CONTEXT AND LEARNINGS FROM GROUP WARMUPS, PREPLACEMENT EXERCISES AND ETHNOGRAPHY

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CONTEXT AND LEARNINGS FROM GROUP WARM-UPS,
PRE-PLACEMENT EXERCISES AND ETHNOGRAPHY
Prepared For The Department for Transport
Prepared By Mark Ratcliff and Siobhan
Bouchier-Hayes MURMUR (44) 020 7733 1706
info_at_murmurresearch.com www.murmurresearch.com
Version (v1.0)
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CONTENTS
3 4 7 11 12 21 23 26 27 28 29 30 34 37 41 42

• RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
• RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND SAMPLE
• 1. RESPONDENTS FAVOURITE THINGS, WHAT THEY
  REVEAL
• 2. A NOTE ABOUT WHAT 12 DO IN THEIR SPARE
  TIME
• 3. TRENDS, FADS
• 4. WHAT SCHOOLS HAVE BANNED
• 5. ROLE MODELS
• 6. HOPES
• 7. FEARS
• 8. WHAT MAKES PEOPLE LAUGH IN REAL LIFE
• 9. HOW THEY COMMUNICATE WITH THEIR PEERS
• 10. LANGUAGE
• 11. WHAT WORKS IN ADVERTISING TERMS FOR OUR
  SAMPLE
• MUSIC
• MEDIA HIERARCHY
• MEDIA CONSUMPTION DETAIL

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

• To explore teens and childrens worlds, in
  particular, to gain insights into current trends
  within them
• To understand what kind of creative styles are
  found appealing by children and teens

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND SAMPLE

• Respondent Methodology
• Groups, paired depths and one-on-one interviews
  were conducted as per below
• 3 x opinion former interviews
• Senior police person Annie Mitchener
• RSO at Milton Keynes Kevin Clinton
• David Frost at Royal Society for Prevention of
  Accidents
• Plus a number of road safety experts were spoken
  with over the course of briefing conversations.
  In a couple of cases these mutated into extended
  interviews
• 30 x groups and 4 x paired depth immersion
  studies

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND SAMPLE cont.

• REFERENCE AGE GENDER CRITERIA LOCATION
• Group 1 4 6 Males Reception Year Stockport
• Group 2 4 6 Females Year 1 Suffolk
• Group 3 4 6, Parents of N/A Reception/Year 1
  Ethnic Camberwell
• Group 4 4 6, Parents of N/A Reception/Year
  1 Somerset
• Group 5 7 9 Males Year 3 Birmingham
• Group 6 7 9 Females Year 3 Somerset
• Group 7 79 Males Year 2, Ethnic Camden
• Group 8 7 9 Males Year 4, Disadvantaged
  Ethnic Lee
• Group 9 7 9, Parents of N/A Year 3 4,
  Disadvantaged Stockport
• Group 10 7 9, Parents of N/A Year 3 or
  4 Suffolk
• Group 11 10 11 Males Year 6 Stockport
• Group 12 10 11 Males Year 7 Somerset
• Group 13 10 11 Females Year 6 Suffolk
• Group 14 10 11 Females Year 7 Bexleyheath
• Group 15 10 11 Males Year 6, Ethnic Lee
• Group 16 10 11 Females Year 7,
  Ethnic Birmingham
• Group 17 10 11 Male Year 7, Disadvantaged Cambe
  rwell

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND SAMPLE cont.

• REFERENCE AGE GENDER CRITERIA LOCATION
• Group 18 10 11 Male Year 6, Disadvantaged Camden
  
• Group 19 10 11, Parents of N/A Year 6 or
  7 Suffolk
• Group 20 10 11, Parents of N/A Year 6 or 7,
  Disadvantaged Bexleyheath
• Group 21 12 14 Male Year 8 Suffolk
• Group 22 12 14 Female Year 8 Somerset
• Group 23 12 14 Male Year 9, Ethnic Bexleyheath
• Group 24 12 14 Male Year 9, Disadvantaged Birmin
  gham
• Group 25 12 14, Parents of N/A Year 8 or 9,
  Ethnic Lee
• Group 26 15 16 Male Year 11 Stockport
• Group 27 15 16 Female Year 10 Suffolk
• Group 28 15 16 Male Year 11, Ethnic Camberwell
• Group 29 15 16 Male Year 10, Disadvantaged Camde
  n
• Group 30 15 16, Parents of N/A Year 10 or 11,
  Ethnic Birmingham
• Paired Depth 1 12 14 Male Year 9 Camden
• Paired Depth 2 12 14 Female Year 8 Camberwell
• Paired Depth 3 15 16 Male Year 10 Camberwell
• Paired Depth 4 15 16 Female Year 11 Camden

