The Influence of Mass-Media on Children's Emotion

Cha, Kee-Soo(Major in Art Education Graduate School of Korean National University of Education Chung-Buk, KOREA)

In this study, the influence of advertisement in media on children's emotion was analytically studied. The children's reactions were analyzed by survey and the example of advertisement in television were analyzed in the view of emotion. The aim of this study is to induce advertisers and program producers to make educational advertisements which can contribute children's sound developments and growth, and to provide the elemental resources to use of advertisements educationally.

The details of this study is like these, first, to analyze the children's general reaction of advertisements in media, second, to investigate the influence on advertisements as a provider of knowledges and informations, third, to investigate the mechanism of induction to children's development of emotion by advertisement, fourth, to search the function of participate the development of society.

To investigate of this study, elementary school 997 students were selected randomly, and questioned by sheets. To investigate the examples of advertisements on television, the advertisements on television were studied which televised from September 1st to September 5th, 1997.

From the summary of analytical investigation, children watch television usually 2-3hours a day including holidays, therefore spend their spare hours mainly on television. Watching television, one of the most interesting were expression in advertisements and behaviors by models. Also they consider advertisements as the most effective method to transfer the information of new items. Even they place confidence on advertisements, but don't believe on advertisements thoroughly. From this, they believed to have some disapproval of exaggerated and untruthful advertisements.

As a result of study on advertisements as a function of providing information and knowledge, advertisements transfer pretty amount of information and knowledge, and children seem to rely on advertisements in purchasing.

As a result of study on the mechanism of induction to children's development of emotion by advertisement, advertisements in television have some entertainmental function. Watching the scene of journey, climbing, and hiking, children are willing to do those as a hobby and a leisure. Sometimes they impressed by advertisements which contain enlightenments of environmentalism, discipline, good conduct, and filial piety.

The advertisements in television contain information and common sense which required in life, knowledge of health and sanitation, information of science and techniques. The advertisements have function of enlargement indirect experience of arts and culture.

But in the study on the mechanism of induction to children's development of emotion by advertisement, the advertisements in television stimulate children to take their interest, therefore children confused by stimulus who cannot discriminate between real life and advertisements. For children being educated by repetitious advertisements, society and their parents have to have a sense of responsibility. Producers have to provide the mental abundance, not the material abundance.

Children are willing to purchase the advertised item, but the advertisement in television are not influenced by reliability of quality.

Advertisement in television promote manufacturers in technical developments and social advance. Also it can persuade consumers to buy the items of technical innovation, therefore it can pursuit comfort and convenience of consumers.

* A thesis submitted to the Committee of the Graduate School of Korea National University of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Education in February, 1998.