IMPACTS OF FOOD PRODUCT ADVERTISEMENTS OF PAKISTAN TELEVISION

ON THE EATING HABITS OF CHILDREN

By

MALIK TARIQ MAHMOOD

a thesis submitted to the

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN LANAGUAGE

Islamabad, Pakistan

in partial fulfilment for the requirement of the Advanced Diploma in English Language degree of

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN LANGUAGES ISLAMABAD

December, 2007

RESEARCHER’S DECLARATION

I , Mal ik Tar iq Mahmood, do hereby solemnly declare tha t the

work presented in th is d isser ta t ion i s my own and was carr ied

out as s tudent of Advanced Diploma in Engl ish Language,

NUML, under the supervis ion of Sameera El lahi . I have never

presented i t to any other univers i ty or ins t i tu t ion for the award

of a degree .

_______________________Malik Tariq Mahmood

Researcher

Certified

________________________ ___________________Brig. (R) Aziz Ahmad Khan Dr. Rubina Kamran(Rector) Dean: Faculty of English

Language Literature andApplied Linguistics

______________ ________________Sameera Ellahi Maryyam BushraSupervisor Subject Teacher

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Al l p r a i s e s fo r A lmigh ty ALLAH, whose Onenes s and Who lenes s i s

uncha l l engeab l e . A l l r e spec t f o r t he Ho ly P rophe t Haz ra t Muhammad

(PBUH) who enab l e u s t o r e cogn i ze ou r c r ea to r .

To wr i t e a t he s i s c anno t be t he work o f an i nd iv idua l work ing on h i s

own . I t r equ i r e s t he he lp no t on ly o f l i b r a r i e s bu t a l so o f t hose who a r e

i n c l o se con t ac t w i th t he r e sea r che r . As such i t wou ld be un ju s t o f me

i f I d id no t exp re s s my g ra t i t ude t o t hose whose he lp ha s been

i nva luab l e i n t he fu l f i lmen t o f my de s i r e s .

I g r a t e fu l l y a cknowledge and exp re s s my deep s ense o f g r a t i t ude t o

Madam Ambr ina Qayyum, (Coord ina to r o f Depa r tmen t o f Eng l i sh ,

(Gradua t e S tud i e s ) , my supe rv i so r Ms . Samee ra E l l ah i , Lec tu r e r ,

Depa r tmen t o f Eng l i sh (Gradua t e Sec t i on ) , Ms . Maryum Bush ra , C l a s s

Teache r , Na t i ona l Un ive r s i t y o f Mode rn Languages , and my f r i ends

Sa j i d Hussa in , R i zwan-ud -Din , Imran Khan , and Asad Ayub whose he lp

have been t he sou rce o f i n sp i r a t i on t h roughou t t he s t udy .

I am hea r t i l y t hank fu l t o my che r i shed f r i end Umar Fa rooq whose

gu idance and encou ragemen t ha s been t he sou rce o f i n sp i r a t i on

t h roughou t t he p r epa ra t i on o f my d i s s e r t a t i on . I am a l so t hank fu l t o my

b ro the r Azha r Mahmood and f ami ly member s fo r t he i r encou ragemen t

and mora l suppo r t .

My pa ren t s a r e a cons t an t sou rce o f encou ragemen t and s t r eng th fo r me

de se rve s more g r a t i t ude t ha t I c an neve r exp re s s .

Malik Tariq Mahmood

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DEDICATION

I dedica te th is d isser ta t ion to my

beloved daughters (Shamsa and Afshan)

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DELIMITATION

The researcher has del imited this research on food products

advert isements of Pakistan Televis ion, which impact on the

eat ing habits of chi ldren in the area of Sate l l i te Town (B-

Block) Rawalpindi c i ty .

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RESEARCH QUESTION

What are the impacts o f food product advert i sements o f

Pakis tan Te lev i s ion on the eat ing-habi t s o f ch i ldren?

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1 In troduc t ion 1

1 .1 Hi s to ry o f Adve r t i s i ng 41 .2 S t a t emen t o f t he P rob l em 51 .3 Ob jec t i ve s 51 .4 S ign i f i c ance o f t he S tudy 5

Chapter 2 L i t era ture Rev i ew 7

2 .1 Te l ev i s i on Adve r t i s i ng 82 .2 The Ro le o f Adve r t i s i ng 102 .3 Ch i ld r en ’ s Hea l t h 11

2 .3 .1 Body Mass Index (BMI) 132 .3 .1 .1 BMI Cha r t f o r Boys 142 .3 .1 .2 BMI Cha r t f o r G i r l s 152 .3 .1 .3 Wha t i s Fa t 15

2 .3 .2 Cause s o f Obes i t y 172 .4 Impac t s o f Adve r t i s i ng 19

2 .4 .1 Impac t s on Ch i ld r en ’ s Hea l t h 202 .4 .2 Leave Unhea l t hy Hab i t s 20

Chapter 3 Research Methodo logy 23

3 .1 Resea rch Des ign 233 .2 Popu l a t i on 243 .3 Sampl ing Techn ique and Sample 243 .4 Demograph i c Va r i ab l e s 243 .5 Resea rch In s t rumen t s 243 .6 Da ta Co l l e c t i on 253 .7 Da ta Reduc t i on 253 .8 Prob l em Faced 263 .9 Uses o f Compu te r App l i c a t i ons 26

Chapter 4 Data Ana lys i s and In terpre ta t ion 27

Chapter 5 Conc lus ion 40

5 .1 F ind ings 405 .2 Conc lus ion 435 .3 Recommenda t i ons 44

Work Ci t ed 46

Append ice s Append ix A : Ques t i onna i r e fo r Pa ren t s 47Append ix B : Ques t i ons fo r I n t e rv i ew o f Ch i l d r en 49

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Lis t o f Graphs

1 . Age o f Pa ren t r e sponden t s 282 . P ro fe s s ion o f Pa ren t r e sponden t s 283 . Qua l i f i c a t i on o f Pa ren t r e sponden t s 294 . Income o f Pa ren t r e sponden t s 295 . Fami ly Member s 306 . Pa ren t s Wa tch ing PTV 307 . Pa ren t s ’ T ime Wa tch ing PTV 318 . Pa ren t s ’ Dura t i on Wa tch ing PTV 319 . Ch i ld r en Wa tch ing PTV 3210 . Ch i ld r en ’ s T ime Wa tch ing PTV 3211 . Ch i ld r en ’ s Dura t i on Wa tch ing PTV 3312 . Usua l l y L ike P rog rammes 3413 . Pu rpose o f Wa tch ing PTV 3414 . Fee l i ng Heavy V iewing 3515 . V iewing Ads i n an Hour 3516 . Favour i t e P roduc t ( s ) 3617 . Change A t t i t ude o f Ch i l d r en 3718 . Impac t s o f PTV Ads on Ch i ld r en 3719 . Buy Food P roduc t s f o r Ch i l d r en 3820 . Ads E f f ec t s on Ch i ld r en D ie t 3921 . Change i n Ch i l d r en ’ s Hea l t h 39

Tab l e 25

Lis t o f Char t s

1 . BMI Cha r t o f Boys 142 . BMI Cha r t o f G i r l s 15

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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Te lev i s i on be longs t o t he f ami ly o f aud io -v i sua l commun ica t i on

med ium. I t i s ab l e t o t r ansmi t sounds and images ca r ry ing message o f a

va r i ed na tu r e and fo r a va r i e t y o f pu rpose . I t ha s s t r ong i n f l uence on

peop l e , i n t he cu l t u r e and on o the r med i a . I t i s a w ide ly u sed

t e l e commun ica t i on sy s t em fo r b roadcas t i ng and r ece iv ing mov ing

p i c tu r e s and sound ove r a d i s t ance f rom a l l a round t he wor ld . The t e rm

may a l so be u sed t o r e f e r spec i f i c a l l y t o a t e l ev i s i on s e t , p rog ramming

o r t e l ev i s i on t r ansmi s s ion . Te l ev i s i on commerc i a l s have become one o f

t he mos t e f f ec t i ve , mos t pe r sua s ive , and mos t popu l a r me thods o f

s e l l i ng p roduc t s o f many so r t s .

Wi th in Pak i s t an i cu l t u r e we need t o l ook deepe r a t t he ro l e o f

t e l ev i s i on and adve r t i s emen t s , t o a s se s s why t hey ho ld such a va luab l e

pos i t i on . Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on i s a pe rmanen t f i x tu r e i n ch i l d r en ’ s l i ve s .

