@inproceedings{01HPRSR5XBR9NXHXTNQFC360N7,
  abstract     = {{To become empowered consumers in the marketplace, individuals must obtain the essential knowledge, attitudes, and skills related to consumption, a process referred to as consumer socialization (Ward, 1974). Although consumer socialization is a lifelong process, the focal point lies in childhood where adolescents develop from unknowing to knowing beings, known as primary consumer socialization. John (1999) developed a framework for understanding the process of primary consumer socialization. She outlines five consumer competences that adolescents cultivate from ages 3 to 16, influenced by a variety of socialization agents. These competences encompass advertising knowledge, transaction knowledge (brand and product knowledge, shopping knowledge and skills), decision-making skills and abilities, purchase influence and negotiation strategies, and consumption motives. 
The advent of digital media has notably influenced the development of adolescents’ consumption competences (Jiao & Wei, 2020; Thaichon, 2017), challenging the conventional belief that parents are the primary influencers of their adolescents' consumer behaviour. Researchers emphasize that adolescents are now actively shaping their parents' consumer choices by expressing their purchasing preferences and making requests for specific products, known as reversed socialization. The majority of studies on this topic tend to concentrate on how adolescents impact their parents' decision-making process (Jiao & Wei, 2020; Singh et al., 2020). However, any types of learning processes that parents may undergo through their adolescents are often overlooked. This study therefore aimed to examine how parents acquire consumer competences from their adolescents and how the learning processes of both the parent and the adolescent relate to one another. We used John's (1999) five consumption competences as a foundation and studied how parental and adolescent learning relate to them, using a more reciprocal approach. 
A 7-day diary study among 20 families with at least one adolescent aged between 11 and 16 years old was conducted, followed by a group interview. Participants were queried individually on a daily basis regarding their perceptions of (reciprocal) learning based on John's (1999) five consumption competences. For each competence, both parents and adolescents provided information about (1) the occurrence and type of verbal and nonverbal communication related to the specific competence, (2) the context in which the communication took place, and (3) their specific learning outcomes for each competence. After the diary study, the families participated in a group interview to compare and discuss insights from their diaries with each other.
The results indicated that parents learn the most from their teenagers in the domain of transaction knowledge. It was mainly the knowledge of trends, new products, technology and its specific product features that was verbally transferred from the teenager to the parent. Although parents typically held a negative perception of advertising, online advertisements frequently served as a source of inspiration for adolescents when engaging in discussions about products and brands. Parents were willing to consider the products recommended by their teenagers for their own use, particularly when they regarded their teenagers as ‘experts' in that particular domain. Parents reported learning the least from their teenagers in the domain of decision-making skills and abilities (i.e., how to make effective consumption decisions). They find that their teenagers still act too naively and impulsively due to their lack of experience.
Teenagers reported learning the most from their parents in the domain of consumption motives, because their parents made them think about reasons to buy or do something to ensure they made a thoughtful decision. Both parents and teenagers held the belief that teenagers exhibit a higher proficiency in navigating the online shopping environment (the transaction knowledge domain). This encompasses their awareness of discounts and promotions obtained through their online activities, as well as their knowledge of product availability. However, exceptions occurred in matters of security, privacy, and financial management. This study aims to deepen our understanding of the reciprocal learning process, contributing to a nuanced comprehension of the operational dynamics within the household unit.}},
  author       = {{Dhondt, Bo and Van de Sompel, Dieneke and Hudders, Liselot}},
  booktitle    = {{Etmaal van de Communicatiewetenschap 2024, Abstracts}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  location     = {{Rotterdam, the Netherlands}},
  title        = {{Shaping consumers for a better future : the importance of shared vision in socialization}},
  url          = {{https://nefca.eu/etmaal-2024/}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}