Evaluative and Descriptive Media Ratings and the Forbidden Fruit Effect

• In Event: ICA Plenary Interactive Paper/Poster Session II
  In Interactive Paper Session: Children, Adolescents, and the Media Interactive Poster Session

Abstract

Media ratings classify media products in order to restrict children’s and adolescents’ access and exposure to harmful media contents. Evaluative ratings recommend for what age groups particular media is suitable while descriptive ratings illustrate the specific category of detrimental content. However, media ratings are said to instigate an undesirable side effect as they may increase the attractiveness of the media product; the forbidden fruit effect.
An experiment was conducted in order to investigate whether a combination of evaluative and descriptive ratings have a more appealing effect on minors than restricting media with either evaluative or descriptive ratings.
The results clearly signify that neither evaluative ratings nor descriptive ratings increase the perceived attractiveness, whereas personal traits and demographic factors were proven to have an effect.

Authors

• Jordy Gosselt, U of Twente

• Joris J. Van Hoof, University of Twente

• Laura Haske, U of Twente