In-school marketing (ISM) is a widespread global practice that is the focus of much debate and increasing concern. The tension between commercial imperatives, children's well-being, and educational priorities has been recognized by the United Nations who have called for its regulation. However, before policy and regulation can be developed, it is necessary to understand the nature and extent of ISM. Results from the present study detail the extensive range and incidence of marketing and draws attention to the saturation of the school environment and the promotion of unhealthy products. It also identifies incidental brand exposure and prosocial messaging as separate categories of ISM and provides the first objective comparison of children's in-school and out-of-school exposure to marketing. The paper considers the deontological harms to children from exposure to ISM in one of our most important social systems and provides the basis for the development of policy and regulation.
AakerDavid (2014), Aaker on Branding: 20 Principles That Drive Success. New York: Morgan James Publishing.
2.
AbbarnoG. John M. (2001), “Huckstering in the Classroom: Limits to Corporate Social Responsibility,” Journal of Business Ethics, 32, 179–189. doi:https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010627500567
3.
AitkenRobertWatkinsLeah (2017), ““Harm or Good?”: Consumer Perceptions of Corporate Strategic Giving in Schools,” Journal of Consumer Affairs, 51 (2), 406–432.
4.
AitkenRobertWatkinsLeah (2023), “No Place to Hide: In-School Marketing, the Commodification of Children and the Commercialisation of Education,” in Proceedings of Macromarketing Conference, Seattle, USA.
5.
BolandWendy AttayaGrierSonya A.ConnellPaul M. (2024), “Educating for Adolescent Well-Being: Is It Time for Marketplace Literacy?” Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, 9 (2), 227–234.
6.
BoningerFaithMolnarAlexMurrayKevin (2017), “Asleep at the Switch: Schoolhouse Commercialism, Student Privacy, and the Failure of Policymaking,” The Nineteenth Annual Report on Schoolhouse Commercializing Trends, National Education Policy Center.
7.
BoningerFaithMolnarAlexSaldañaChristopher M. (2019), “Personalized Learning and the Digital Privatization of Curriculum and Teaching,” National Educational Policy Center.
8.
BrentBrian O.LundenStephen (2009), “Much Ado About Very Little: The Benefits and Costs of School-Based Commercial Activities,” Leadership and Policy in Schools, 8 (3), 307–336.
9.
BuchananLiminKellyBridgetYeatmanHeatherKariippanonKishan (2018), “The Effects of Digital Marketing of Unhealthy Commodities on Young People: A Systematic Review,” Nutrients, 10 (2), 148.
10.
BuijzenMoniekValkenburgPatti M. (2003), “The Effects of Television Advertising on Materialism, Parent–Child Conflict, and Unhappiness: A Review of Research,” Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 24 (4), 437–456.
11.
CalvertSandra (2008), “Children as Consumers: Advertising and Marketing,” The Future of Children, 18 (1), 205–234.
12.
CassimS.McIntoshK. (2011), “In-School Marketing in South African Primary Schools: An Exploratory Study,” South African Journal of Business Management, 42 (1), 55–63.
ClarkeBarbieSvanaesSiv (2012), Digital Marketing and Advertising to Children: A Literature Review. London: Advertising Education Forum.
15.
ConnellPaul M.BrucksMerrieNielsenJesper H. (2014), “How Childhood Advertising Exposure Can Create Biased Product Evaluations That Persist Into Adulthood,” Journal of Consumer Research, 41 (1), 119–134.
16.
ConnorJennie (2020), “Why Are Alcohol Companies in Our Schools?” New Zealand Medical Association, 133 (1516), 7–9.
17.
CraneAndrewKazmiBashir Ali (2010), “Business and Children: Mapping Impacts, Managing Responsibilities,” Journal of Business Ethics, 91, 567–586.
18.
DeephouseDavid L. (2000), “Media Reputation as a Strategic Resource: An Integration of Mass Communication and Resource-Based Theories,” Journal of Management, 26 (6), 1091–1112.
19.
Dequero-NavarroBeatrizStantonJulieKleinThomas A (2021), “A panoramic review of the macromarketing literature,” Journal of Macromarketing, 41 (1), 48–64.
20.
DeshpandeBhagyashreeKaurPuneetFerrarisAlbertoYahiaouiDorraDhirAmandeep (2023), “The Dark Side of Advertising: Promoting Unhealthy Food Consumption,” European Journal of Marketing, 57 (9), 2316–2352.
21.
DiMartinoCatherineJessenSarah Butler (2018), Selling School: The Marketing of Public Education. New York: Teachers College Press, Columbia University.
22.
