Day 055 - 25 Nov 94 - Page 67

     
     1        Understanding of Advertising", where you write this:
     2        "Children's ability to understand advertising varies
     3        enormously according to age, with young children
     4        predictably the most impressionable.  Zuckerman and
     5        Gianinno found that three-quarters of four year-olds were
     6        unable to differentiate", and I ask you to note that word,
     7         "between programmes and adverts.  Neither could over a
     8        third seven year-olds or one in five ten year olds".  While
     9        I am there, may I ask you what you meant by the words
    10        "unable to differentiate"?
    11        A.  I would want to refer back to the study, but my
    12        understanding reading this part would be that the
    13        researchers found that they could not tell the difference
    14        between programmes and adverts.  I would refer back to the
    15        research we looked at yesterday by Dr. Brian Young which,
    16        I think, gave a very clear, very calm overview of the
    17        development of children.  I think it is fair to acknowledge
    18        that children go through a process of learning to
    19        understand what is happening when they are watching
    20        television and adverts.
    21
    22   Q.   Forgive me, if you have read the references which I sent to
    23        you, you will know that I am going to ask you to look at
    24        perhaps a more updated view by Dr. Young in due course.
    25        But we will go on, if we may, in the light of what you have
    26        written there at page 21.  I promise we will go back and
    27        look at the Zuckerman and Gianinno study in due course.
    28        I have -- I hope you have too -- the Esserman book open.
    29        I would ask you to turn over the page, please, and again
    30        look at the right-hand column, if you will?  I will start,
    31        if I may, almost at the top of the page.  This is in 1981,
    32        please remember:
    33
    34        "Advances in the methodology of research in children have
    35        been in many ways, major keys to progress in understanding
    36        the issues and assumptions with regard to television
    37        commercials.  The development, for example, of non-verbal
    38        techniques for exploring children's perceptions", are you
    39        familiar with that body of research, Ms. Dibb, the
    40        methodology for assessing children's perceptions by the use
         of non-verbal techniques?
    42        A.  I am not an expert in that.
    43
    44   Q.   That is what Zuckerman and Gianinno's paper was all about,
    45        was it not?
    46        A.  I would want to refer back to that to refresh my
    47        memory.  We are leaping about rather a lot and I am
    48        concentrating on reading -----
    49
    50   Q.   You are the expert, Ms. Dibb.  May I go on:  " ... 
    51        non-verbal techniques for exploring children's perceptions 
    52        has produced data which has forced us to re-examination a 
    53        whole series of assumptions about children's ability to
    54        cope with this medium.  It has led to a broader perspective
    55        which brings the influence of home and school into the
    56        picture, interacting with the influence of television.
    57        Thus the assumption that young children are by nature
    58        incapable of perceiving the difference between the
    59        commercial and the show, or understanding the selling
    60        intent of the commercial has been shown to be