Naomi Thesis 28 Januari 2017.Pages
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Running head: FOOD PORTRAYALS IN CHILDREN TELEVISION PROGRAMS ! Food Portrayals in Children Television Programs: The Difference Between Programs Broadcast on Public and a Commercial Network in The Netherlands Naomi R. Abigail Garfinkel 10198156 Master’s Thesis Graduate School of Communication Master’s program Communication Science Sindy Sumter 03-02-2017 FOOD PORTRAYALS IN CHILDREN TELEVISION PROGRAMS !2 Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the nutritional content of foods depicted in children’s entertainment television (CETV) programs aimed at children aged 6 to 12 years shown on a public and commercial network in the Netherlands. Four episodes of twelve programs, in the genre fictional, situational comedies or dramas (N=52) were rated, totalling 10 hours and 17 minutes. The aim of the study was two fold; the first aim was to map the nutritional content of CETV programs, and the second aim was methodological, i.e. comparing two methods of coding. The method of Radnitz et al. (2009) and Olafsdottir and Berg (2016) were compared. The Olafsdottir Method is recommended as it is more objective and provides more detailed information. The current study showed that for one hour of children’s programming, on average 7.3 times a food is portrayed. For the Radnitz Method the following results were found: on average half of the food portrayed in CETV programs are considered to be unhealthy, and the public network significantly shows more unhealthy foods (67%) than the commercial network (44%). According to the Olafsdottir Method, 27% of food portrayals are fruit and vegetables (considered healthy) and 25% high-calorie low-nutrient (HCLN) foods (considered unhealthy). No significant difference between the public and commercial network was found in the amount of fruit and vegetables and HCLN foods. More than a quarter of the foods (27%) shown on CETV programs are consumed by characters, and significantly more HCLN foods than fruit and vegetables are consumed on the commercial network. The two methods lead to different outcomes in the prevalence of unhealthy food and consumption by characters. Based on the findings of this study, future research should look at the effects of unhealthy food portrayals on children. Keywords: food portrayals, children television, unhealthy FOOD PORTRAYALS IN CHILDREN TELEVISION PROGRAMS !3 Food Portrayals in Children Television Programs: The Difference Between Programs Broadcasted on a Public and Commercial Network in The Netherlands What do children learn about nutrition from television programs? Research has looked into violent, or sexual content in children’s entertainment media (e.g. Ward, 1995; Anderson & Bushman, 2002), but few studies have looked at the foods depicted in children’s television programs, even though the World Health Organisation called childhood obesity “one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century” (http://www.who.int). In search for possible explanations for the world-wide obesity trend, research has looked at the possible influence of television viewing. Those studies have shown that there is a positive association between television viewing and obesity in children and adolescents (Dietz & Gortmaker, 1985; Boone, Gorden-Larsen, Adair, & Popkin, 2007; Henderson, 2007). Moreover, other studies showed that children’s television viewing is associated with unhealthier perceptions of nutrition and leads to unhealthier eating behaviours (Signorielli & Staples, 1997; Dixon, Scully, Wakefield, White, & Crawford, 2007; Harrison, 2005; Harris & Bargh, 2009). This study will look at the foods portrayed in children’s entertainment programs on Dutch television, since food advertising directed at children under 13 years old is not permitted (Reclamecode voor Voedingsmiddelen, 2015). Previous studies from the United States have shown food references are pervasive in children’s entertainment programming and that more unhealthy than healthy foods are shown, especially in children’s compared to adult television programming (e.g. Byrd-Bredbenner, Grasso, & Finckenor, 2001; Greenberg, Rosean, Worrell, Salmon, & Volkman, 2009; Radnitz, Byrne, Goldman, Sparks, Gantshar, & Tung, 2009). As children learn from observing the people around them and learn social norms (Bandura, 1986), foods depicted in entertainment media might play a role in reinforcing and normalising unhealthy eating behaviour. FOOD PORTRAYALS IN CHILDREN TELEVISION PROGRAMS !4 It is important to look at how children develop their food preferences and acquire nutritional knowledge, since this has a long-lasting effect on their diet (Harris & Bargh, 2009) and food preferences established in childhood and adolescence are likely to persist into adulthood (Mikkilä, Räsänen, Raitakari, Pietinen, & Viikari, 2004). Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine the nature and extent of verbal and visual appearance of foods shown in children’s programs on Dutch television, employing a content analysis to analyse the frequency and type of foods shown, and comparing programs on a public funded and commercial network. First, a theoretical background will be provided in order to understand how children may acquire nutritional knowledge from entertainment programs, which explains why it is important to not only look at food advertising but also media entertainment. Second, we will review the existing literature on food portrayals in children’s entertainment television (CETV) programs as it provides important insights, namely that food portrayals are pervasive in CETV programs. However, there are also several gaps that remain to be filled; the studies are outdated as the most recent data is from 2011 (Olafsdottir & Berg, 2016), non-representative of the viewing behaviour of children aged 6-12 years old, and no previous study has been conducted in the Netherlands. This study aims to fills these gaps in the current literature. Television characters as role models According to the Social Cognitive Theory, people learn and model behaviour based on observing others and learn social norms from both positive and negative role models on television (Bandura, 1986). Children learn food preferences by observing the food behaviours of the people around them such as their parents and peers (Patrick & Nicklas, 2005), a process which is called Social Modelling (Birch & Davidson, 2001). For example, parents can encourage their child to eat disliked vegetables (Holley, Haycraft, & Farrow, 2015). And children can overcome their fear of unknown foods by watching peers eat the particular food (Laureati, Bergamaschi, & Pagliarini, 2014). Moreover, children use others’ food intake as a guideline for their own intake, and positive FOOD PORTRAYALS IN CHILDREN TELEVISION PROGRAMS !5 and negative emotions especially lead children to adjustment their food intake to a peer (Bevelander, Meiselman, Anschütz, & Engels, 2013). Just as children look at parents and peers eating behaviours, television characters in children’s programs may teach viewers certain behaviour as well (Bandura, 2001). When children frequently see a television character, the viewer can start to share the characters’ perspective and participate in the experiences of the television character, a process called para-social relationship (Feilitzen & Linne, 1975). This process can stimulate children to copy the behaviour of television characters, especially those of their favourite programs. Children can also develop a wishful- identification with a television characters, which is the desire to be like and behave similar to that of the television character, and consider them to be role models and pseudo-friends (Feilitzen & Linne, 1975; Hoffner & Cantor, 199; Giles, 2002). The wishful-identification of para-social relationships that children form with television characters mediates Bandura’s socialisation process (1986) which states that people learn by observing other people’s behaviour. Therefore, this study looks at the foods portrayed on CETV programs rather than advertising where para-social relationships are less expected. And as children model the behaviour of television characters, this study looks not only at the presence of food, but also looks at the food consumption by characters, since these are both part of the embedded messages in television programs. Embedded messages in entertainment programming Since the 1980s there has been some concern about indirect health messages embedded into entertainment programs and scholars noted that more attention should be given to embedded messages in entertainment programming (Hamburg & Pierce,1982) since they are “the most pervasive sources of information on health” (Gerbner, et al., 1982, p. 298). Since then, fourteen studies have looked at food references in television programming, in chronological order; Kaufman, 1980; Way, 1983; Gerbner, Morgan, & Signorielli, 1982; Story & Faulkner, 1990; Larson, 1991; FOOD PORTRAYALS IN CHILDREN TELEVISION PROGRAMS !6 Byrd-Bredbenner, Grasso, & Finckenor, 2001*; Korr, 2008; Greenberg, Rosean, Worrell, Salmon, & Volkman, 2009*; Radnitz, et al., 2009*; Speers, Harris, & Schwartz, 2011; Roseman, Poor, & Stepherson, 2014; Scully, Reid, Macken, Healy, & Saunders, 2015*; Eisenberg, Larson, Gollust, & Neumark-Sztainer; 2016*; Olafsdottir, & Berg, 2016*. The six studies that looked at food portrayals in children’s television programs are indicated with an asterisk (*). These studies have provided three important insights, namely that: 1) food portrayals are pervasive in children’s television programs,