DosterLeighTyrrellJ. Julia (2011), “Marketing Communications in the Classroom: The Parents’ View,” Journal of Marketing Communications, 17 (1), 1–15.
23.
EnrightEimearHoganAnnaRossiTony (2020a), “The Commercial School Heterarchy,” Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 41 (2), 187–205.
24.
EnrightEimearKirkDavidMacdonaldDoune (2020b), “Expertise, Neoliberal Governmentality and the Outsourcing of Health and Physical Education,” Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 41 (2), 206–222.
25.
ErtzMyriamBouhartGuillaume Le (2022), “The Other Pandemic: A Conceptual Framework and Future Research Directions of Junk Food Marketing to Children and Childhood Obesity,” Journal of Macromarketing, 42 (1), 30–50.
26.
FarinhaIsabel (2014), “Advertising Images Illustrating the Contents of Primary School Textbooks: The Portuguese Case,” Journal of International Scientific Publications: Educational Alternatives, 12, 1183–1191.
27.
FarinhaIsabel (2015), “Ads and Fundraising: A Quasi-Market School System,” International E-Journal of Advances in Education, 1 (1), 13–17.
28.
FeuersteinAbe (2001), “Selling Our Schools? Principals’ Views on Schoolhouse Commercialism and School-Business Interactions,” Educational Administration Quarterly, 37 (3), 322–371.
29.
FineCordeliaRushEmma (2018), ““Why Does all the Girls Have to Buy Pink Stuff?” The Ethics and Science of the Gendered Toy Marketing Debate,” Journal of Business Ethics, 149, 769–784.
30.
Francisco DávilaJuanCasabayóMònica (2013), “Influences in Children's Materialism: A Conceptual Framework,” Young Consumers, 14 (4), 297–311. doi:https://doi.org/10.1108/YC-03-2013-00346
31.
GidneyCatherine (2019), Captive Audience: How Corporations Invaded Our Schools. Toronto: Between the Line.
32.
GraffSamanthaKunkelDaleMerminSeth E. (2012), “Government Can Regulate Food Advertising to Children Because Cognitive Research Shows That It Is Inherently Misleading,” Health Affairs, 31 (2), 392–398.
33.
GreavesEllenWilsonDeborahNairnAgnes (2023), “Marketing and School Choice: A Systematic Literature Review,” Review of Educational Research, 93 (6), 825–861.
34.
GunterBarrieOatesCarolineBladesMark (2002), Advertising to Children on Television: Content, Impact and Regulation. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
35.
HarrisJennifer L.TaillieLindsey S. (2023), “More Than a Nuisance: Implications of Food Marketing for Public Health Efforts to Curb Childhood Obesity,” Annual Review of Public Health, 45, 213–233.
36.
HoganAnnaEnrightEimearStylianouMichalisMcCuaigLouise (2018a), “Nuancing the Critique of Commercialisation in Schools: Recognising Teacher Agency,” Journal of Education Policy, 33 (5), 617–631.
37.
HoganAnnaThompsonGreg (2019), “The Quasi-Marketization of Australian Public Schooling: Affordances and Contradictions of the New Work Order,” Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 39 (3), 391–403.
38.
HoganAnnaThompsonGregSellarSamLingardBob (2018b), “Teachers’ and School Leaders’ Perceptions of Commercialisation in Australian Public Schools,” The Australian Educational Researcher, 45 (2), 141–160.
39.
JacksonNickiDixonRachael (2020), “The Practice of the Alcohol Industry as Health Educator: A Critique,” New Zealand Medical Journal, 133 (1515), 89–96.
40.
KadirovDjavlonbek (2018), “Towards a Theory of Marketing Systems as the Public Good,” Journal of Macromarketing, 38 (3), 278–297.
41.
KellyColetteClerkinPaulineGabhainnSaoirse NicMulvihillMaureen (2010), “Food Marketing in Irish Schools,” Health Education, 110 (5), 336–350.
42.
LaczniakGene R.MurphyPatrick E. (2019), “The Role of Normative Marketing Ethics,” Journal of Business Research, 95, 401–407.
43.
LapierreMatthew A.Fleming-MiliciFrancesRozendaalEstherMcAlisterAnna R.CastonguayJessica (2017), “The Effect of Advertising on Children and Adolescents,” Pediatrics, 140 (2), S152–S156.
44.
LooseFemkeHuddersLiselotVanwesenbeeckIniDe JansSteffi (2023), “Preschoolers and Advertising: A Systematic Literature Review and Future Research Agenda on the Effects of Advertising on Preschool Children,” Journal of Advertising, 52 (3), 439–455.
