Can Young Children Understand Disclaimers in Television Commercials?

Abstract

Abstract A “disclaimer” is a disclosure made with the purpose of clarifying potentially misleading or deceptive statements made within an advertisement. Preschoolers were exposed to a television commercial containing one of three different disclaimers. Results indicate that preschoolers' verbal responses relative to disclaimers appear to be directly related to age. Regarding nonverbal responses, three-year-olds performed better than four- and five-year-olds in two out of three treatments. Based on these findings, advertisers may wish to reconsider the effectiveness of disclaimers aimed at preschool age children.