Examining the effects of addressable TV advertising on children and their parents

This study simultaneously examines children’s (aged 7–12) and their parents’ responses to a television ad designed to directly target, address, and influence the child. Employing a between-matched subjects experimental design, results from a path analysis indicate that (1) children perceive a heightened connection to addressable TV advertising, (2) they are more likely to make purchase request as a result of this connection, indicating that they are more susceptible to addressable TV advertising than their parents perceive them to be since (3) parents do not think it exerts a greater influence on their children than advertising generally. Further, (4) parents’ perceptions of their child’s advertising susceptibility influences their anticipation of a purchase request and (5) that anticipation positively influences their purchase intentions. Parents also anticipate purchase requests (6) as a direct result of their child’s exposure to the addressable ad. However, (7) the level of parents’ purchase request anticipation does not have an associative connection with the child’s own purchase request intentions. Theoretical, practical, and societal implications are discussed; and areas for future research are suggested.