The t e l ev i s i on s e t i s a s f ami l i a r t o ch i l d r en a s t he f a ce s o f f ami ly

member s . Te l ev i s i on s e t i s a lways t he r e , t o en t e r t a i n and t o g ive

company t o ch i l d r en , e spec i a l l y when no one e l s e i n t he mood t o p l ay ,

cha t o r i n t e r ac t w i th t hem. They a r e i nc r ea s ing ly be ing exposed t o

d i f f e r en t cu l t u r e s , ab so rb ing new idea s and impre s s ions abou t o the r

cu l t u r e s .

Many t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s emen t s a r e c a t chy j i ng l e s o r c a t ch -ph ra se s t ha t

gene ra t e su s t a ined appea l , wh i ch may r ema in i n t he minds o f t e l ev i s i on

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v i ewer s l ong a f t e r t he span o f t he adve r t i s i ng campa ign . Nowadays

adve r t i s i ng sp read i n ou r en t i r e cu l t u r e i n f l uences i n soc i e ty and ou r

fundamen ta l pa t t e rn s o f l i f e . Adve r t i s i ng can be s een a s one o f t he

f a c to r s t ha t con t r i bu t e t o shape peop l e ’ s l i f e , t he i r ba s i c va lue s , and

a t t i t udes . Bu t a c tua l p i c tu r e i s d i f f e r en t , a cco rd ing t o Edge r

“Adve r t i s i ng i s t he a r t o f mak ing who le l i e s ou t o f ha l f t r u th . ’ 1

Adve r t i s i ng ha s been wa t ched i n many ways : on Te l ev i s i on ,

Newspape r s , B i l l boa rds , Wa l l s , V ideo , I n t e rne t and i n many o the r

f o rms . The p ro t ec t i on o f ch i l d r en f rom ha rm i s l i nked d i r ec t l y t o t he

i s sue o f wha t a f f ec t s obse rved f rom v i ewing t e l ev i s i on . The c r i t i c i sms

r ega rd ing wa t ch ing t e l ev i s i on o f ch i l d r en a r e l i nked t o wha t t hey wa t ch

and fo r how long . Te l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng on food cause s pa r en t a l

conce rn ; pa r en t s t r y t o con t ro l t he t e l ev i s i on v i ewing o f t he i r ch i l d r en .

Pa ren t a l con t ro l o f t e l ev i s i on v i ewing i s expec t ed t o l ower t he number

o f hou r s o f a ch i l d , wh i ch l e aves impac t s on t he i r hea l t h . 1

Today ’ s ch i l d r en a r e ou r fu tu r e and un ique i n many ways f rom p rev ious

gene ra t i on . Bu t pe rhaps t he mos t i n f l uenc ing f ac to r on ch i l d r en ’ s

hea l t h i s t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s emen t s . The re a r e gene ra l conce rns o f

pa r en t s t ha t t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng ha s nega t i ve i n f l uence i n t ended o r

un in t ended on ch i l d r en ’ s hea l t h .

Adve r t i s i ng i s t he s t r uc tu r ed and composed nonpe r sona l commun ica t i on

o f i n fo rma t ion , u sua l l y pa id fo r and u sua l l y pe r sua s ive i n na tu r e , abou t

p roduc t s by i den t i f i ed sponso r s t h rough va r i ous med i a . Adve r t i s i ng

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compan i e s na tu r a l l y commun ica t e t o l a rge number o f peop l e abou t t he i r

p roduc t s . The re i s no th ing wrong w i th t ha t , a s i t a l l ows i nnova t i ve

i dea s and concep t s t o be sha red w i th o the r s . Howeve r , a s t he yea r s have

p rog re s sed , t he adve r t i s i ng me thods and t e chn iques have become

advance , appea l i ng , shap ing , and even c r ea t i ng consumer ’ s needs whe re

t he r e ha s been none be fo re , o r t u rn ing l uxu r i e s i n to nece s s i t i e s . 2

Mass adve r t i s i ng i s no l onge r so l e ly a means o f i n t roduc ing and

d i s t r i bu t i ng p roduc t s , t hough i t doe s t ha t . I t i s a ma jo r mechan i sm in

t he ab i l i t y o f a r e l a t i ve ly sma l l numbe r o f g i an t co rpo ra t i ons t o ho ld

d i sp ropo r t i ona t e power ove r t he e conomy . These co rpo ra t i ons need

newspape r s , magaz ine s , and b roadcas t i ng no t j u s t t o s e l l t he i r goods

bu t t o ma in t a in t he i r e conomic and po l i t i c a l i n f l uence . The med i a a r e

no l onge r neu t r a l agen t s o f t he me rchan t s bu t e s sen t i a l gea r s i n t he

mach ine ry o f co rpo ra t e g igan t i sm , and i nc r ea s ing ly t hey a r e no t on ly

needed bu t t hey a r e owned by t he co rpo ra t e g i an t s . 3

1.1 HISTORY OF ADVERTISING

Adve r t i s i ng i s a s o ld a s c i v i l i z a t i on i t s e l f . The ea r l i e s t beg inn ings o f

adve r t i s i ng , o f cou r se , a r e imposs ib l e t o p inpo in t , bu t t he r e a r e s eve ra l

example s da t i ng back t housands o f yea r s . I n e a r l y days , s i gnboa rds

we re p l aced above t he doo r s o f bus ine s s e s t ab l i shmen t s , and l a t e r , t he

t own c r i e r was an impor t an t adve r t i s i ng med ium. Adve r t i s i ng was a

we l l e s t ab l i shed pa r t o f t he soc i a l env i ronmen t o f e a r l y c i v i l i z a t i ons .

Howeve r , un t i l t he adven t o f mass s e l l i ng i n t he 19 t h c en tu ry ,

adve r t i s i ng p l ayed on ly a m ino r ro l e i n t he conduc t i ng o f bus ine s s . 4

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Af te r t he i nven t i on o f p r i n t i ng handb i l l s , pos t e r s and t hen newspape r s

we re u sed i n i nc r ea s ing t he quan t i t i e s o f adve r t i s e p roduc t s . The

deve lopmen t o f r a i l r oad t r anspo r t a t i on enab l ed adve r t i s i ng i ndus t ry t o

s end i t s p roduc t s t o consumer s who l i ved f a r f r om the manufac tu r i ng

p l an t s . Adve r t i s i ng a s sumed na t i ona l cha rac t e r a s bus ine s s peop l e u sed

bo th newspape r s and t e l ev i s i on t o b roaden t he i r ma rke t s .

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The adve r t i s i ng o f f ood p roduc t s o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on impac t on

ch i l d r en ’ s hea l t h – e a t i ng d i so rde r and t hey become obese and i d l e . The

r e sea r che r i n t e r e s t ed t o i nves t i ga t e t he se impac t s o f f ood -p roduc t s

adve r t i s i ng on t he hea l t h o f ch i l d r en .

1.3 OBJECTIVES

The s t udy was conduc t ed wh i l e keep ing fo l l owing ob j ec t i ve s i n m ind :

i ) To i nves t i ga t e ch i l d r en ’ s v i ewing hab i t s o f Pak i s t an

Te l ev i s i on

i i ) To f i nd ou t impac t s o f adve r t i s i ng on ch i l d r en ’ s hea l t h

1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Al though t he r e a r e many bene f i c i a r i e s o f t he s t udy bu t t he ma in

bene f i c i a r i e s a r e pa r en t s ’ , and pe r sonne l o f adve r t i s i ng agenc i e s . A l l

pa r en t s wan t t o p rov ide good food t o t he i r ch i l d r en fo r hea l t hy l i f e .

The r e su l t s o f t he s t udy w i l l show the pa r en t s abou t impac t o f

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adve r t i s i ng on t he hea l t h o f t he i r ch i l d r en and w i l l he lp t hem to

compensa t e t he se a f f ec t s .

End Notes

1 Edge r A . Shoa f f . http://thinkexist.com/quotation/advertising_is_the_art_making_whole_lies/204323.html

2William F. Arens. Contemporary Advertising (10 th Edition) . (McGraw-Hill Irwin,

United States 2006)

3 Syed Abdu l S i r a j Adve r t i s i ng . I s l amabad : A l l ama Iqba l Open Un ive r s i t y ) 6 -8

4 Ib id .

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CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

Thi s chap t e r ha s been d iv ided i n to f i ve pa r t s . The f i r s t pa r t de sc r i be s

some gene ra l t h ings abou t Te l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng . The s econd pa r t o f

t he chap t e r i s exp l a in ing t heo ry o f t he adve r t i s i ng ; how the

adve r t i s emen t s a f f ec t t he hea l t h o f ch i l d r en and t he i r l i ve s . The t h i rd

pa r t exp l a in s t he ro l e o f adve r t i s i ng i n t he soc i e ty . The fou r th pa r t

de sc r i be s t he hea l t h o f ch i l d r en and t he i r BMI . The f i f t h pa r t o f t he

s t udy exp lo re s t he nega t i ve impac t s o f ads on t he hea l t h o f ch i l d r en o f

8 t o 12 yea r s .

