TV adverts, materialism, and children’s self-esteem: The role of socio-economic status

Abstract

Levels of debt and poor mental health are at an all-time high among UK families, while the gap between rich and poor has also widened. Exposure and susceptibility to advertising, belief that purchased products will lead to happiness (materialism), and poor mental well-being have been shown to be linked in previous research, but the role of children’s socio-economic status has seldom been taken into account. A greater understanding of the effects of this dynamic among those without the ready money to purchase highly advertised and desired products is important, particularly given the connections with children’s low self-esteem. This study aimed to (1) quantify differences in TV advertising exposure, materialism, and self-esteem between deprived and affluent children, (2) measure differences in susceptibility to the effect of TV advertising exposure on materialism between deprived and affluent children, and (3) measure differences in susceptibility to the effect of materialism on self-esteem between deprived and affluent children. It was found that children from deprived backgrounds were more materialistic than children from affluent homes, and that this was the result of both higher exposure to advertising and higher belief in the credibility of advertising. At the same time, we found that children from affluent backgrounds were more susceptible to advertising’s reinforcing effect on materialism, whereas children from deprived background were more susceptible to materialism’s detrimental effect on self-esteem. Two different dynamics appear to be at play in the two groups. This adds a new dimension to our understanding of the role of advertising in a society with high levels of inequality.

Psychological causes, correlates, and consequences of materialism

“…Economic insecurity can also contribute to the development of materialistic values. Children from lower SES families are more materialistic than children from higher SES families (Chaplin et al, 2014; Kasser et al, 1995; Nairn & Opree, 2021), and lower SES children are more influenced by branding and generally more likely to use possessions to signal self‐identities and foster affiliations with peers (Chaplin et al, 2014). Similarly, perceived personal relative deprivation (belief that one is unfairly disadvantaged relative to similar others) is positively correlated with materialism (Kim et al, 2017), and priming personal relative deprivation increases materialism (Zhang et al, 2015).…”

Can Self-Esteem Help Teens Resist Unhealthy Influence of Materialistic Goals Promoted By Role Models?

“…Previous research suggests that the level of family SES (low and high) may be related to the self-esteem of teens and their materialism (cf. Nairn and Opree, 2021 ). Thus, subsequent research should be expanded to include the analysis of family SES as a mediator of self-esteem moderation in the relation between the materialism of teens and that of their peers.…”

“…The teens came from families with (similar) family SES; previous research shows that family SES is related to the self-esteem of teens (cf. Nairn and Opree, 2021 ). The above selection criteria were applied to standardize the sample and minimize a possible impact on the study of the dependencies between age, gender, and family SES.…”

“…Studies on teens indicate that materialism can be a compensatory strategy for violation of self-esteem ( Chaplin and John, 2007 ; Park and John, 2011 ; Shrum et al, 2013 ; Kasser et al, 2014 ; Zawadzka and Iwanowska, 2016 ). This compensatory strategy occurs more frequently in teens from families with low social-economic status (SES) than in those from families with high SES ( Nairn and Opree, 2021 ).…”

Advertising Leads to Consumerism in Children

“…One of the major negatives of advertisements is that it breeds consumerism, and consumerism sparks materialism. Nairn and Opree (2021) define materialism as the importance placed on possessions and their acquisitions "as a necessary or desirable form of conduct to reach desired end states, including happiness" (p. 162). Chamberlain (2019) states that from the constant stream of advertising, children learn that "buying more stuff leads to more happiness."…”