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RESPONDENTS FAVOURITE THINGS, AND WHAT THEY

REVEAL

• Overview
• Interesting to note that disadvantaged often have
  as much new technology in their bedrooms as other
  members of the sample, perceived as necessity
  rather than luxury
• For example one 15 year old disadvantaged
  respondent had the following in his bedroom TV,
  DVD player, PSP, iPod, laptop
• Where differences between disadvantaged and
  others become apparent is in literacy levels, as
  noted, attitudes to violence see later, music
  preferences, and notions of respect in relation
  to peer acceptance
• All the age bands are consuming/watching material
  above their age brackets films, gaming, music,
  etc
• 4 6 year olds
• 4 6 year olds talk of computer games as a
  favourite thing has implications
• Hi grade animation view Hedgehogs as
  old-fashioned
• Visual literacy kicking in at younger age
• Used to interacting with visual stimulus
• All love drawing, expressing themselves
• Into branded goods/properties, often with their
  roots in films and TV series Scooby Do,
  Cinderella, Lightning McQueen from Cars
• Still plenty of traditional pursuits eg fairies
  and princesses, castles and knights

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1. RESPONDENTS FAVOURITE THINGS, AND WHAT THEY

REVEAL cont.

• 7 9 year olds
• Technology much more prominent, particularly hand
  held eg PSP and Nintendo DS maybe even more
  prominent among disadvantaged
• Beginning to access adult emotions through media
  eg Simpsons, Dr. Who
• Tamagotchi clearly made a return
• Increasingly into sport participation especially
  team-based such as football and netball sport
  starting to be a differentiator among children
• 10 11 year olds
• A sense that interests are tightening and
  narrowing, developing a real sense of what they
  like doing
• Trends noted among 7 9 year olds such as
  prevalence of technology and move toward sport
  are more marked among 10 11 year olds
• Beginning to diversify in terms of taste under
  technology umbrella eg different types of hand
  held, games consoles etc
• Music emerges for the first time as an interest
  precursor to adolescent pursuits both listening
  and playing music based listening/downloading
  technology such as iPods and MP3s emerging as key
  
• Phones emerge as key favourite in tandem with
  increasing independence and freedom
• A difference between rural and urban becomes
  noticeable at this age
• Rural favourites revolving around pets and more
  traditional toysstaying younger, older
• Urban more likely to pursue indoor activities
• Among girls fashion preferences beginning to
  become evident

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1. RESPONDENTS FAVOURITE THINGS, AND WHAT THEY

REVEAL cont.

• 12 14 year olds
• Starting to cite socialising as a favourite thing
  sign of things to comemove away from family
• Females becoming more interested in their own
  appearance
• Make up
• Hair products eg hair straightening
• Specific items of clothing or footwear
• Music based listening and downloading technology
  even more abundant
• Within the context of our sample, more
  idiosyncratic outdoor pursuits emerge as key eg
  fishing, gardening
• Serious games consoles more prevalent eg Xbox
  360, aspirations to next generation
• Beginning to pursue serious interest in creative
  self-expression eg painting, music creation
• Sport as defining participation and watching.
  A sense that it is particularly, though not
  exclusively, important among some disadvantaged
• 15 16 year olds
• Interests becoming more adult/late teenage
• Bed, booze, fags. 15 16 boy
• Live music/club going emerges as an interest
• Potential careers emerge as interests eg textile
  work, army cadets
• Serious computer ownership eg laptops being
  used to communicate, research, play, create
• Serious first relationships for a minority
  especially disadvantaged
• Trend towards creative self-expression even more
  marked making films, making tunes, singing,
  painting

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1. RESPONDENTS FAVOURITE THINGS, AND WHAT THEY

REVEAL cont.