Te l ev i s i on i s an impor t an t soc i a l i s a t i on agen t ; i t i s p r e sen t i n

ch i l d r en ’ s l i ve s . Many adve r t i s emen t s b roadcas t on t e l ev i s i on a r e t he

c r ea t i ons o f b r i l l i an t m inds t ha t wan t t o pe r suade t hem to pu rchase t he

adve r t i s ed p roduc t s . Ev idence a r e moun t ing t ha t ma rke t i ng t o ch i l d r en

i s ha rmfu l . Nea r ly eve ry a spec t o f ch i l d r en ’ s l i ve s ha s been adve r se ly

a f f ec t ed by r ecen t t r ends o f adve r t i s i ng . Resea rch l i nks adve r t i s i ng t o

i nc r ea sed obes i t y and ea t i ng d i so rde r s i n ch i l d r en because t hey a r e

vu lne rab l e t o pe r sua s ive messages . Acco rd ing t o Med ia s cho l a r Gorge

“Te l ev i s i on ha s become unavo idab l e and un remi t t i ng f ac to r i n shap ing

t ha t wha t we a r e and wha t we w i l l become .” 1

The ch i l d r en unde r t he age o f e i gh t a r e unab l e t o c r i t i c a l l y comprehend

t e l ev i s ed adve r t i s i ng messages and a r e p rone t o a ccep t adve r t i s e r

messages a s t r u th fu l , a ccu ra t e and unb i a sed . Th i s c an l e ad t o unhea l t hy

ea t i ng hab i t s a s ev idenced by t oday ’ s you th . Th i s i s a c r i t i c a l conce rn

14

because t he mos t common p roduc t s ma rke t ed t o ch i l d r en a r e c e r ea l s ,

c and i e s , swee t s , sodas and snack foods . Adve r t i s i ng o f such unhea l t hy

food p roduc t s t o young ch i l d r en con t r i bu t e s t o poo r nu t r i t i ona l hab i t s

t ha t may l a s t a l i f e t ime and be a va r i ab l e i n t he cu r r en t ep idemic o f

obes i t y among k id s . 2

2.1 TELEVISION ADVERTISING

A consumer exposed hund reds commerc i a l messages eve ry day . They

may appea r i n t he fo rm o f b i l l boa rds , newspape r s , t e l ev i s i on

commerc i a l s , e t c . I t i s a c tua l l y a ve ry s t ruc tu r ed fo rm o f app l i ed

commun ica t i on , emp loy ing bo th ve rba l and nonve rba l e l emen t s t ha t a r e

composed t o f i l l spec i f i c space and t ime fo rma t s de t e rmined by t he

sponso r . F i r s t and fo r emos t , adve r t i s i ng i s commun ica t i on – a spec i a l

k ind o f commun ica t i on . T rad i t i ona l l y , adve r t i s i ng ha s been p r i nc ipa l l y

a one -way p roce s s , bu t w i th t oday ’ s new in t e r ac t i ve t e chno logy ,

consumer s c an g ive f e edback t o adve r t i s i ng messages i n r e a l t ime u s ing

t he s ame channe l s a s t he s ende r . Mos t adve r t i s i ng i s i n t ended t o be

pe r sua s ive – t o w in conve r t s t o a p roduc t , s e rv i ce , o r i dea . Some ads ,

such a s l ega l announcemen t s , a r e i n t ended mere ly t o i n fo rm , no t t o

pe r suade . Bu t t hey a r e s t i l l ad s because t hey s a t i s fy a l l t he o the r

r equ i r emen t s o f t he de f i n i t i on . 3

The i s sue s su r round ing adve r t i s i ng d i r ec t ed t o ch i l d r en a r e r e l a t ed t o

c e r t a i n commerc i a l c ampa igns p r ima r i l y t a rge t i ng ch i l d r en . Co ld -d r i nk

adve r t i s emen t s a r e common ly shown du r ing spo r t s even t s and s een by

mi l l i ons o f ch i l d r en , c r ea t i ng b r and f ami l i a r i t y and mo t iva t i ng ch i l d r en

15

fo r buy ing . They have been exposed t e l ev i s i on more t han 15 ed ib l e ads

du r ing one hou r p rog ramme and when t hey wa t ch t e l ev i s i on 4 hou r s a

day t ha t means t hey s aw one p roduc t ’ s ad a round 20 t imes i n one

s i t t i ng . Th i s i s r e f e r r ed t o g r aph no . 15 a t page 34 .

Adve r t i s i ng i s pe r sua s ive and i n fo rma t iona l i n f l uence on t he behav iou r

o f t he aud i ence . Adve r t i s i ng i s a l so a ma rke t i ng t oo l and may be u sed

i n combina t i on w i th o the r ma rke t i ng t oo l s , such a s s a l e s p romot ions ,

pe r sona l s e l l i ng t a c t i c s , o r pub l i c i t y . Bu t t he a c tua l p i c tu r e i s d i f f e r en t ,

a cco rd ing t o Edge r “Adve r t i s i ng i s t he a r t o f mak ing who le l i e s ou t o f

ha l f t r u th . ”

The impac t o f t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng i s t he g r ea t e s t among ch i l d r en .

The ch i l d r en l i ke t e l ev i s i on commerc i a l s more t han e lde r g roup , and

t hey a r e a l so more deep ly i n f l uenced by t he ca t chy appea rance o f

adve r t i s e r on t he i r l i ve s .

Adve r t i s i ng a imed a t ch i l d r en i s ba sed on t h r ee conce rns , f i r s t , i t i s

be l i eved t ha t adve r t i s i ng p romote supe r f i c i a l l y and va lue s founded i n

ma t e r i a l goods and consumpt ion . Second , ch i l d r en a r e cons ide red

i nexpe r i enced consumer s and ea sy p r ey fo r t he soph i s t i c a t ed pe r sua s ion

o f adve r t i s e r s . Th i rd , adve r t i s i ng i n f l uences ch i l d r en demand fo r

eve ry th ing f rom toy t o snack food . 4

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2.2 THE ROLE OF ADVERTISING

Adve r t i s i ng p l ays a v i t a l r o l e i n t he e conomic sy s t em o f a coun t ry . I t

he lp s i n s e l l i ng i dea s , goods , and s e rv i ce s . Adve r t i s i ng bo th r e f l e c t s

and a f f ec t s ou r l i f e s t y l e s , and t hus , p l ays a subs t an t i a l soc i a l r o l e .

Adve r t i s i ng ha s become so c lo se t o ou r l i f e , t he r e fo re , i t s e rve s

mu l t i d imens iona l commun ica t i on needs o f soc i e ty . Bus ine s s f i rms ,

l abou r un ions , gove rnmen t agenc i e s , and po l i t i c a l l e ade r s a r e

succe s s fu l l y emp loy ing adve r t i s i ng t o i n fo rm and pe r suade peop l e

abou t t he i r pu rpose .

Kapoor g ive s t he fou r po in t s o f r o l e o f adve r t i s i ng : F i r s t , t he coun t ry ’ s

g ro s s na t i ona l p roduc t i s g r ea t e r and t he s t anda rd o f l i v ing i s h ighe r

t han t hey wou ld o the rwi se be . Adve r t i s i ng c r ea t e s j obs w i th a g r ea t e r

va r i e t y o f p roduc t s , and improves t he qua l i t y o f p roduc t s and i nc r ea se

t he e conomy o f coun t ry . Second , a rgumen t o f Kapoor i s t ha t adve r t i s i ng

p l ays a ma jo r r o l e i n i n fo rming t he consumer so t ha t more i n t e l l i gen t

cho i ce s a r e made i n t he ma rke tp l ace . Th i rd , r a t i ona l e fo r adve r t i s i ng i s

t ha t t he f i rm’s cos t o f p roduc t i on pe r un i t o f ou tpu t i s l owe r because

adve r t i s i ng i nc r ea se s demand fo r t he f i rm’s ou tpu t , so , adve r t i s i ng

l e ads t o more e f f i c i en t u se o f r e sou rce s i n t he e conomy . F ina l l y , she

s ays t ha t adve r t i s i ng l e aves t he impac t s e i t he r pos i t i ve o r nega t i ve on

t he gene ra l masse s a s we l l a s on ch i l d r en . These impac t s a r e changed

acco rd ing t o t he cu l t u r e and env i ronmen t . 5

The above men t ioned fou r po in t s a r e who le p i c tu r e o f adve r t i s i ng t ha t

adve r t i s e r s wan t t o a ch i eve . Th i s s ame s i t ua t i on can be found i n

17

Pak i s t an . So , no one can ab l e t o exp lo re a l l t he a spec t s o f adve r t i s i ng

a t t h i s l eve l because so many hu rd l e s a r e t he r e , such a s l a ck o f

r e sou rce s , sho r t age o f t ime .

