, fire trucks, tanks, soldiers and other male related themes. If it is a Lego playhouse with dolls, natural scenes and other female preferred pretend play scenarios then the difference will be obvious. This means that the advertisements should be developed with a gender orientation in planning. Another factor is the age of the child. If it is a simple and small amount of blocks then it can be used by younger children. A more complex Lego set with moving parts and potentially remote controls; it is directed towards an older audience. Some Lego toys are not to be used by children under 3 years of age because of the small parts that can become dangerous and even lethal in case they are used without supervision and care. Thus, it is important to determine the relationship between parental control and children’s Lego use because parents are the ones who will be acquiring the toy for their children (Gunter 81).
The academic articles analyzing the amount of advertisements watched with a correlation to the number of Lego toys that a child has will be consulted. A susception towards advertisements definitely has an effect on a child’s mind but there is also a dependence on the personality and upbringing of the child. The articles will examine the quality and quantity of parental control—the number of hours a child is allowed to watch TV, what channels and at what time of the day (Macklin 146). Parental views and the type of guardians are also important. If a child is being raised by parent, they are more current in the modern views. Children raised by other relatives or grandparents, will have a different outlook on the toys and the types of advertisements a child watches (Moore 60). A specific look at the Lego commercials and development of the toy will be looked at. The history of Lego goes back to 1932-1949 and the amount of advertisements has greatly increased since then. There was a period when interest in Lego decreased but the company was able to manage a comeback with new and exciting toys (Dibb 64).
This study will be extremely relevant to the course because the amount of advertisements that people are receiving is rather large. As a child’s mind is very sensitive to the outside stimuli, it is important what information they obtain from the ads. Any deception in the advertisements will create false beliefs, which will make it harder for parents to communicate with the child and explain why certain things are not allowed or unacceptable. Whereas TV is better controlled by parents, internet can have a devastating influence. False information and manipulation can damage the child’s mind and understanding of the world and concepts (Thorson 352). Childhood is the most important stage in the development of a child. This is the time when children receive the basic knowledge about the world and their character and individuality is forming in a major way. Developmental psychologists have theorized that a child will develop their character by age 5 and this means that the types of things they hear and see on TV will be potentially imprinted on their mind.
Works Cited
Dibb , Sally. The Marketing Casebook: Cases and Concepts, New York, United States: Cengage Learning EMEA, 2001. Print.
Gunter , Barrie. Advertising to Children on TV: Content, Impact, and Regulation, Mahwah, United States: Routledge, 2005. Print.
Macklin, Carole. Advertising to Children: Concepts and Controversies, Thousand Oaks, United States: SAGE, 1999. Print.
Metroka-Kirkham , Kari. The Children’s Television Act and Program-length Commercials, Ann Arbor, United States: ProQuest, 2008. Print.
Moore , Nana. Parental Attitudes Toward Children’s Television Advertising, Ann Arbor, United States: ProQuest, 2007. Print.
Thorson, Esther. Internet Advertising: Theory And Research, Mahwah, United States: Routledge 2007. Print.