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This article was downloaded by: [Cornell University Library]On: 18 November 2014, At: 00:46Publisher: Taylor & FrancisInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registeredoffice: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
Journal of Health Communication:International PerspectivesPublication details, including instructions for authors andsubscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uhcm20
The Influence of Media Characters onChildren's Food ChoicesJennifer A. Kotler a , Jennifer M. Schiffman a & Katherine G. Hansona
a Sesame Workshop , New York , New York , USAPublished online: 04 Apr 2012.
To cite this article: Jennifer A. Kotler , Jennifer M. Schiffman & Katherine G. Hanson (2012) TheInfluence of Media Characters on Children's Food Choices, Journal of Health Communication:International Perspectives, 17:8, 886-898, DOI: 10.1080/10810730.2011.650822
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2011.650822
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These studies were funded by a grant to the Sesame Workshop from the Dr. Robert C. Atkins Foundation. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Dr. Robert C. Atkins Foundation. The authors thank Lewis Bernstein, Abby Bloch, David Cohen, Jaime Greenberg, Susan Royer, and Rosemarie Truglio for their insights on various parts of this article. The authors also thank all of the participating schools and centers who welcomed them into their classrooms.
Address correspondence to Jennifer A. Kotler, Sesame Workshop, 1900 Broadway, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10023, USA. E-mail: [email protected]
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Journal of Health Communication, 17:886–898, 2012Copyright © 2012 Sesame WorkshopISSN: 1081-0730 print/1087-0415 onlineDOI: 10.1080/10810730.2011.650822
The Influence of Media Characters on Children’s Food Choices
JENNIFER A. KOTLER, JENNIFER M. SCHIFFMAN, AND KATHERINE G. HANSON
Sesame Workshop, New York, New York, USA
Two experiments were conducted to assess the role of media characters in influencing children’s food choices; the first focused on children’s self-reported preference, whereas the second focused on actual choice. The results of the experiments suggest that popular characters can make a difference in encouraging children to select one food over another. In the first experiment, children were more likely to indicate a preference for one food over another when one was associated with characters that they liked and with whom they were familiar. This effect was particularly strong when a sugary or salty snack branded by a favored character was competing with a healthier option branded by an unknown character or no character. Alternatively, when children were asked to choose between a healthy food and a sugary or salty snack, branding of the healthy food with a favored character did not significantly change appeal of that healthy snack. However, when foods within the same category (i.e., 2 vegetables, 2 fruits, or 2 grains) were asked to compete against each other, character branding strongly influenced children’s food choice. Findings from the second experiment suggest that children are more willing to try more pieces of a healthy food if a favored character, in comparison with an unknown character, is promoting that food.
Much attention has been focused on the role of advertisements and food marketing in contributing to childhood obesity. The Institute of Medicine (2006) estimated that the food and beverage industry spends about $10 billion a year on advertising and marketing to children and youth, and it is estimated that children are exposed to more than 10,000 food commercials per year. The majority of food advertised during children’s programming is for fast foods and sugary snacks (Connor, 2006; Harrison & Marske, 2005; Kotz & Story, 1994; Mediascope, 2000; Powell, Szczypka, Chaloupka, & Braunschweigh, 2007). Product placement within television programs has also gained in popularity as a practice for increasing sales revenue (Story & French, 2004).
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Using a variety of different methods, researchers have found a strong link between marketed and branded products (food and nonfood) and requests for such products (Auty & Lewis, 2004; Kaiser Family Foundation, 2004; Young, 2003). For example, in an experimental setting, Borzekowski and Robinson (2001) found that preschool children were more likely to choose an advertised food product than a nonadvertised alternative compared with a control group who did not see advertised products. Similarly, Robinson, Borzekowski, Matheson, and Kraemer (2007) found that preschool children preferred the taste of a variety of foods if they thought the foods were from McDonald’s compared with when they thought those foods were not from McDonald’s. This effect was even stronger for those with more television sets in their homes and for those who went to McDonald’s more frequently. In a more naturalistic setting, Hitchings and Moynihan (1998) found a correlation between free recall of brand names viewed on television and actual food products consumed among children over a 2-week period. In another study, children who watched more television were more likely to eat at fast-food restaurants, even when a variety of other familial and environmental factors were controlled (Taveras et al., 2006).