2.3 CHILDREN’S HEALTH

Eve ry pa ren t consc ious ly and keen ly obse rve s t he hea l t h o f t he i r

ch i l d r en i n a l l soc i e ty . Bu t pa r en t s a r e more a t t a ched w i th t he i r

ch i l d r en i n Pak i s t an i soc i e ty because ch i l d r en a r e t he i r f u tu r e and t hey

w i l l he lp i n f i nances when pa ren t s w i l l r e t i r e . A l l pa r en t s l i ke t o

p rov ide good food t o t he i r ch i l d r en fo r t he i r hea l t h and g ive p rope r

educa t i on fo r mak ing t hem a good c i t i z en . Bo th pa r en t s a r e work ing

because t hey wan t t o improve t he i r l i v ing s t anda rd ; t h i s i s r e f e r r ed t o

g r aph no . 4 . Some t imes pa r en t s ove r l ooks ch i l d r en ’ s a c t i v i t i e s i . e .

wha t and when t hey ea t ? When and how they wa t ch t e l ev i s i on? Why

they become obese and i d l e? 6

Ac tua l l y t he r e sea r che r w i l l exp lo re t he answer o f a l l t he se ques t i ons

because t he se ques t i ons a r e ma in ly r e l a t ed w i th t he s t udy .

Hea l t h expe r t s have l i nked exces s ive wa t ch ing t e l ev i s i on t o obes i t y - a

s i gn i f i c an t hea l t h p rob l em today . Whi l e wa t ch ing t e l ev i s i on , ch i l d r en

a r e i nac t i ve t o buy such p roduc t s . They a r e a l so bombarded w i th

adve r t i s i ng messages t ha t encou rage t hem to buy and ea t unhea l t hy

foods such a s po t a to ch ip s , bu rge r s , pa s t r i e s e t c . and emp ty -ca lo r i e so f t

d r i nks t ha t o f t en become p re f e r r ed snack foods . I nd i r ec t l y adve r t i s i ng

l e ave t oo much a f f ec t on ch i l d r en ' s hea l t h . Even i f ch i l d r en a r e

wa t ch ing 4 hou r s o f qua l i t y educa t i ona l p rog rams on t e l ev i s i on i n a

18

day , t ha t means t hey a r e no t exe rc i s i ng , r e ad ing , soc i a l i z i ng , o r

spend ing t ime ou t s i de . Bu t some s t ud i e s have shown tha t dec r ea s ing t he

amoun t o f t e l ev i s i on wa t ch ing by ch i l d r en l ed t o l e s s we igh t ga in and

l ower body mass i ndex i nc r ea se , and make t hem id l e t ha t i s no t be t t e r

f o r t he i r hea l t h . 7

2.3 .1 BODY MASS INDEX (BMI)

Body Mass Index (BMI) i s u sed t o e s t ima t e hea l t hy we igh t o f ave rage

peop l e . A BMI o f 20 t o 24 i s de s i r ab l e fo r mos t adu l t s . A pe r son w i th a

BMI o f 25 t o 29 .9 i s cons ide red ove rwe igh t , and a pe r son w i th a BMI

o f 30 o r above i s cons ide red obese . Obes i t y i s a s soc i a t ed w i th an

i nc r ea sed r i sk fo r hea r t d i s ea se , d i abe t e s , and o the r l i f e - t h r ea t en ing

d i s ea se s .

The body mass i ndex (BMI) i s common ly u sed t o de t e rmine de s i r ab l e

body we igh t s . BMI i s a measu re o f an adu l t ’ s we igh t i n r e l a t i on t o

he igh t , and i t i s c a l cu l a t ed me t r i c a l l y a s we igh t d iv ided by he igh t

squa red (kg /m2) .

Body mass i ndex on ly p rov ide s a r ough e s t ima t e o f de s i r ab l e we igh t ;

howeve r , phys i c i ans r e cogn i ze t ha t many o the r f a c to r s be s ide s he igh t

a f f ec t we igh t . We igh t a l one may no t be an i nd i ca to r o f f a t , a s i n t he

c a se o f a bodybu i l de r who may have a h igh BMI because o f a h igh

pe rcen t age o f musc l e t i s sue , wh ich we ighs more t han f a t . L ikewi se , a

pe r son w i th a s eden t a ry l i f e s t y l e may be w i th in a de s i r ab l e we igh t

r ange bu t have exces s f a t t i s sue . Howeve r , t he h ighe r BMI i s g r ea t e r

t he r i sk fo r deve lop ing s e r i ous med i ca l cond i t i ons .

19

2.3 .1 .1 BMI Chart for Boys

Body Mass Index (BMI) pe r cen t i l e s f o r boys , f r om two t o twen ty yea r s ,

so t ha t you can t r a ck you r ch i l d ’ s g rowth cu rve and s ee i f t hey a r e

unde rwe igh t , ove rwe igh t o r j u s t r i gh t .

20

2.3 .1 .2 BMI Chart for Gir ls

Body Mass Index (BMI) pe r cen t i l e s f o r g i r l s , f r om two t o twen ty yea r s ,

so t ha t you can t r a ck you r ch i l d ' s g rowth cu rve and s ee i f t hey a r e

unde rwe igh t , ove rwe igh t o r j u s t r i gh t .

2.3 .1 .3 What i s Fat?

Fa t s , o r l i p id s , a r e nu t r i en t s i n food t ha t ch i l d r en ’ s body u se s t o bu i l d

ne rve t i s sue ( l i ke t he b r a in ) and ho rmones . The body a l so u se s f a t a s

f ue l . I f f a t s t ha t ch i l d r en have ea t en a r e no t bu rned a s ene rgy o r u sed

a s bu i l d ing b locks , t hey a r e s t o r ed by t he body i n f a t c e l l s . Th i s i s

21

body ' s way o f t h ink ing ahead : By s av ing f a t f o r f u tu r e u se , t he body

p l ans fo r t imes when food migh t be s ca r ce .

Fa t g ive s food f l avou r and t ex tu r e , bu t i t ' s a l so h igh i n c a lo r i e s , and

exces s amoun t s o f f a t t y foods a s w i th exce s s amoun t s o f any food can

cause many hea l t h r i sk s . Fo r ch i l d r en and ado l e scen t s , de s se r t s and

snacks i nc lud ing po t a to ch ip s , choco l a t e , c akes , doughnu t s , pa s t r i e s ,

and cook i e s a r e a s i gn i f i c an t sou rce o f f a t . Ch i l d r en a l so ge t f a t f r om

who le m i lk p roduc t s and h igh - f a t mea t s , such a s f r i ed and sp i cy mea t .

Of cou r se , f a s t - food and t ake -ou t mea l s t end t o have more f a t t han

home cook ing ; and i n r e s t au ran t s , f r i ed d i she s a r e t he h ighes t i n f a t

con t en t . Fa t a l so o f t en "h ide s " i n foods i n t he fo rm o f c r eamy , chee sy ,

o r bu t t e ry s auces o r d r e s s ings .

S t i l l , t hough , f a t i s an impor t an t pa r t o f a hea l t hy d i e t when t he

ch i l d r en ea t t he r i gh t k inds o f f a t s e spec i a l l y t hose f rom ce r t a i n k inds

o f f i sh i n r e commended amoun t s . L ike ca rbohydra t e s i n r e cen t yea r s ,

f a t s have been wrong ly accused o f be ing “bad” . A l though some

de f i n i t e l y be t t e r t han o the r s , c e r t a i n k inds o f f a t a r e a c tua l l y good fo r

t e enage r and ch i l d r en an impor t an t pa r t o f a hea l t hy d i e t .

Obes i t y i nc r ea se s t he r i sk o f deve lop ing d i s ea se . Acco rd ing t o t he

Na t i ona l I n s t i t u t e o f D iabe t e s and D iges t i ve and K idney D i sea se s ,

a lmos t 70 pe r cen t o f hea r t d i s ea se c a se s i n t he Un i t ed S t a t e s a r e l i nked

t o exce s s body f a t , and obese peop l e a r e more t han tw ice a s l i ke ly t o

deve lop hype r t ens ion . The r i sk o f med i ca l compl i ca t i ons , pa r t i cu l a r l y

hea r t d i s ea se , i nc r ea se s when body f a t i s d i s t r i bu t ed a round t he wa i s t ,

22

e spec i a l l y i n t he abdomen . Th i s t ype o f uppe r body f a t d i s t r i bu t i on i s

more common in men t han i n women . 8

2.3 .2 CAUSES OF OBESITY

A ca lo r i e i s t he un i t u sed t o measu re t he ene rgy va lue o f f ood and t he

ene rgy u sed by t he body t o ma in t a in no rma l func t i ons . When t he

ca lo r i e s f rom food i n t ake equa l t he c a lo r i e s o f ene rgy t he body u se s ,

we igh t r ema ins cons t an t . Bu t when a pe r son consumes more ca lo r i e s

t han t he body needs , t he body s t o r e s t hose add i t i ona l c a lo r i e s a s f a t ,

c aus ing subsequen t we igh t ga in .