45.
MacdonaldDouneJohnsonRebeccaLingardBob (2020), “Globalisation, Neoliberalisation, and Network Governance: An International Study of Outsourcing in Health and Physical Education,” Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 41 (2), 1–18.
46.
MarshVirginia (2017), “The War on Childhood: Commercialism in Schools and the First Amendment,” Houston Law Review, 55, 511.
47.
MarshallDavid, Ed. (2010), Understanding Children as Consumers. London: Sage Publications.
48.
MillsCandiceKeilFrank (2005), “The Development of Cynicism,” Psychological Science, 16, 385–390.
MolnarAlexBoningerFaith (2015), Sold Out: How Marketing in School Threatens Children’s Well-Being and Undermines Their Education. Maryland, USA: Rowman & Littlefield.
51.
MolnarAlexBoningerFaith (2020), “The Commercial Transformation of America’s Schools,” Phi Delta Kappan, 102 (2), 8–13.
52.
MolnarAlexBoningerFaithFogartyJoseph (2011), The Educational Cost of Schoolhouse Commercialism. Colorado, USA: National Education Policy Center.
53.
MolnarAlexBoningerFaithHarrisMichael D.LibbyKen M.FogartyJoseph (2013), “Promoting Consumption at School: Health Threats Associated With Schoolhouse Commercialism—The Fifteenth Annual Report on Schoolhouse Commercializing Trends: 2011–2012,” National Education Policy Center.
54.
MolnarAlexBoningerFaithLibbyKen M.FogartyJoseph (2014), “Schoolhouse Commercialism Leaves Policymakers Behind—The Sixteenth Annual Report on Schoolhouse Commercializing Trends: 2012–2013,” National Education Policy Center.
55.
MooreElizabeth S. (2004), “Children and the Changing World of Advertising,” Journal of Business Ethics, 52, 161–167.
56.
NadererBrigitte (2021), “Advertising Unhealthy Food to Children: On the Importance of Regulations, Parenting Styles, and Media Literacy,” Current Addiction Reports, 8, 12–18.
57.
NairnAgnesOrmrodJoBottomleyPaul A. (2005), Watching, Wanting and Wellbeing: Exploring the Links. London: National Consumer Council.
OatesCarolineBladesMarkGunterBarrie (2002), “Children and Television Advertising: When Do They Understand Persuasive Intent?” Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 1 (3), 238–245.
60.
O’NeillJohnPowellDarren (2020), “Charities and State Schooling Privatisations in Aotearoa New Zealand,” in Privatisation and Commercialisation in Public Education. London: Routledge, 36–51.
61.
OpreeSuzanna J. (2014), Consumed by consumer culture? Advertising’s impact on children’s materialism and life satisfaction. PhD Thesis: Amsterdam School of Consumer Research. http://dare.uva.nl/record/1/410142.
62.
PackerJessicaCrokerHelenGoddingsAnne-LiseBoylandEmma J.StansfieldClaireRussellSimon J., et al. (2022), “Advertising and Young People’s Critical Reasoning Abilities: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis,” Pediatrics, 150 (6), e2022057780.
63.
ParsonsAndrew G.SchumacherChristoph (2012), “Advertising Regulation and Market Drivers,” European Journal of Marketing, 46 (11/12), 1539–1558.
64.
PechmannCorneliaCatlinJessie R.ZhengYu (2020), “Facilitating Adolescent Well-Being: A Review of the Challenges and Opportunities and the Beneficial Roles of Parents, Schools, Neighborhoods, and Policymakers,” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 30 (1), 149–177.
65.
Potvin KentMoniqueVelazquezCayley E.PauzéEliseCheng-BoivinOliviaBerfeldNoami (2019), “Food and Beverage Marketing in Primary and Secondary Schools in Canada,” BMC Public Health, 19 (1), 114. doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-6441-x
66.
PowellDarren (2019), “The ‘Will to Give’: Corporations, Philanthropy, and Schools,” Journal of Education Policy, 34 (2), 195–214.
67.
PowellDarren (2020), “Harmful Marketing to Children,” The Lancet, 396 (10264), 1734–1735.
68.
RobinsonDaniel B.GleddieDougSchaeferLee (2016), “Telling and Selling: A Consideration of the Pedagogical Work Done by Nationally Endorsed Corporate-Sponsored Educational Resources,” Asia-Pacific Journal of Health, Sport and Physical Education, 7 (1), 37–54.
69.
RozendaalEstherBuijzenMoniek (2023), “Children’s Vulnerability to Advertising: An Overview of Four Decades of Research (1980s–2020s),” International Journal of Advertising, 42 (1), 78–86.