The Kaiser Family Foundation (2004) suggested that one way to decrease the obesity crises is for media producers to use popular media characters to promote healthy food alternatives. In a recent study, researchers found that 4–6-year-old children claimed that snacked foods (gummy bears and graham crackers) tasted better when they were branded with a licensed character on the packaging than when the same snacks were presented without the licensed character on the packaging (Roberto, Baik, Harris, & Brownell, 2010). The branding of carrots, on the other hand, did not have as strong of an effect. That is, while children said they would prefer to eat carrots that contained licensed characters on the packaging over carrots that did not contain such characters, there was only a statistically marginal increase of appeal score with licensed or branded packaging.
The purpose of the two studies in this article was (a) to examine whether the branding of foods with media characters can influence children’s interest in and choice of foods and (b) to assess whether branded characters can encourage children to make more healthy choices particularly when unhealthy choices are as easily available.
The Influence of Media Characters on Children’s Behavior
Many organizations use spokespeople (celebrities or other popular characters) to promote particular products or experiences. The goal of these spokespeople is to influence viewers or users to behave in ways that benefit the company, organization, or society at large. The mechanisms by which media characters might influence children’s choices and actions can be explained by what communication scholars have described as parasocial interactions or relationships and is also supported by the basic tenets of social learning theory from the field of social psychology.
Communication researchers have described the relationship between a viewer and a media character as a parasocial interaction or relationship because it is a one-sided relationship, where one party knows a lot about the other party, but the relationship is not reciprocal (Rubin & McHugh, 1987). In their review of the literature on parasocial interactions and relationships, Klimmt, Hartmann, and Schramm (2006) argued that the bonds of the relationship between viewer and media character are dependent on the perceived attractiveness of the character in terms of moral, social, and physical attributes as well as the degree to which the character is seen as similar to the viewer.
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Characters that are protagonists, central to a plot, and speak directly to viewers elicited higher degrees of parasocial interactions and relationships from their viewers. Furthermore, the higher the degree of parasocial interactions and relationships, the more likely that the viewer will be thinking about the character and his or her behavior after the viewing experience has occurred (Klimmt et al., 2006).
The role of character influence on children’s behavior can also be explained by social learning theory. If the model (the character or celebrity) is seen as having high status and prestige, is similar to the viewer or user on a number of attributes, and is seen as attractive, the viewers or users are more likely to model that behavior (Bandura, 1977).
Many have noted that children become attached to and admire media characters and that those characters serve as role models. Children and teenagers seek a variety of advice on style, social interaction, and social norms from media characters (Strasburger & Wilson, 2002). One study found that children had similar education levels and income aspirations as their favorite media characters (Hoffner et al., 2006).
A variety of factors influence the degree to which children favor media characters. Berry (2003) argued that children will attend more and be most affected by characters when they are linked to a child’s needs and wants. Children tend to choose favorite characters that are the same gender as themselves, but girls choose less gender-typed favorite characters than do boys (Wilson & Drogos, 2007). Boys tend to choose role models or admired characters more on the basis of physical prowess than do girls, and boys are more likely than girls are to consider a sports hero as a role model (Biskup & Pfister, 1999; Bricheno & Thornton, 2007).
Children’s social status and well-being may also influence the degree to which they identify or affiliate with characters. For example, lonely children tend to have stronger parasocial relationships with characters than do children who score as less lonely (Jennings, Hunt, Altenau, & Linebarger, 2008). Children with conduct difficulties are more likely to admire characters with aggressive tendencies and less likely to admire characters with leadership skills (Kotler, Ware, & Gershoff, 2007).
The Current Experiments
In the two experiments described in this article, we focus on Sesame Street characters in comparison with unknown characters (i.e., characters that conceivably have no social or emotional effect on the children) versus no characters. Sesame Street characters are frequently rated at the top of lists of children’s favorite characters (Marketing Evaluations, Inc., 2010) and are therefore expected to influence children’s food choices compared with foods that are not branded or that are branded by unknown characters.