Obes i t y , med i ca l cond i t i on cha rac t e r i z ed by s t o r age o f exce s s body f a t .

The human body na tu r a l l y s t o r e s f a t t i s sue unde r t he sk in and a round

o rgans and j o in t s . Fa t i s c r i t i c a l f o r good hea l t h because i t i s a sou rce

o f ene rgy when t he body l a cks t he ene rgy nece s sa ry t o su s t a in l i f e

p roce s se s , and i t p rov ide s i n su l a t i on and p ro t ec t i on fo r i n t e rna l o rgans .

Bu t t he a ccumula t i on o f t oo much f a t i n t he body i s a s soc i a t ed w i th a

va r i e t y o f hea l t h p rob l ems . S tud i e s show tha t i nd iv idua l s who a r e

ove rwe igh t o r obese run a g r ea t e r r i sk o f deve lop ing d i abe t e s me l l i t u s ,

hype r t ens ion , co rona ry hea r t d i s ea se , s t r oke , a r t h r i t i s , and some fo rms

o f c ance r . 9

The cause s o f obes i t y a r e complex and i nc lude some f ac to r s .   Bas i ca l l y ,

obes i t y occu r s when a pe r son ea t s more ca lo r i e s t han t he body bu rns

up .  The ch i l d r en have an 80 pe rcen t chance o f be ing obese i f t he i r

pa r en t s a r e obese .   Obes i t y i n ch i l dhood and ado l e scence can be r e l a t ed

t o :

23

i ) Poor e a t i ng hab i t s

i i ) Overea t i ng hab i t s

i i i ) Unneces sa ry u se o f Co ld d r i nks

i v ) Ea t ing Non-nu t r i t i on food

v ) Ea t ing ou t - s i de t he home

The pe rcen t age o f ove rwe igh t ch i l d r en i s g rowing a t an a l a rming r a t e .

On t he who le , ch i l d r en we re spend ing l e s s t ime exe rc i s i ng and more

t ime i n f ron t o f t he TV and compu te r . And t oday ' s busy f ami l i e s have

f ewe r f r e e momen t s t o p r epa re nu t r i t i ous , home-cooked mea l s , day i n

and day ou t . F rom f a s t f ood t o e l e c t ron i c s , qu i ck and ea sy s eems t o be

t he mindse t o f many peop l e , young and o ld , i n t he new mi l l enn ium.

2.4 IMPACTS OF ADVERTISING

Modern l i f e s t y l e ha s f rozen t he f ami ly s i z e i n t he Pak i s t an i soc i e ty .

Nuc l ea r f ami ly ha s t aken p l ace o f t he j o in t f ami ly . L i f e s ty l e t r ends i n

u rban Pak i s t an ( r i s i ng i ncomes , l onge r work ing hou r s , more work ing

mo the r s , and t ime -poo r / ca sh - r i ch pa r en t s ) t end t o suppo r t t he i r

f ami l i e s , wh i ch l e ad t he ch i l d t o wa t ch ing t e l ev i s i on and i nc r ea sed

consumpt ion o f unneces sa ry food . Fu r the rmore , t he adve r t i s i ng i ndus t ry

makes j unk food s eem i r r e s i s t i b l e .

Ch i l d r en who wa t ch a l o t o f t e l ev i s i on have d i f f i cu l t y i n concen t r a t i ng

a t s choo l because t hey a r e u sed t o be ing g iven a l l t he answer s i n s t e ad

o f be ing a sked t o t h ink abou t ques t i ons . I f ch i l d r en wa t ch l e s s

t e l ev i s i on , t he i r imag ina t i on w i l l g row .

24

Unfo r tuna t e ly , ch i l d r en a r e no t g iven p rope r gu idance a s t o wha t t hey

shou ld do . The med i a i s no t p l ay ing i t s p rope r ro l e i n t he p romot ion o f

ch i l d r en ’ s r i gh t s and t he d i f f i cu l t i e s t hey have t o f a ce i n t he soc i e ty .

Even t he au tho r i t i e s o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on i gno red t h i s s i de and t hey

can no t de s ign p rog rams acco rd ing t o ch i l d r en ’ s r equ i r emen t s .

2.4 .1 IMPACTS ON CHILDREN’S HEALTH

James sugges t s t ha t “Ch i ldhood obes i t y a r i s e s f rom foods t ha t a r e h igh

i n f a t and l ow in f i b r e . When ch i l d r en ea t t h i s f ood , t he i n su l i n no t

on ly i nc r ea se s t he e f f ec t s o f t he p l ea su re - chemica l dopamine (mak ing

t he ch i l d wan t t o e a t more o f t he s ame food ) bu t a l so r educes t he

e f f ec t s o f t he ho rmone l ep tons , mak ing t he ch i l d wan t t o e a t more and

be l e s s a c t i ve” . 1 0

Te lev i s i on a l so ha s nega t i ve impac t s , i t c r ea t e s eye p rob l ems . I t s t ops

t he ch i l d r en f rom go ing ou t and p l ay ing w i th f r i ends . I t s adve r t i s i ng

makes t hem buy t h ings even i f t hey do no t need . I t c an make t hem t i r ed

and unab l e t o focus on t he i r l e s sons .

2.4 .2 LEAVE UNHEALTHY HABITS

Gerbne r s a id t ha t t he many med ia expe r t s i n Wes t e rn coun t r i e s who

con t i nue t o be deep ly anx ious abou t t he commerc i a l con t ex t o f

t e l ev i s i on p rog ramming . They a rgue t ha t t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng l e ave

impac t s on soc i e ty , pa r t i cu l a r l y on t he hea l t h o f ch i l d r en , and

t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng i s no t go ing on a i r w i thou t r e a son . 1 1

25

The impac t o f t e l ev i s i on on ch i l d r en ha s r e ce ived much a t t en t i on .

Resea rch sugges t s t ha t ch i l d r en s ee t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng a s j u s t

ano the r f o rm o f p rog ramming and r eac t unc r i t i c a l l y t o i t s messages ,

wh ich makes t hem e spec i a l l y vu lne rab l e t o adve r t i s i ng . The re i s a l so

conce rn abou t t he way i n wh ich ch i l d r en r e spond t o adve r t i s i ng .

Resea rch i nd i ca t e s t ha t many ch i l d r en a r e undu ly i n f l uenced by t h i s

s t anda rd o f hea l t h , become d i s s a t i s f i ed w i th t he i r own bod i e s , and may

deve lop ea t i ng d i so rde r s i n pu r su i t o f a t h in f i gu re . Adve r t i s i ng a f f ec t

da i l y l i f e and ea t i ng hab i t s e t c . The ch i l d r en a s we l l a s t he t e enage r ge t

i n f l uenced , consc ious ly o r unconsc ious ly by adve r t i s emen t s o f Pak i s t an

t e l ev i s i on .

26

End Notes

1Syed Abdul Siraj. Advertising, (Allama Iqbal Open University, Islamabad, 1998)

2Kunkel, D., Wilson, B., Donnerstein, E., & Blumenthal, E.: Measuring Television

Violence: The importance of context. (Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media 1995).

3William F. Arens. Contemporary Advertising (10 th Edition) . (McGraw-Hill Irwin,

United States 2006)

4Namita Unnikrishnan, and Shailaja Pajpai: The Impact of Television Advertising on

Children. (Sage Publications India Private Limited, India 1996)

5Neeru Kapoor: Television Advertising & Consumer Response. (Mittal Publication,

New Delhi, India 2003)

6Namita Unnikrishnan, and Shailaja Pajpai: The Impact of Television Advertising on

Children. (Sage Publications India Private Limited, India 1996)

7Evra, Judith Van: Television and Child Development. (Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence

Erlbaum 1990).

8http://weightloss.about.com/od/obesityhealth/a/blwhatsbmi.htm

9http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obesity

10Shanahan James and Michael Morgan: Television and its Viewers: Cultivation

Theory and Research. (Cambridge University Press, UK1999)

11Kunkel, D., Wilson, B., Donnerstein, E., & Blumenthal, E.: Measuring Television

Violence: The importance of context. (Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media 1995).

