A University of Iowa professor and his son asked a series of questions of a group of seven-year-olds and one of their parents to gauge their interest in healthy food. Irwin Levin, a psychology professor at the University of Iowa, says parents seemed to be weighing whether their kids would refuse to eat some foods.
“I think the most unusual finding of that study was that the parents — even though they were for health foods for their kids — they were less inclined to opt for healthy foods for their kids and for themselves, sort of thinking, ‘Hmm, you know, if we get just what we want for the kids, they won’t eat it anyway,’” Levin says.
Levin and his son, who is a marketing professor at Northern Kentucky University, showed picture-cards to a group of 43 seven-year-old children and one of their parents — usually the mother. The study found a high level of brand loyalty among the parents, and the kids.
“Brand names have a powerful effect,” Levin says. “It’s not surprising with adults, but it’s more surprising with children.”
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