In modern countries, the phenomenon of commercialism and materialism seems to have roots in many different aspects of life. In England for example, most children – mainly from affluent families, trapped in materialism, so that the symptoms were feared damaging their mental condition.
As revealed by GfK NOP survey recently, about 89 percent of adults in Britain believe that children in today’s more materialistic than previous age children. Polls involving 1225 adults this is one of the major research on children held in the UK.
According to the Children’s Society, one of the largest NGOs in the British child, that suggest the research, adults should be responsible for the phenomenon of increasing materialism among children.
An important question emerging from this research is whether childhood should be a time where the mind can be developed and free of sales techniques. Accusing the children into materialistic culture like this is irresponsible.
Materialism itself is known as an ideology or system of thought that believes the material as the only absolute existence and denies the existence of anything but matter. In Britain, market or market products to children estimated to be worth 30 billion pounds.
Meanwhile, chief executive of the National School Partnership, Mark Fawcett, another view about materialism. He believes, people will not be able to protect children from the real world.
“We must live within the current communications era where children can see the information that was so swift. We must use our assessments, and an as an industry, make sure that we work with children and families and not exploit them, ° said Fawcett.
The findings about the lifestyle of this commercial is part of the six series of studies published Children’s Society to investigate the problem of children in the UK. This research was also supported by the views of academics, religious leaders, community, teachers, local government and the writer.
Dr Rowan Williams, who led the investigation said child should be encouraged to assess themselves, to assess who they are as people instead of what they have. Introducing lifestyles to children creates a culture of competition material and trigger a greedy individual who caused the loss of the principle of community and cooperation.
Meanwhile one member research panel, Emeritus Professor Philip Graham, of the Institute of Child Health Child Psychiatrists of London warned that the pressures of commercialism on children can cause adverse psychological effects.
One of the most prominent factor in improving mental health problems are increasing children and adolescents who are attached to goods, fashion or the latest clothes or electronic goods. Evidence in the U.S. and the UK indicate that they are affected by the pressures of commercialism also showed average psychiatric problems, ° said Graham.
GfK NOP survey itself shows, the majority (90%) British adults thought that advertising on children’s products during the Christmas cause parents pressured to spend beyond his limits. Six percent of respondents said they believed that self-esteem of children and adolescents damaged by negative images of their age group in the media.
In the survey, most women (63%) tend to think the media was partly responsible for the phenomenon of mental damage to children. While only 56 percent male.
As many as 69 percent of respondents also thought violent video games makes children more aggressive. The majority of adults agree that the government should ban advertising of unhealthy foods.
This research represents the fourth stage of a series of studies of children. Previous research on friends, family and learning. The first study, published in June 2007 showed an adult anxieties about the modern world has limited the freedom of children to play with his friends.