27

CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Eve ry s c i en t i f i c d i s c ip l i ne emp loys a pa r t i cu l a r me thodo logy i n

conduc t i ng o f r e sea r ch . Th i s i nc ludes some a s sumpt ions and va lue s

wh ich s e rve a s a r a t i ona l e ( unde r ly ing r ea sons ) f o r e f fo r t o f r e sea r ch

and s t anda rds c r i t e r i a f o r t he who le p roce s s . The ba s i c pu rpose o f t h i s

r e sea r ch s t udy was i nves t i ga t i ng t he nega t i ve impac t s o f e a t i ng

hab i t s / d i so rde r on t he hea l t h o f ch i l d r en . Fo r t h i s pu rpose sy s t ema t i c

r andom sampl ing me thod was u sed . The s amp le s i z e was l im i t ed t o 30

ch i l d r en aged be tween 8 – 12 yea r s and t he i r pa r en t s .

3.1 RESEARCH DESIGN

Thi s s t udy was su rvey r e sea r ch abou t “ Impac t s o f f ood p roduc t

adve r t i s emen t s o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on on ea t i ng hab i t s o f Ch i l d r en” i n

Sa t e l l i t e Town (B-B lock ) Rawa lp ind i c i t y . The r e sea r che r u sed

ques t i onna i r e fo r pa r en t s and i n t e rv i ews o f t he ch i l d r en a s i n s t rumen t

t o ga the r t he da t a .

3.2 POPULATION

In t h i s r e sea r ch s t udy ch i l d r en o f age 8 – 12 , and t he i r pa r en t s i n

Rawa lp ind i c i t y we re t he popu l a t i on o f t he s t udy .

3.3 SAMPLING TECHNIQUE AND SAMPLERandom and conven i ence s amp l ing t e chn iques we re app l i ed i n t h i s

r e sea r ch fo r s e l e c t i ng t he s amp le . The s amp l ing f r ame was 30 ch i l d r en

aged 8 – 12 , and t he i r pa r en t s f rom Sa t e l l i t e Town (B-B lock )

Rawa lp ind i c i t y .

28

3.4 DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES

The re a r e t h r ee demograph i c va r i ab l e s i n t h i s s t udy :

i ) Gende r

i i ) Age

i i i ) Qua l i f i c a t i on

3.5 RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS

In o rde r t o r e a l i s e t he ob j ec t i ve , a su rvey s t udy was ca r r i ed ou t . The

da t a was co l l e c t ed ma in ly f rom the p r ima ry sou rce s . A ques t i onna i r e

was de s igned fo r pa r en t s . Ch i l d r en ’ s ques t i onna i r e was a l so u sed fo r

s t r uc tu r ed i n t e rv i ew .

3.6 DATA COLLECTION

Data was co l l e c t ed t h rough ques t i onna i r e and i n t e rv i ew . Ques t i onna i r e

we re d i s t r i bu t ed among t he pa r en t s and admin i s t e r ed by t he r e sea r che r

pe r sona l l y . S t ruc tu r ed In t e rv i ew was conduc t ed t o a l l ch i l d r en

r e sponden t s o f s amp le .

3.7 DATA REDUCTION

After data collection, the next task was the reduction/coding of the data. Words and sentences

responses were changed into numerical categories, which are following:

Parent s Chi ldrenWords F igures Words F igures

MaleFema le

12

MaleFema le

12

Educat ionMas te rM. Ph i lPhDOthe r

1234

Educat ionClas s 3C la s s 4C la s s 5C la s s 6C la s s 7

12345

29

Age30 t o 3536 t o 4041 t o 4546 t o 5051 & above

12345

Age8 yea r s9 yea r s10 yea r s11 yea r s12 yea r s

12345

Two or more options’ questionsYes 1 No 2

Very f r equen t l yF requen t l y Ra re

123

AlwaysRa reDon’ t obse rveNeve r

1234

Al l numbe r s g iven acco rd ing t o l i ke r t s ca l e and t hen da t a was f ed i n to

t he mach ine .

3.8 PROBLEM FACED

Re tu rn r a t e o f t he ques t i onna i r e was ve ry s l ow and i t t ook more t han

one mon th t o co l l e c t 30 ques t i onna i r e s f rom pa ren t s . The r e sea r che r

pe r sona l l y wen t t o t he r e sponden t s ( pa r en t s ) consecu t i ve ly fo r

co l l e c t i ons o f ques t i onna i r e s and conduc t i ng i n t e rv i ew o f t he

r e sponden t s ( ch i l d r en ) .

3.9 USES OF COMPUTER APPLICATIONS

The r e sea r che r u sed t he mos t advanced compu te r package “S t a t i s t i c a l

Package fo r Soc i a l Sc i en t i s t s (SPSS Ver s ion 14 .0 ) f o r ana lyz ing t he

da t a and de s ign ing cha r t s , g r aphs and t ab l e s w i th pe r cen t ages , means

and modes fo r i n t e rp r e t i ng t he r e su l t s o f da t a .

30

CHAPTER 4

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

In t h i s chap t e r t he r e sea r che r ana lyzed t he da t a o f impac t s o f

adve r t i s emen t s on t he hea l t h o f ch i l d r en . The da t a on t he “ Impac t s o f

Food P roduc t Adve r t i s emen t s o f PTV on t he Hea l t h o f Ch i l d r en we re

co l l e c t ed t h rough a ques t i onna i r e wh ich was e spec i a l l y de s igned fo r

t h i s s t udy . P r ima r i l y , c ro s s - t abu l a t i on s t a t i s t i c a l p rocedu re was app l i ed

t o i nves t i ga t e r e l a t i onsh ip be tween demograph i c va r i ab l e s i . e . ( gende r ,

age , and qua l i f i c a t i on , and p r e sen t ed i n g r aphs a longwi th da t a t ab l e s

w i th i n t e rp r e t a t i on .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Age Group of Parents Respondents

Male 17% 17% 13% 13% 60%

Female 10% 13% 7% 10% 40%

30-40 41-45 46-50 51 & above Total

As ev iden t f o rm the g r aph 1 , t he ma jo r i t y o f t he ma l e r e sponden t s ( 34%

fe l l i n t he age ca t ego ry o f 30 t o 45 a s we l l a s f ema le r e sponden t s i n t he

s ame g roups made 23%. The r e su l t s showed t ha t ma jo r i t y o f t he bo th

g roups r e sponden t s we re youngs t e r .

31

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Percentage

Profession of the Parent Respondents

Male 17% 20% 7% 13% 20% 0% 77%

Female 10% 0% 3% 0% 0% 10% 23%

Govt Employee

Self Business Teaching Lawyer Doctor Housewife Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 2 , t he ma jo r i t y o f t he ma l e r e sponden t s

( 20%) was Doc to r whe rea s 20% were runn ing t he i r bus ine s s , 10%

fema le r e sponden t s we re Gov t . emp loyee and 10% were housewives .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Percentage

Qualification of Parent Respondents

Male 17% 27% 7% 13% 63%

Total 27% 43% 10% 20% 100%

Graduate Master Higher Others Total

Graph 3 , showed t ha t 57% o f ma l e r e sponden t s and 30% fema le

r e sponden t s we re h igh ly qua l i f i ed . So , ma l e r e sponden t s we re h ighe r

qua l i f i ed a s compa red t o f ema le .

32

0

5

10

15

20

25

Percentage

Income of Parent Respondents

Male 2 4 7 5 5 23

Female 0 3 0 2 2 7

20000-30000 31000-40000 410000-500000 510000-100000 1000000-150000 Total

The g raph 4 documen t s t he mon th ly i ncome o f t he pa r en t s - r e sponden t s .

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph t ha t ma l e r e sponden t be longs t o we l l e a rn ing

f ami l i e s a s compa re t o f ema le r e sponden t s .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Percentage

Family Members of Parent Respondents

Male 10% 23% 17% 13% 63%

Female 7% 13% 10% 7% 37%

3 Members 4 Members 5 Members 6 Members Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 5 t h i s shows t he compos i t i on o f f ami l i e s o f

t he r e sponden t s , t he ma jo r i t y o f r e sponden t s hav ing fou r member s i n

t he i r f ami ly .

33

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Parents Watching PTV

Male 40% 0% 40%

Female 60% 0% 60%

Yes No Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 6 a l l pa r en t r e sponden t s wa t ched PTV

regu l a r l y .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Parents Time of Watching PTV

Male 7% 7% 13% 13% 40%

Female 20% 20% 17% 3% 60%

Morning Afternoon Evening Late Night Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 7 t ha t ma jo r i t y (13%) o f ma l e - r e sponden t s

wa t ched PTV in even ing and l a t e n igh t a s compa re t o f ema le

r e sponden t s who l i ked t o wa t ch Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on i n morn ing and

a f t e rnoon .