This study complements the work of Roberto, Baik, Harris, and Brownell (2010), who also examined the influence of branded characters. Whereas their study focused on the influence of a food with the presence of a branded character versus that same food without that branded character, the present study examines the degree to which branded characters can influence choice when there are two different food options available.
Experiment 1: Character Appeal Influences Food Preference
Experiment 1 was designed to assess the appeal of favored media characters on children’s stated preferred food choice in a competitive environment. We were
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interested in gauging whether preferences from one food to a different food were influenced if one of the foods were branded with a favored character.
Method
Participants
There were 343 children ages 2 to 6 years who participated in this experiment. The children were recruited from 14 childcare centers within a 35 mile radius of New York City. Children whose parents agreed to participation were included. The mean age was 49 months (SD = 11.95 months). Of the children, 14% were 2 years old, 29% were 3 years old, 39% were 4 years old, 16% were 5 years old, and 2% were 6 years old. In addition, 51% were female. It was a diverse sample: 42% of the children were White, 35% were African American, 11% were Latino, 5% were Asian American, and 7% were multiracial. Participants were from lower to middle-income families, determined on the basis of the zip codes of the centers.
Materials and Procedures
Trained interviewers spoke with each child individually. Children were randomly assigned to conditions. Each child was asked to pick one food from each of nine pictured pairs he or she would like to eat. The food pair pictures were as follows (a) zucchini versus celery, (b) mushrooms versus peas, (c) grapes versus banana, (d) donut versus Cheerios, (e) potato chips versus apple, (f) chocolate versus broccoli, (g) star fruit versus melon, (h) cherry tomatoes versus cauliflower, and (i) Saltines versus pumpernickel crackers.
The characters associated with the foods came from Sesame Street, the popular children’s television show, and from Crumbsnatchers, a show that was never aired and whose characters were assumed to be unknown to the children. Sesame Street characters have been consistently ranked among the top favorite media characters of preschool children (Marketing Evaluations, Inc., 2010). Three Sesame Street characters (a red, green, and blue character) were paired with a Crumbsnatchers character of the same color (see Figure 1). The red characters were used for pairs (a), (c), and (f); the blue characters were used for pairs (b), (d), and (h); and the green characters were used for pairs (e), (g), and (i). Before we showed children the food choices, we asked which character they liked better in each of the pairs.
The interviewers showed each pair of foods in picture books and turned the page for each new pair of foods. For the purposes of ease in labeling the layout of the pictures, we considered foods in the top-row position “target foods” and the foods in the bottom-row position “alternative foods,” even though we did not tell the children that one food is a target and the other is the alternative. One third of the children were given food pairs with no character stickers associated with the foods (control group). Another third of the children were given food pairs with Sesame Street characters on the first of each of the nine pairs and an unknown character on the second of each of the nine pairs (“Sesame target”: Sesame Street on target foods, unknown characters on alternative foods). The final third of the children were given food pairs with unknown characters on the first of each of the nine pairs and a Sesame Street character on the second of each of the nine pairs (“Sesame alternative”: Unknown characters on A foods and Sesame Street characters on B foods).
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Results
Plan of Analysis
Because we were interested in understanding how character preference influenced food choice, first we examined the degree to which children preferred the Sesame Street characters to the unknown characters. Of the children, 87% chose the Sesame Street red character (Elmo) as the favorite, whereas 13% chose the unknown red character. Sesame Street’s Grover was favored by 76%, whereas 24% favored the unknown blue character. Similarly, 76% of the children favored Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street, whereas only 24% favored the unknown green character. Those children who preferred all three Sesame Street characters were labeled “high fans” (57.4%), versus those children who chose two or fewer of the Sesame Street characters as favorites who were labeled “low/medium fans” (42.6%).
Initial examination of the data indicated that there were often no or inconsistent effects by age and gender. Because cell sizes would become very small if age and gender were included in the analyses with the other factors, all analyses in this study were conducted with age and gender as covariates.
