Mothers' Communication Orientation and Consumer-Socialization Tendencies

Abstract

This study examines parent-child communication patterns and mothers' consumer-socialization tendencies. Results indicate mothers' concept-orientations are related to number of goals, discussing adlieTtising, cooiewing, coshopping, childrens influence, yielding, and granting children consumer independence. In contrast, socio-orientations are related to limits on children's TV exposure and refusing requests.Following charges by consumer groups about effects of marketing activities (especially TV advertising) on children, many consumer-socialization studies were conducted to learn how children acquire consumer knowledge, or to provide data to help formulate more effective corporate and public policy (Ward 1974). This research has primarily focused on children's responses to influence attempts by various consumer-socialization agents, but has given less attention to variations in mothers' socialization tendencies, i.e., orientations and behaviors with regard to children's consumer socialization (exceptions include Carlson and Grossbart 1988;Moschis 1985). To provide more insight into mothers' roles, this study focuses on mothers as socialization agents. As a part of a larger investigation (Carlson 1985; cf. Carlson and Grossbart 1988), this research examines relationships between mother-child communication patterns and mothers' goals for children's consumer socialization, efforts to mediate effects of media exposure, interaction with children, and responses to requests.This research makes two contributions. First, communication-pattern research in consumer behavior has relied on responses from children [typically adolescents; in two studies Foxman, Tansuhaj andEkstrom (1989) did ask adolescents about parents' communication patterns and parents about children's consumer roles in the family]. This study broadens communication-pattern research by investigating the maternal view of parent-child communications with younger children (grades K-6). Second, it examines a number of specific-consumer socialization tendencies which have not been studied in a consumer communication-pattern context, and demonstrates their connections to mothers' general consumer-communication behavior. BackgroundInvestigators have used general socialization research to develop theoretical frameworks that identify two major classes of influence in the consumer-socialization process: environmental and cognitive factors (Moschis and Moore 1979;Roedder, Roedder, and Whitney, Jr. 1986;Ward, Wackman, and Wartella 1977b). Environmental factors include socialization agents such as family members, peers, and mass media. Cognitive factors, generally considered age-related abilities, are often interpreted from Piaget's perspective on children's relative stages of development. ©]oumal of AdlieTtising

Adolescents' perceptions of family communication patterns and some aspects of their consumer socialization

“…Past research has also uncovered connections between mother-child communication patterns and mothers' socialization practices such as mediation of children's media use, co-shopping, and yielding to requests as well as granting purchasing independence and consideration of children's opinions (Carlson, Grossbart, & Walsh, 1990;Rose, Bush, & Shoham, 2002).…”

“…One aspect of consumer socialization that has attracted considerable research involves the issues of parent-child interactions (Carlson & Grossbart, 1988;Carlson, Grossbart, & Stuenkel, 1992;Mandrik, Fern, & Bao, 2005;Moschis, Moore, & Smith, 1984;Rose, Boush, & Shoham, 2002). Acknowledging the critical role parents play in children's consumer socialization, these studies focus on how parent-child interaction styles and orientations are linked to parents' socialization practices and children's consumer behavior, including their consumption/purchase autonomy, influence and participation in family purchase processes, use of market information, and attitudes toward advertising.Two aspects of parent-child interactions have emerged prominently in past research on child development and consumer socialization, namely, parenting style (Carlson, Grossbart, & Stuenkel, 1992;Carlson & Grossbart, 1988;Darling & Steinberg, 1993;Rose, 1999;Steinberg et al, 1991) and family communication patterns (FCP) (Carlson, Grossbart, & Walsh, 1990;Carlson, Grossbart, & Stuenkel, 1992;Moschis, 1985;Rose, Boush, & Shoham, 2002;Rose, Bush, & Kahle, 1998). The present study provides a focus on the latter.…”

“…This study investigates the influence of each of these two dimensions of FCP on children's influence in family purchase decisions (Jenkins, 1979;Kim & Lee, 1997; and consumer decision-making styles (Mallalieu & Palan, 2006;Shim, 1996;Sproles & Kendall, 1986). Past research has documented significant mediating effects of parent-child communication on various socialization outcomes, including children's influence in family decisions (Carlson, Grossbart, & Walsh, 1990;Rose, Boush, & Shoham, 2002 decision-making styles has not been investigated. In a departure from the typical past approaches, which tended to include only mothers' communication orientations as antecedents to children's consumer socialization, this study incorporates the communication orientations of both parents as assessed by adolescent children.…”

The influence of parents versus peers on Generation Y Internet ethical attitudes

“…This is similar to concept-oriented communications (Moore and Moschis 1981;Moschis 1985), where debate through open discussion of ethical issues is encouraged and furthers children's own critical thinking about online issues (Carlson et al 1990, Laczniak et al 1995. For example, research has shown that teens' discussion with their parents leads to higher levels of privacy concern (Youn 2008).…”

Az intézményi bizalom mint a versenyelőny fogyasztói forrása – a pénzügyi szolgáltatások piacáról szóló, egyetemisták és szüleik körében végzett kutatás eredményei

“…A gyerek fogyasztói szocializációjára tekintettel fontosabb szerepe van a kommunikáció módjának, mint az interakció gyakoriságának és mennyiségének (Carlson et al, 1990;Moschis -Moore, 1979;Moschis et al, 1984;Moschis et al, 1986). A családi kommunikációs mintáza-tok skála (family communication patterns scale) fogyasztói magatartásra adaptált verzióját is létrehozták (Moschis -Moore, 1979), és számos fogyasztói magatartást érintő kutatásban találkozhatunk vele (Caruana -Vassallo, 2003;Kim et al, 2009;Clarke, 2008).…”