34

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Duration of Parents Watch PTV

Male 3% 20% 10% 7% 40%

Female 10% 27% 13% 10% 60%

1 Hour 2 Hours 3 Hours 4 Hours Total

Graph 8 showed t ha t ma jo r i t y o f pa r en t wa t ches Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on fo r

2 t o 3 hou r s da i l y .

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Percentage

Children Watching PTV

Male 50% 0% 50%

Female 50% 0% 50%

Yes No Total

Graph 9 r e f l e c t s t ha t a l l ch i l d r en r e sponden t s we re r egu l a r v i ewe r s o f

Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on .

35

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Percentage

Children Time of Watching PTV

Male 7% 17% 27% 50%

Female 7% 13% 30% 50%

Morning Afternoon Evening Total

The r e su l t s o f t he g r aph 10 shows t ha t ch i l d r en l i ke t o wa t ch t e l ev i s i on

i n even ing mos t l y bu t some r e sponden t s l i ke t o wa t ch i n a f t e rnoon a s

we l l .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Children Duration Watching PTV

Male 3% 10% 13% 17% 43%

Female 7% 13% 17% 20% 57%

2 Hour 3 Hours 4 Hours More 4 Hours Total

36

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 11 , t he ma jo r i t y (30%) o f ch i l d r en

r e sponden t s wa t ches PTV fo r more t han fou r hou r s da i l y . Acco rd ing t o

t he da t a co l l e c t ed ch i l d r en o f 8 -12 yea r s o ld we re heavy v i ewer s o f

PTV. Ac tua l l y t ha t i s t he p rob l em a r ea because wa t ch ing t e l ev i s i on fo r

l ong t ime i . e . more t han f i ve hou r s c r ea t e s adve r se e f f ec t s on t he

hea l t h , e spec i a l l y ch i l d r en o f 8 -12 yea r s o ld .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Like Programs

Male 20% 13% 17% 10% 60%

Female 20% 7% 10% 3% 40%

Children Shows Children Quiz Cartoon Games Total

The r e su l t s o f t he g r aph 12 shows t ha t ma jo r i t y (33%) o f ch i l d r en

r e sponden t s l i ke t o wa t ch ch i l d r en shows /qu i z p rog rammes a s gu ided by

t he i r pa r en t s .

37

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Purpose of Watching

Male 17% 13% 20% 10% 60%

Female 10% 10% 13% 7% 40%

Information Guidance Entertainment Time Killing Total

Graph 13 r e f l e c t s t ha t pa r en t s a l l ow the i r ch i l d r en t o wa t ch PTV fo r t he

pu rpose o f ge t t i ng upda t ed i n fo rma t ion and fo r en t e r t a i nmen t a s we l l .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Feeling of Heavy Viewing

Male 27% 17% 43%

Female 17% 40% 57%

Tired Bored Total

Graph 14 i s ev iden t t ha t ma l e r e sponden t s f e l t t i r ednes s when t hey

wa t ch PTV fo r more t han 3 t o 4 hou r s bu t f ema le r e sponden t s go t bo red

t ha t means f ema le l i ked t o wa t ch more t han fou r hou r s .

38

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Percentage

Viewing Ads in an Hour

Male 3% 10% 13% 7% 33%

Female 10% 17% 27% 13% 67%

10 Ads 15 Ads 20 Ads 25 Ads Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 15 t ha t ma jo r i t y o f r e sponden t s ( 40%)

wa t ched ads a round 15 -20 and 20% saw more t han 25 ads i n an hou r . I t s

means t ha t du r ing one hou r p rog ram a l o t o f f ood -p roduc t s we re

adve r t i s ed on PTV wh ich i n s t i ga t ed ch i l d r en t o buy t he se p roduc t s on

t he i r own o r a sk t he i r pa r en t s t o buy t he s ame fo r t hem.

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Percentage

Favourite Products

Male 13% 27% 10% 50%

Female 20% 20% 10% 50%

Chips Cold Drinks Candies Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 16 t ha t ma jo r i t y o f bo th pa r en t and ch i l d r en

r e sponden t s u sua l l y l i ked t o buy co ld -d r i nks bu t some ch i l d r en

39

r e sponded t ha t t hey a l so l i ked t o buy ch ip s t ype p roduc t s a s we l l . These

p roduc t s i nc r ea se f a t s on t he body e spec i a l l y i n ch i l d r en because t he

age 8 -12 yea r s i s t he g rooming age and t hey need p rope r and

nu t r i t i on i s t d i e t f o r t he i r hea l t h .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Percentage

Change Attitude

Male 30% 23% 13% 67%

Female 17% 10% 7% 33%

Agree Disagree Rare Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 17 pa ren t r e sponden t s , r e sponded t ha t

ch i l d r en a t t i t ude was changed i f t hey d id no t buy o r a l l ow them to buy

such ed ib l e s . They behave agg re s s ive ly w i th t he i r e l de r s o r pa r en t s .

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Percentage

Impacts of PTV Ads on Children

Male 13% 17% 27% 7% 63%

Female 7% 10% 13% 7% 37%

Behavioural Change Aggressiveness Imitation None Total

40

The r e su l t s o f t he g r aph 18 show the impac t s o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on ’ s

ads on ch i l d r en . Pa ren t s r e sponded t ha t t he i r ch i l d r en t r i ed t o im i t a t e

when t hey s aw ads , bu t some pa ren t s r e sponded t ha t t hey f e l t some

agg re s s ivenes s du r ing / a f t e r wa t ch ing ads because adve r t i s e r showed

supe r human ac t i ons .

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Percentage

Buy Food for Children Demand

Male 20% 17% 13% 50%

Female 23% 13% 13% 50%

Always Rare Never Total

As r e su l t s o f t he g r aph 19 shows t ha t pa r en t s a lways buy food p roduc t s

on t he i r ch i l d r en ’ s demand because t hey we re we l l e a rned ( r e f e r t o

g r aph no . 4 ) . They fu l f i l l ed a l l demands o f t he i r ch i l d r en wha t eve r t hey

demanded fo r e a t i ng . Th i s e a t i ng hab i t c r ea t ed ea t i ng -d i so rde r i n t he

ch i l d r en o f 8 -12 yea r s o ld .

41

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage

Ads Effects on Children's Diet

Male 27% 13% 7% 47%

Female 20% 20% 13% 53%

Agree Disagree None Total

As ev iden t f rom the g r aph 20 t ha t pa r en t s f e l t t ha t PTV’s ads e f f ec t ed

t he i r ch i l d r en ’ s d i e t because t he i r ch i l d r en hav ing enough money t o buy

be long t o uppe r c l a s s f ami l i e s ( r e f e r t o g r aph no .4 ) .

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Percentage

Change in Children's Health

Male 17% 23% 10% 50%

Female 23% 17% 10% 50%

Decrease Health Eating Disorder None Total

As ev iden t o f g r aph 21 t ha t pa r en t s r e sponded t ha t t he se ads i nc r ea sed

ea t i ng d i so rde r and dec rea sed hea l t h o f t he i r ch i l d r en .

42

CHAPTER 5

CONCLUSION

5.1 FINDINGS

The pu rpose o f t h i s r e sea r ch was t o f i nd ou t Impac t s o f Food P roduc t

Adve r t i s emen t s o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on on t he Ea t i ng Hab i t s o f

Ch i l d r en . The ma jo r va r i ab l e s t hose a r e l i ke ly t o have a s i gn i f i c an t

impac t o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on ads on ch i l d r en ’ s hea l t h .

In Pakistan a lmost a l l the chi ldren have been watching

te lev is ion regular ly . The informat ion about ch i ldren’s

spending t ime on v iewing te lev is ion was to est imate their

exposure to the var iety of advert isements. Var iat ion of

advert is ing’s inf luence has been observed d i f ferent ly in one

chi ld to another , and f rom day to day for the same chi ld .

Nevertheless, some general in f luence of advert is ing on

chi ldren were observed, which presented in chapter 4 at

graph 9.

According to the graph 11; a l l the chi ldren have been

watching te lev is ion dai ly . 23% chi ldren saw te lev is ion for

up to 3 hours and 30% were watched te lev is ion up to 4

hours a day. Thus, they were found heavy and regular

v iewers. Most of the chi ldren spend qui te a lot of t ime

s i t t ing in f ront of te lev is ion screen watching var ious

programmes.

43

Thus, ch i ldren of 8 to 10 years o ld were found to be more

attracted towards te lev is ion ads and they watched them

with great interest but with the increasement in the age,

ch i ldren’s preferences sh i f ted towards te lev is ion

programmes.