To assess the degree to which the characters influenced children’s food choices, we ran two models. First, we examined the six out of nine foods that compared two similar foods (i.e., two vegetables, two fruits, two grains). A 3 (condition: control or Sesame target or Sesame alternative) × 2 (fan: high fan vs. low/medium fan) between-subjects analysis of covariance was run on the percentage of target foods chosen with age and gender as covariates. The second model focused on the three of the nine
Figure 1. Choice of favorite character. Sesame Street characters © 2008 Sesame Workshop. All rights reserved. Unknown characters © 2008 Joey Nilges and Julius Preite III. All rights reserved. (Color figure available online.)
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pairs of foods that compared children’s interest in a high-sugar/or fatty nonnutritious snack to a healthier option. The same independent variables were used that were run for the previous model.
Hypothesis 1: When choosing between foods of relative equality in taste and nutrition, children will be more likely to choose the food that is branded with a favored character compared with a branded food with a less preferred character or a nonbranded food.
There was support for Hypothesis 1 (see Figure 2). When we examined the six out of nine foods that compared two similar foods (i.e., two vegetables, two fruits, two grains), there was a significant condition effect: F(2, 332) = 9.018, p < .01. Children were more likely to indicate a preference for the target food when a Sesame Street character was associated with that food compared with no character or an unknown character, the latter of which did not differ significantly from each other. There was also a significant condition by fan interaction: F(2, 332) = 8.857, p < .01. For low/medium fans, there was no difference in target food chosen by condition. However, there was a strong condition effect for fans. Children who were high fans of Sesame Street were more likely to indicate a preference for the target food when a Sesame Street character was associated with that food compared with no character or an unknown character, the latter of which were not significantly different from each other.
Hypothesis 2: Sugary and salty snacks are even more appealing when branded with a favored character relative to the increased appeal of a healthy food branded with a favored character.
Figure 2. The interaction of condition by fans on the number of target foods and alternative foods chosen. SS = Sesame Street. (Color figure available online.)
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There was support for Hypothesis 2 (see Figure 3). There was a significant condition by fan effect—F(2,331) = 5.650, p < .01—for the three of the nine pairs of foods comparing children’s interest in a high-sugar/or fatty nonnutritious snack to a healthier option. For low-medium fans, there were no effects of condition. However, for high fans, there was a significant effect of condition: F(2, 191) = 7.325, p < .01. When the target food was a sugary or salty snack, Sesame Street fans were more likely to choose that food when a Sesame Street character was associated with it compared with no character or an unknown character (the latter of which did not differ significantly from each other.) However, Sesame Street fans were not statistically more likely to choose a healthy food over a sugary or salty snack even when the healthier food was associated with a Sesame Street character.
Discussion
Analyses suggest that character appeal influenced children’s food choices under certain conditions. When foods within the same category (i.e., two vegetables, two fruits, or two grains) were competing against each other, character identification influenced children’s food choice. The synergy of a branded character with a tasty, nonnutritious snack was particularly powerful. By contrast, the presence of favored characters on healthier food options was not powerful enough to lure children away from the tasty, nonnutritious snack. However, while favorite characters may not be able to steer children away from sugary and fatty foods, it might make them more likely to try more of the healthier options, if both options are available.
Figure 3. The interaction of condition by fans on the number of nutritious foods and less nutritious foods chosen. SS = Sesame Street. (Color figure available online.)
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Experiment 2: Character Appeal on Actual Food Choice: “The Taste Test”
We designed Experiment 2 to assess whether children would be more likely to taste less typically preferred foods if they were branded with favored characters even in the presence of a more naturally tasty treat. Furthermore, Experiment 2 was designed to assess whether the preferences children made in Experiment 1 held when children were given the actual option to eat some of the chosen foods that was pictured in Experiment 1.
Method
Participants
A subset of children from experiment one participated (n = 207) in Experiment 2. We excluded children under age 3 years and those with any food allergies from participating in Experiment 2 because of potential safety hazards in consuming raw foods.
