I need re-writing help
| Sex | Approximate Age | Approximate Social Class | Initiation of Selected Cereal Child VS. Parent | Strategies Used by Children to Influence Selection | Parents’ Response to Child’s Request | First Suggestion That was Ultimately Chosen | |
| Interaction #1 | Female | Middle | Child | Request | Accepting | Child | |
| Interaction #2 | Female | Middle | Child | Request | Accepting | Child | |
| Interaction #3 | Male | Middle | Parent | None | None | Parent | |
| Interaction #4 | Male | Upper | Parent | Negotiation | Accepting | Child | |
| Interaction #5 | Male | Poverty | Parent | Temper Tantrum | Refusing/ ignored | Parent | |
| Interaction #6 | Female | Middle | Child | Request | Accepting | Child | |
| Interaction #7 | Male | Poverty | Parent | Accepting | Accepting | Parent | |
| Interaction #8 | Female | Upper | Child | Request | Accepting | Child | |
| Interaction #9 | Female | Middle | Child | Temper Tantrum | Refusing | Parent | |
| Interaction #10 | Male | Poverty | Child | Request | Refusing | Parent |
After observing 10 different parent-child interactions in the cereal aisle across numerous grocery stores, it can be concluded that children can play quite a big role in family purchases of cereal. The type of grocery store proved irrelevant to the results as I observed transactions between parents and children in Publix, Walmart and Target. According to the data collected, there is a correlation between the social class of the family and the ultimate outcome of the cereal chosen. There was a total of 5 middle class families that discussed the outcome of cereal selection. Of the 5 interactions that I witnessed 3 of the cereals chosen were successfully done so by the child. Each time the child simply requested the cereal they wished and the parent obliged without issue. The data also shows that each successful purchase by children in middle class families was done so by females. Showing that there is a stronger correlation for parents to trust and accept female children’s decisions than males. This analysis is backed up on a larger scale as, regardless of their social class, 4 of the 5 successful children were female.
It appears that all children that were perceived to be in the poverty sector do not have much of an influence over their parents when it comes to the type of cereal chosen. The parent overruled the child’s request or simply chose the cereal for the child without any form of negotiation. It is assumed that given their social background, the parent opted towards the cheaper or non-named brand of cereal to save on expenses. Most of these children gave the parents a hard time and did not quite understand the reasoning why they were unable to choose the cereal that was most appealing to them. Most parents did not give a reason as to why the child was unable to pick a given type of cereal meaning that the child never learnt from the interaction and is likely to attempt the same process the next time they go shopping. The parents that did give an explanation were able to relate to their children much better and avoid causing a scene in the store as the child could at least somewhat comprehend the mindset of the parent.
The psychology side played a big role in the decision-making process as children picked their cereal based on placement of the box, the colors, cartoon characters, their previous experience with the cereal and their hunger level in the moment of interaction. The marketing implications of these results show that cereal should be marketed at the lowest level on the shelf so that children are at eye-level or lower. During these ten observations, not a single child looked higher than their eye level meaning that any cereal marketed in this sector was irrelevant from the perspective of the child.
