As parents become busier, more decisions about the purchase of household goods are being formally and informally delegated to their children. Children are asked to pick up items for meals or other household needs, and children are accompanying parents on quick stops at the store on the way home from childcare or school. Television is one key reason for this attitude. The average family owns 2 to 3 sets. Not surprisingly, television occupies the biggest piece of an American child's waking life.
Advertisers often link their products with positive emotions like happiness.
When children watch advertising, they tend to associate their own happiness with the product being sold. Since the people seen in advertising are usually placed in settings that indicate wealth and material success, it is easy to imagine how children develop the idea that having money is extremely important to their happiness. It is not the responsibility of kids to set boundaries and limits for themselves. That's our role as adults. Kids hear many messages telling them to buy more, do it earlier and enjoy it all now.