Stimuli and Procedure
For this experiment, we chose only the foods that were associated with Elmo and the unknown red character because we did not want to provide the children with too many food options. The foods associated with the red characters were (a) zucchini versus celery, (b) grapes versus banana, and (c) chocolate versus broccoli. Again, the same conditions applied in that children in the control group (no characters) remained in the control group, those in the Sesame target condition were shown the foods with a Sesame Street character cutout placed in front of the first food in the pair and those in the Sesame alternative condition were shown the foods with a Sesame Street character placed in front of the second food in the pair.
Each food was cut into five small pieces and placed in front of the characters in a small tasting cup. Children were given napkins and little plastic forks. Children were told that they could eat both of the foods, one of the foods, or none of the foods and that they could have as much or as little as they wanted of each. The interviewers wrote down which foods the child ate and how many pieces of each the child consumed.
Results
Plan of Analysis
First, to examine whether overall, children were likely to eat target foods that were branded with a favored characters, the percentage eaten of each of the target foods and alternative foods was averaged. Then, we conducted a 3 (condition: control or Sesame target or Sesame alternative) × 2 (fan: high fan vs. low/medium fan) × 2 (food: target or alternative) mixed subjects analysis of covariance. The average percentage of food consumed served as the dependent variable, and age and gender as served as the covariates.
To assess whether children’s actual food consumption was related to what they initially said they would prefer in Experiment 1, three separate models were run, one for each of the three pairs of food in the taste test. These three models were a mixed design 2 (picture choice: target food or alternative) × 2 (actual choice: target food or
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alternative) analysis of covariance. The dependent variables were run the percentage of pieces consumed. Age and gender served as the covariates.
Hypothesis 1: Children will try more pieces of food when a food is branded with a favored character compared with a branded food with a less preferred character or a nonbranded food.
There was some support for Hypothesis 1 (see Figure 4). There was a significant Food × Condition interaction: F(2, 199) = 6.305, p < .05 (Wilks’ lambda). There was a significant interaction between the Sesame-target and Sesame-alternative conditions. While overall children ate more of the target foods than the alternative foods (64.6% vs. 47.2%), follow-up tests indicated that children were more likely to try the alternative food when a Sesame Street character was associated with that food than when an unknown character was associated with that food. There were no differences by condition in children’s consuming of the target food whether there was a Sesame Street character associated with that food or an unknown character associated with that food likely because the target food was initially more appealing. There was also a significant interaction when comparing the control group to the Sesame-target condition. In the control condition, children were more likely to try the target food than the alternative food. There was no significant interaction between the control group and the other target food group. There was no fan effect possibly because the majority of children chose Elmo over the other red character as a favorite.
Hypothesis 2: Children will eat more pieces of the food choice they chose in Experiment 1 than the alternative food.
There was some support for this hypothesis. Table 1 shows the means and standard errors for choice by food consumption. For the analysis that examined grapes versus bananas, there was a marginal consumption by food choice interaction: F(1, 239) = 3.152, p < .08 (Wilks’ lambda). For children who chose the picture of the grapes as the one they wanted to eat in Experiment 1, the rate of grape consumption was significantly higher than that of the children who said they would prefer the banana. However, the children who said they preferred the banana did not eat more banana pieces compared with the children who said they preferred the grapes.
For the zucchini versus celery, there was a significant consumption by food choice interaction: F(1, 234) = 4.469, p < .05 (Wilks’ lambda). Children who said they would eat the zucchini ate more zucchini than the children who said they would prefer the
Figure 4. The interaction between food consumption by condition. SS = Sesame Street. (Color figure available online.)
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celery. By contrast, children who said they would prefer the celery ate more celery pieces than the children who said they would prefer the zucchini.
Last, for the chocolate versus broccoli, there was a significant consumption by food choice interaction: F(1, 201) = 5.850, p < .05 (Wilks’ lambda). While overall, children ate considerably more chocolate than broccoli, children who said they would eat the broccoli ate more pieces of broccoli than did children who said they would prefer the chocolate.
