Navigating the treacherous waters of the web while surfing the internet has many inherent dangers. Disregarding phishing schemes, downloadable viruses, spyware, the scary tracking information websites use to trace your preferences and target ads to you; one of the scariest aspects of the internet (formerly known as the World Wide Web) is misinformation.
When I taught both undergraduate research classes and 8th grade English Language Arts, I hit the topic of reliable information very hard. Even without my mellifluous voice-over teaching to this presentation, I'll bet you can still get the gist of what I was driving at with my middle schoolers. (You can also take a look at a similar post "Fact or Fable")
There's a term called "click bait". That is when a website uses a grandiose headline to encourage you to click on the link to another article. Considering I put links to my own previous publishing within posts on my blog, can I really say this is bad? Yes. Yes, I can. Because the intent is different. When an author or website owner sends to you another post or page on their website to read actual content, that's o.k. But the more scintillating the headline, the more likely it is that people will click over to it... and that's when advertisers step in. And that's where it gets really scary.
Advertising has rooted itself in psychology and it often works by manipulating your emotions, your self-identity, and your worldview. Take a look at this infographic for a quick overview of how marketing targets different areas...
The Sneaky Psychology of Advertising
... scary isn't it?
The American Psychological Association (of the dreaded APA citation fame) published the article "Advertising as Science" in 2002, now available online, which discusses the roots of psychology use in advertising. It covers the first commercially successful book about the subject but also discusses how psychological principles can be used to target messages successfully.
An even scarier thought, for me as a parent at least, is the often unrestricted access children have to advertisements while they watch shows. The APA did an entire task force report regarding "Advertising and Children" and the implications are chilling, especially considering that this task force report was developed in 2004 before personal WiFi devices were such a common occurence in youngsters hands. With the advent of cable television and now the internet, an entirely new demographic opened up for companies who previously only had adults as their intended audience.
What can we do?
Well, for starters, we can turn our skepticism up every time we see an ad. From a click bait "lose weight fast" to the next coolest cleaning invention, stop and think:
1. Is this a real problem they are addressing or are they making one up for the 'solution' they want to sell?
2. What is this aimed at making me feel?
Secondly, make sure you watch ads or look at them on the computer with your kids and talk about those two questions. Help them identify if the article is making them feel jealous that they don't have the next best thing. Or let them know the way it's phrased makes you feel insecure.
You can also do simple research. Google is a powerful tool when it comes to debunking advertising claims. Run a search for the 'the item reviews'. Look for good and bad reviews. If it's on Amazon, check the stars and read the highest and lowest ratings to see if the claims are true.
The truth of the matter is, we can live without a lot of the things we see advertised and we can change our own habits when it comes to falling for outrageous claims. Identify the psychological method used and enjoy your healthy dose of skepticism and do your research.
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