Most of the chi ldren in a l l age groups watched the

te lev is ion ads with great . That means many audio-v isual

techniques in te lev is ion advert is ing were s imply a imed at

gain ing, and hold ing chi ldren’s attent ion, which impressed

them to purchase var ious products . Thus, te lev is ion

advert isements could real ly make a t remendous impact on

chi ldren. The r e sea r che r found ou t t he fo l l owing a spec t s :

1 ) Ch i ld r en o f 8 -12 yea r s o ld and t he i r pa r en t s we re wa t ched Pak i s t an

Te l ev i s i on TV r egu l a r l y . Mos t o f t he ma l e pa r en t l i ked t o wa t ch

a t l a t e n igh t bu t f ema le pa r en t l i ked t o wa t ch a t morn ing and

even ing and t he i r ch i l d r en l i ked t o wa t ch a t even ing . The pa ren t s ’

wa t ch ing span was 2 -3 hou r s bu t t he i r ch i l d r en ’ s wa t ch ing span

was 4 -5 hou r s da i l y .

2 ) Ch i ld r en l i ked t o wa t ch ch i l d r en shows /qu i z p rog rammes bu t t he i r

pa r en t s a l l owed t hem to wa t ch o f PTV fo r ge t t i ng i n fo rma t ion and

en t e r t a i nmen t a s we l l .

3 ) Ma le r e sponden t s f e l t t i r ednes s when t hey wa t ched PTV fo r more

t han 3 t o 4 hou r s bu t f ema le r e sponden t s go t bo red t ha t means

f ema le l i ked t o wa t ch more t han fou r hou r s .

44

4) Ma jo r i t y o f pa r en t s and ch i l d r en u sua l l y l i ked t o buy co ld -d r i nks bu t

some ch i l d r en a l so l i ked t o buy ch ip s t ype p roduc t s a s we l l . The

r e sea r che r f i nd ou t t ha t t he se p roduc t s i nc r ea se f a t s on t he body

e spec i a l l y i n ch i l d r en because t he age 8 -12 yea r s i s t he g rooming

age and t hey need p rope r and nu t r i t i on i s t d i e t f o r t he i r hea l t h .

5 ) Ch i ld r en ’ s a t t i t ude was changed i f t hey d id no t buy o r a l l ow them to

buy such ed ib l e s . They behaved agg re s s ive ly w i th t he i r e l de r s o r

pa r en t s .

6 ) The ch i l d r en t r i ed t o im i t a t e when t hey s aw ads , bu t some pa ren t s

r e sponded t ha t t hey f e l t some agg re s s ivenes s du r ing / a f t e r

wa t ch ing ads because adve r t i s e r showed supe r human ac t i ons .

7 ) Pa ren t s a lways bough t r e adymade food p roduc t s on t he i r ch i l d r en ’ s

demand because t hey we re we l l e a rned ( r e f e r t o g r aph no . 4 ) .

They fu l f i l l ed a l l demands o f t he i r ch i l d r en wha t eve r t hey

demanded fo r e a t i ng . Th i s e a t i ng hab i t c r ea t ed ea t i ng -d i so rde r i n

t he ch i l d r en o f 8 -12 yea r s o ld .

8 ) Ads o f PTV e f f ec t ed t he i r ch i l d r en ’ s d i e t because t he i r ch i l d r en

hav ing enough money t o buy such ed ib l e be long t o uppe r c l a s s

f ami l i e s ( r e f e r t o g r aph no .4 ) .

9 ) Ads o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on i nc r ea sed ea t i ng d i so rde r and dec rea sed

hea l t h o f ch i l d r en o f 8 -12 yea r s o ld .

5.2 CONCLUSION

Mos t ly ch i l d r en a r e add i c t ed t o v i ewing TV the i r ave rage o f v i ewing i s

more t hen 60% tha t means t hey a r e wa t ch ing TV more t hen f i ve hou r s

pe r day , t hey a r e heavy v i ewer s . Af t e r / du r ing wa t ch ing TV’s ads mos t

45

of t he ch i l d r en demand ing d r i nks i . e . coca -co l a , de s , Peps i t he se d r i nks

deve lops unhea l t hy hab i t s o f ch i l d r en . Some ch i l d r en ages o f 10 -12 a r e

t r y ing t o im i t a t e t he s ame ac t i on wh ich t hey s een du r ing t ha t ad s ,

wh i ch a r e dange rous fo r t he i r l i ve s .

The da t a o f t h i s r e sea r ch s t udy p roves t ha t f a t s i nc r ea sed i n t he body o f

peop l e e spec i a l l y i n ch i l d r en , i f t hey r egu l a r l y d r i nk t he se p roduc t s .

I nc r ea se s f a t i n t he body i s no t good s i gn because f a t c r ea t e s obes i t y

and hea r -d i s ea se s . Ch i l d r en a r e ove r we igh t a cco rd ing t o t he i r age and

he igh t because t hey a r e r egu l a r l y u se t he se co ld d r i nks and ea t i ng f r i ed

mea t s ou t s i de t he home wi th t he i r pa r en t s o r e l de r s .

Ch i l d r en hav ing l e s s we igh t a cco rd ing t o t he i r BMI i t ’ s due t o t he i r

e a t i ng d i so rde r . They t h ink t ha t i f we ea t and d r i nk more t han o the r we

have good musc l e s bu t t he i r s t omachs a r e no t d ige s t i ng t he such food

p rope r ly , so e a t i ng d i so rde r i nc r ea sed and a f t e r a coup l e o f mon ths

t he i r we igh t i s dec r ea s ing . Tha t i s on ly fo r t he i r e a t i ng d i so rde r . They

s een t ha t t he pe r fo rmer o f powde r -mi lk ads i s hea l t h i e r because s / he

d r i nk t ha t m i lk a f t e r t ha t t hey t r y ing t o buy and d r i nk t ha t power -mi lk

bu t t hey do no t know the ac tua l p i c tu r e .

5.3 RECOMMENDATIONS

Af te r conc lud ing t he r e su l t s o f t he da t a t he r e sea r che r g ive t he

fo l l owing r ecommenda t i ons :

i ) Po l i cymake r s need t o t ake s t eps t o be t t e r p ro t ec t ch i l d r en f rom

exposu re t o adve r t i s i ng because o f t he i nhe ren t un fa i rne s s o f

46

adve r t i s i ng t o aud i ences who l a ck t he capab i l i t y t o eva lua t e

wrong i n fo rma t ion i n t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng .

i i ) Pa ren t s shou ld a t t emp t t o r e s t r i c t t he i r ch i l d r en ’ s TV t ime .

i i i ) Teache r s and pa ren t s c an he lp ch i l d r en t o dec ide wha t t hey shou ld

wa t ch on TV.

iv ) Adu l t s shou ld l ook ou t f o r t h ings t he i r ch i l d r en do no t unde r s t and

on TV.

v ) Pa ren t s shou ld a l so keep an eye on any o the r nega t i ve e f f ec t s o f

wa t ch ing Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on on ch i l d r en ’ s hea l t h , e a t i ng -

d i so rde r and t he i r eye s i gh t p rob l ems .

v i ) Ch i ld r en shou ld be encou raged bo th i n t he i r s choo l s and a t home

t o d i s cus s t e l ev i s i on adve r t i s i ng .

v i i ) Pa ren t s /Teache r s shou ld he lp ch i l d r en t o l ook fo r p rog rammes

wh ich r e l evan t f o r t he i r hea l t h and ha s some pos i t i ve impac t s on

t he i r hea l t h o f Pak i s t an Te l ev i s i on .

47

Works Cited

Edger A. Shoaff.

http://thinkexist.com/quotation/advertising_is_the_art_making_whole_lies/

204323.html

Evra, Judith Van: Television and Child Development. (Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum

1990).

Kunkel, D., Wilson, B., Donnerstein, E., & Blumenthal, E.: Measuring Television Violence:

The importance of context. (Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media 1995).

Ibid.

Ibid

Namita Unnikrishnan, and Shailaja Pajpai: The Impact of Television Advertising on

Children. (Sage Publications India Private Limited, India 1996)

Namita Unnikrishnan, and Shailaja Pajpai: The Impact of Television Advertising on

Children. (Sage Publications India Private Limited, India 1996)

Neeru Kapoor: Television Advertising & Consumer Response. (Mittal Publication, New

Delhi, India 2003)

http://weightloss.about.com/od/obesityhealth/a/blwhatsbmi.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obesity

Shanahan James and Michael Morgan: Television and its Viewers: Cultivation Theory and

Research. (Cambridge University Press, UK1999)

Syed Abdul Siraj Advertising. Islamabad: Allama Iqbal Open University) 6-8

Microsoft ® Encarta ® Reference Library 2005. © 1993-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

William F. Arens. Contemporary Advertising (10 th Edition) . (McGraw-Hill Irwin, United

States 2006)

48