Taken together, the results suggest that particular foods were chosen over others regardless of whether children said they would eat that food or the alternative. However, children who said they would eat the less preferred food typically ate more of that food than did children who said they would eat the generally more popular food, except in the case of bananas.
Discussion
As was found in Experiment 1, favored characters can make a difference in encouraging children to consume particular foods over others. In Experiment 2, we found that children ate more pieces of foods when a Sesame Street character branded those foods compared with an unknown character. Given that the target foods were generally more appealing than the alternative foods (i.e., chocolate, grapes, and zucchini versus broccoli, bananas, and celery), the fact that Elmo increased the appeal of the latter foods over the unknown character is particularly promising. Although Elmo did increase appeal of the alternative foods over the control group, the effect was not statistically significant.
The results also suggest that what children say they would eat and how much they would really eat a particular food may only be weakly related. In this experiment, particular foods were chosen over others regardless of whether children initially said they would eat that food or the alternative. However, children who said they would eat the less preferred food typically ate more of that food than did children who said they would eat the generally more popular food.
The materials used in this experiment were drafts of stimuli, rather than finalized polished posters that have been created since the studies were conducted. Perhaps, with
Table 1. Percentage of food pieces consumed in Experiment 2 in relation to food choice in Experiment 1, controlling for age and gender
Food choices Choice 1 Choice 2
Grapes versus bananas % Grapes % BananasChose grapes in Experiment 1 81.38 (3.27) 54.48 (4.06)Chose bananas in Experiment 1 70.59 (3.68) 53.93 (4.58)
Zucchini versus celery % Zucchini % CeleryChose zucchini in Experiment 1 46.31 (4.81) 48.37 (4.80)Chose celery in Experiment 1 41.76 (3.68) 55.22 (3.67)
Chocolate versus broccoli % Chocolate % BroccoliChose chocolate in Experiment 1 85.64 (2.59) 43.55 (3.35)Chose broccoli in Experiment 1 82.12 (3.72) 56.86 (4.82)
Note. Numbers in parentheses are standard errors.
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new marketing displays and more innovative designs, we would find an even stronger effect of character branding on healthy foods. In any case, more research is needed to determine how children are influenced by characters promoting healthy foods.
General Discussion
The two studies presented here indicate that characters can play an important role in changing attitudes under some conditions. Analyses of the first experiment suggest that character appeal does influence children’s food choice. Children are more likely to indicate a preference for foods when those foods are associated with characters that they like and with whom they are familiar. This effect was particularly strong, however, for foods that are tasty snacks which are low in nutritional value. Stickers of favored characters on healthier food options were not able to decrease children’s interest in the tasty, nonnutritious foods when the two kinds of offerings were in direct competition with each other. However, when foods within the same category (i.e., two vegetables, two fruits, or two grains) are asked to compete against each other, character identification strongly influenced children’s food choice. Furthermore, findings from Experiment 2 suggest that children are more willing to try more pieces of a healthy food if a favored character is promoting that food compared with an unknown or disliked character.
There are several limitations to this study. One such limitation is that the food pairings we developed were somewhat arbitrary. Although we consulted with a nutritionist to choose the food pairings and built on findings from a pilot study, it could be argued that the foods we chose did not belong in direct contrast with each other. However, our goal was not to place value judgments on the particular foods (except that some were clearly more nutritious than others) but rather to assess whether preferences changed just as a function of placing a character sticker on the different foods in different combinations. Given that each pairing in was shown in three different conditions, and that children were randomly assigned to each condition, we feel that this was a good test specifically of character influence.
There are considerable policy implications of these findings. The two studies presented here suggest that favored characters may change food preferences but it is particularly difficult to steer children away from more sugary and fatty foods that maybe more innately appealing (Drewnowski & Levine, 2003). Fortunately, more and more companies are heeding the calls of the Institute of Medicine’s recommendations to limit advertising and marketing to young children for unhealthy products. The combined efforts of a variety of private and nonprofit sectors to limit the marketing of unhealthy products while highlighting the benefits of healthier options may help dramatically reduce obesity rates.
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