Science Shows Family TV More Engaging to Viewers

Written by PTC | Published January 14, 2016

Audiences are more likely to pay attention to a program when viewing it with others, says a new study. According to research published on Advertising Age, recent scientific analysis of facial recognition patterns demonstrates that viewers pay more attention to a program when they watch with others…and the more people watching, the more each viewer pays attention. This merely confirms similar findings by others. Marketing research by Walmart found an 18 percent improvement in performance of its ad when that ad appears on a family-friendly program, as opposed to a program containing graphic sex and violence. A recent study from the Department of Psychology at Iowa State University also suggests that programs with high levels of violent or sexual content can actually repress the viewers’ ability to recall advertised brands. By contrast, subjects who watched ‘neutral’ programming were better able to recall the ads the following day. Once, TV provided entertainment appropriate for the entire family. As a result, the entire family watched TV together – and advertisers reaped the rewards of a family-friendly media culture. Today, despite the plethora of genres and devices which are making viewing alone more common, many viewers are desperate for clean, safe shows they can watch with their entire family. Both viewers and advertisers would benefit if the entertainment industry provided a family media environment.