Games Involving Candy Stimulate Kids' Appetites (www.ru.nl) 43
An anonymous reader writes: Most of us are aware by now of the myriad internet games created not for their own sake, but as a marketing tool for another product. But we're not the target audience for these games — kids are. New research out of Radboud University found that two-thirds of all kids around primary school age play one of these games at least once a week, and almost none of them are aware that they're advertisements (abstract). Worse, the game-ads are really effective. "..shortly after playing a game with an embedded food advertisement, children ate 55% more of the candy offered to them than children who had played a game with an embedded toy advertisement." The researchers further add that "it does not matter whether the games are about candy or fruit: children eat more candy after playing a game involving food."
Duh! (Score:2)
Show a kid yummy junk food and candy, kid wants to eat yummy junk food and candy
Marketers will shamelessly and consciencelessly sell whatever they want to sell
Nothing to see here, move along, move along..
Adults offering candy to children. hmm (Score:2)
Who gives candy to children at school? What are they training these kids for?
I hate to do the "when I was a kid", but no one gave us candy in school, and we only got it at home rarely, such as for Halloween and major holidays.
When I wanted candy, I had to earn money and go buy it.
Maybe these kids should go get a job instead of sitting around, playing games and eating candy.
When I was a kid, all we had to play with was fire. And we were glad to have it.
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What's odd is that they seem surprised that the kids ate the candy at a greater rate after playing a game involving food. I bet I'd be horny after playing a game that involved naked chicks. I'd probably screw 55% more women offered to me immediately after playing such a game and damned if I care if it was an ad. Yes, we're influenced by pictures. This is valuable research, how?
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You shouldn't assume anything. I demand that a proper empirical study be done to test your hypothesis, and the sooner the better.
In the name of science, of course.
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Heh... Not all of us. I actually have a girlfriend again. She's even attractive and young. She's not even from Canada and some people *do* know her. To make it even more odd. I did used to date a chick who has a Slashdot account of her own.
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Absolutely! For science! We just need hookers and a video game with naked chicks in it. And lots and lots of empirical evidence. This study could take years!
I think we should get NOW to fund it. This way they can prove video games with sex make men horny. They can then use that evidence to apply for laws and post the results proudly on their website. I'll do some of the research work for free but I'm going to need a whole lot of well paid research assistants. I know I can count on you!
I should also see what
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This research is required because it substantiates the manipulation of minors by major corporations to enhance their profits at the expense of the health of those minors. You require empirical research in order to apply legislative penalties to kerb and block this activity and in order to ensure the user, or as in this case, the abuser pays. Likely smart move large tax on candy, this because candy is already priced as high as it can be and any increase in price reduces profits while reducing demand, so the
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apply legislative penalties to kerb and block this activity
kerb = stone edging of a pavement. (British English)
curb = to control or limit something (Any English)
Another homonym that (affects/effects) (our/hour) (already/all ready) (two/too/to) complex English language.
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I'm pretty sure we already had evidence of that. We used said evidence when we made Camel get rid of Joe Cool.
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This research is required because it substantiates ...
That's a good point. It is better that the people who write laws have some actual research done to support their decisions rather than going with "what is obvious".
And I'm sure you're right in that it gives them a way to oppose the PR-B$ machine's representatives.
I once had to work with a state legislator, and that was a point he made. He said, people are going to come after me if I support this, and I really need something to show them that's more than "I want to".
He went on to say that you would be surpri
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Why would you leave such low-hanging fruit? *sighs* Now, normally I'd never say such things and I'm sure your mother's a saint but...
You're right, I guess... Your mom doesn't actually count for anything at all.
Sheesh...
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Some schools had "tuck shops" run by the prefects (selling crisp and sweets like "refreshers" or "soft mints", or "bun queues" which sold donuts and warmed up sausage rolls. There was always a newsagents nearby outside which sold just about every sweet and snack available.
In the college I went to, there was a vending machine selling crisps, bicuits, soft drinks at the end of every corridor and in every public seating area.
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Who gives candy to children at school? What are they training these kids for?
Better yet is the implicit "we let the children eat all the candy they wanted until they stopped of their own accord". I'm very glad that my children do not go to that school.
Pre-defined outcome of the study (Score:2)
So you gave them a game that showed food and let them play for a while, then put a bowl of candy in front of them ... and they ate the candy ...
So ... just curious, have you ever put a bowl of candy in front of a kid and they DIDN'T EAT IT?
Yea, thats what I thought. Kids eat candy when given the opportunity, film at 11, big break through in child psychology!@$!@$!@$
You could have saved yourself the study and just asked any parent. Of course, these are the people who will immediately tell me how to raise m
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So ... just curious, have you ever put a bowl of candy in front of a kid and they DIDN'T EAT IT?
Umm, it even addresses this point in the summary, never mind the article; ..shortly after playing a game with an embedded food advertisement, children ate 55% more of the candy offered to them than children who had played a game with an embedded toy advertisement."
So yeah, the kids who didn't play a food-related game actually did eat a lot less candy. 'Fraid it's not the study which is looking retarded.
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I think we're looking at this wrong. What we *should* be doing is getting funding so that we can perform stupid ass studies that confirm the obvious and were probably already confirmed results from miles of other data points that didn't necessitate feeding candy to children and subjecting them to ads.
We should do a study on the ease and effectiveness of removing sweets from very young children who've not yet reached the age where they're considered toddlers. I wonder who we can get to pay for that.
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> So ... just curious, have you ever put a bowl of candy in front of a kid and they DIDN'T EAT IT?
Well, the researchers did. That's the whole point- the candy viewed increased the candy consumed.
In other news... (Score:2)
In other news, watching cooking shows makes you hungry. What a scandal!
incomplete information . (Score:5, Funny)
"... ate 55% more of the candy offered to them than children who had played a game with an embedded toy advertisement."
But how many ate the toys?
So the headline is misleading, then? (Score:2)
Games Involving Candy Stimulate Kids' Appetites
it does not matter whether the games are about candy or fruit: children eat more candy after playing a game involving food
So while the headline is technically correct (not always the best kind of correct), it's not the whole story. Games with food ads increase appetite. Games about fruit increase appetite.
Obvious answer: offer kids fruit instead of candy.
Broccoli games (Score:1)