| The use of ultrasonic dispersal devices — such as the Mosquito, which is audible only to those under a certain age — is a sad example of an indiscriminate and knee-jerk response to a perceived problem with young people, the Archbishop of Canterbury said this week.
Dr Williams was commenting in The Guardian on the latest results from the Children’s Society’s Good Childhood Inquiry. They focus on lifestyle, and were published this week as the fourth part of the Inquiry (News, 14 September). They describe how children and young people are bombarded by advertising, leaving them disappointed and wanting more, as most campaigns rely “on selling an unattainable dream”.
The research is backed by a survey of adults, commissioned by the charity. This poll suggests that commercialisation is damaging to children: more than 60 per cent of adults said that certain forms of advertising should be banned, and nearly 90 per cent thought that children were more materialistic than those in previous generations.
In a foreword to the report, the chief executive of the Children’s Society, Bob Reitemeier, writes: “The growth in consumerism has coincided with a measured decline of shared beliefs, of ideology and faith
. . . Perhaps the dreams we should be encouraging our children to follow are about the good life well lived and based on values which help unite us rather than emphasise individualism.”
The Inquiry takes into account views from more than 2000 children, including a website vote. It suggests that commercial pressures — particularly the need to have the latest fashions and electronic equipment — could be contributing to the rise in mental-health problems among young people.
Dr Williams, who is a patron of the Inquiry, said in a separate statement: “Children should be encouraged to value themselves for who they are as people rather than what they own. The selling of lifestyles to children creates a culture of material competitiveness and promotes acquisitive individualism at the expense of the principles of community and co-operation.”
Mr Reitemeier said it was a challenge to adults to take responsibility for the current level of marketing to children. “To accuse children of being materialistic in such a culture is a cop-out. Unless we question our own behaviour as a society, we risk creating a generation who are left unfulfilled through chasing unattainable lifestyles.”
www.goodchildhood.org.uk
Comment
|
back to News
previous story
|
next story 