70.
ShapiroStanley J.TadajewskiMarkShultzClifford J. (2009), “Interpreting Macromarketing: The Construction of a Major Macromarketing Research Collection,” Journal of Macromarketing, 29 (3), 325–334.
71.
ShaulMarnie S. (2000), “Public Education: Commercial Activities in Schools.” United States General Accounting Office Report to Congressional Requesters.
72.
SignalLouise N.BarrMichelleSmithMoira B. (2018), Evidence Snapshot: What Can be Done to Protect Our Children from Unhealthy Food Marketing. Wellington, New Zealand: Health Promotion & Policy Research Unit, University of Otago.
73.
SignalLouise N.SmithMoira B.BarrMichelleStanleyJamesChambersTim J.ZhouJiang, et al. (2017a), “Kids’ Cam: An Objective Methodology to Study the World in Which Children Live,” American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 53 (3), e89–e95.
74.
SignalLouise N.StanleyJamesSmithMoira B.BarrMichelleChambersTim J.ZhouJiang, et al. (2017b), “Children’s Everyday Exposure to Food Marketing: An Objective Analysis Using Wearable Cameras,” International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 14 (1), 1–11. doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12966-017-0570-3
75.
StucklerDavidMcKeeMartinEbrahimShahBasuSanjay (2012), “Manufacturing Epidemics: The Role of Global Producers in Increased Consumption of Unhealthy Commodities Including Processed Foods, Alcohol, and Tobacco,” PLoS Medicine, 9 (6), e1001235.
76.
Terry-McElrathYvonne M.TurnerLindseySandovalAnnaJohnstonLloyd D.ChaloupkaFrank J. (2014), “Commercialism in US Elementary and Secondary School Nutrition Environments: Trends from 2007 to 2012,” JAMA Pediatrics, 168 (3), 234–242.
ThruppMartinLuptonRuth (2011), “Variations on a Middle-Class Theme: English Primary Schools in Socially Advantaged Contexts,” Journal of Education Policy, 26 (2), 289–312.
79.
ThruppMartinO’NeillJohnPowellDarrenButlerPhiippa (2020), “Private Actors in New Zealand Schooling: The Path to Saturation,” Journal of Educational Administration and History, 52 (4), 1–18.
80.
TrappGinaHooperPaulaThorntonLukarKenningtonKellySartoriAinslieWickensNicole, et al. (2022), “Children’s Exposure to Outdoor Food Advertising Near Primary and Secondary Schools in Australia,” Health Promotion Journal of Australia, 33 (3), 642–648.
81.
TrzcińskaAgataPodsiadłowskiWojciechGolusPatrycjaWieleszczykJowita (2024), “Self-Esteem and Materialism in Preschool Children: The Role of Theory of Mind and Parental Material Indulgence,” Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 95, 101716.
VelazquezCelia E.BlackJohn L.KentMelanie Potvin (2017), “Food and Beverage Marketing in Schools: A Review of the Evidence,” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14 (9), 1054.
84.
WatkinsLeahAitkenRobertGageRyanSmithMoira B.ChambersTim J.BarrMichelle, et al. (2019), “Capturing the Commercial World of Children: The Feasibility of Wearable Cameras to Assess Marketing Exposure,” Journal of Consumer Affairs, 53 (4), 1396–1420. https://doi.org/10.1111/joca.12234.
85.
WatkinsLeahGageRyanSmithMoiraMcKercharChristinaAitkenRobertSignalLouise (2022), “An Objective Assessment of Children's Exposure to Brand Marketing in New Zealand (Kids’Cam): A Cross-Sectional Study,” The Lancet Planetary Health, 6 (2), e132–e138.
86.
WilkinsonEmma (2024), “Food industry has infiltrated UK children’s education: stealth marketing exposed,” British Medical Journal, 387, https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.q2661.
87.
WooliscroftBen (2021), “Macromarketing and the Systems Imperative,” Journal of Macromarketing, 41 (1), 116–123.
World Health Organization (2023), “WHO Regional Office for Europe Nutrient Profile Model,” In WHO Regional Office for Europe Nutrient Profile Model. Geneva.
90.
World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) (2023), Taking Action to Protect Children from the Harmful Impact of Food Marketing: A Child Rights-Based Approach. Geneva: World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/igo.
91.
WrightNoelinePetersMichael (2017), “Sell, Sell, Sell or Learn, Learn, Learn? The EdTech Market in New Zealand’s Education System–Privatisation by Stealth?” Open Review of Educational Research, 4 (1), 164–176.
