Abstract
It has been traditionally estimated that children begin to understand the persuasive intent of advertising at about the age of 8 which is when they acquire the skills of adult consumers. The ability to identify and interpret the persuasive content that minors are exposed to via mobile phones was analyzed through semi-structured interviews of children aged 10 to 14 years along with their parents in 20 households. Although minors seem to be able to recognize the persuasive intent of advertising, this does not necessarily mean that they have a deep understanding of the new digital formats that combine persuasion and entertainment. Data analysis of the interviews shows low recognition of the persuasive intent of commercial messages that are not explicitly identified as such, particularly on social networks. Data collected after minors viewing of different examples allowed researchers to conclude that standardized advertising is mainly identified by its format. Three levels of advertising processing were detected in minors: the liking of the advertisement, the affinity for the advertised product, and the ability to contrast the claims with searches for comments, forums or opinions of influencers. Recent research verified that conceptual knowledge of the persuasive intention of the advertising does not suffice for minors to interpret the message, a fact that must be taken into account when developing advertising literacy. For parents, the amount of time spent on these devices and the type of use minors make of their cellphones or the relationships they establish on them are more relevant than exposure to advertising itself.
Highlights
Mobile phones are widely present in Western societies
Recognition of the advertising phenomenon: Children explained what they understood by advertis‐ ing, what their opinion of advertising was, what char‐ acteristics they associated with advertising, and what level of attention they paid to advertising or what degree of realism they assigned to advertising
The following elements of conceptual advertising liter‐ acy (Rozendaal et al, 2011) were expressed by children: (a) recognition of advertising; (b) understanding of sell‐ ing intent; (c) recognition of advertising source; (d) iden‐ tification of the target audience; (e) understanding of persuasive intent; (f) understanding of persuasive tac‐ tics; and (g) the advertising bias, but in variable degrees depending on their experience as consumers and mobile phone ownership
Summary
Mobile phones are widely present in Western societies. The improvement of mobile internet connection has turned this personal screen into the main point of access, communication, and consumption of digital content for many users (IAB Spain, 2021), including minors. Among Chilean children aged 10 to 13, the penetration of mobile phones is over 80% (Cabello et al, 2020; VTR, 2019). The personal nature of mobiles and their ubiquitous presence (Ohme et al, 2020) gave rise to a relation‐. The massive spread of cell phone use and its impact on consumption habits and lifestyles of internet users have transformed this device into an advertising medium. According to Statista (2019), in 2022 advertising expenditure for mobile media will outpace desktop expenditure
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