• Perhaps a sense that disadvantaged more overtly
  into branded goods eg Xbox, PS2, iPod, phone make
  and model
• And amongst some, noted trend for piercing and
  tattoos beginning to emerge

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2. A NOTE ABOUT WHAT 12 DO IN THEIR SPARE TIME

• Increasingly spending time with each other rather
  than family
• Peer pressure/acceptance supplants family
  equivalent
• Increasingly likely to characterise defining
  state of being as bored
• A lot of seemingly aimless hanging out at
• Shopping centres
• Shops drift between and around
• Parks
• Car Parks in front of community centres
• Each others bedrooms, etc etc
• Beginning to eat out at entry level restaurants
  such as Pizza Hut, Nandos where ability to
  socialise without being ushered away/out is as
  important as food offering
• I think going out to eat with friends is really
  nice, we both love Nandos. 15 16 girl
• Dont want to belabour the obvious, but clearly a
  time where a lot of boundary pushing,
  experimentation, horseplay, accessing adult
  experience etc all happens
• Of an age where they feel that it is up to them
  to be responsible for and deal with issues eg
  will want to resolve bullying or antagonism
  between different gangs themselves

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3. TRENDS, FADS

• Overview
• Differences between disadvantaged, ethnic and
  more BC1 end of sample noted
• Disadvantaged/ethnic closer to crime/violence at
  street level
• Disadvantaged/ethnic more likely to be using
  technology to create music and film
• Differences between younger and older
• Younger more likely to be into active, outdoor
  game playing which persists through to 10
• Under 11s really into collectibles such as
  football cards, Yugioh cards, Dr Who cards
• Persistence of very traditional playground games
  marked among under 11s eg British bulldog and
  tag, kiss chase, mummies and daddies/doctors and
  nurses
• 10 11 year olds more likely to talk about
  team-based sports
• 10 11 year olds more likely to cite
  socialising, just standing around and chatting as
  something which is on trend moving away from
  childish game playing
• 12 14 year olds more likely to cite online eg
  YouTube, MSN or new technology eg slide up
  phones, next generation consoles
• 15 16 year olds more likely to cite music based
  technology, very specific web sites, creative
  expression eg mcing, drugs, alcohol and parties
  
• Lots of transient cultural stuff
• Alex Rider books now on the way out, Kickers on
  the way out after one of their periodic revivals,
  Pussycat Dolls feel like they have plateaued and
  may be descending, etc etc

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3 . TRENDS, FADS cont.

• Anti Social Behaviour
• Theft
• A lot of talk among urban respondents about dog
  theft as being on ascendancy in this milieu dogs
  are status symbol, closely allied to respect,
  peer acceptance sign of aggression rather than
  protection
• Noted that increasingly common to see pregnant
  dogs on council estates breeding dangerous dogs
  increasingly prevalent as a source of income
• Over course of one paired depth immersion, some
  boys came to the door to see if interviewee had
  any dogs to sell
• Talk of jacking on the street as very common eg
  mobile phones, iPods, dinner money disadvantaged
  parent who works with problem teens in Peckham
  asserts that its all about quick access to easy
  cash immediate gratification teenage
  respondents who have experience in this area say
  it is as much about power and its
  deployment/expression as it is about easy cash
• Shoplifting still a major entry level crime as
  much for the thrill and peer acceptance as desire
  for item
• Drugs
• Not confined to urban disadvantaged
• a sense that drugs are part of the fabric once
  15 or 16
• Significant number of our respondents talk of
  smoking weed interesting that the term weed
  has supplanted spliff or hash or dope as
  moniker implies grass rather than resin is the
  norm
• Drugs are becoming very common, mainly
  marijuanasome people have joints at lunchtime.
  15 16 girl

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3. TRENDS, FADS cont.

• Minority, including rural, have accessed or been
  in the immediate vicinity of Class A drug taking
  typically ecstasy or cocaine, though prevalence
  of magic mushrooms among BC1 noted
• I smoke weed on my own and I think quite a few
  of my friends do. 15 16 boy, disadvantaged
• Almost all of my friends do drugs, weed, crow
  cocaine, some people dip weed in stuff and sell
  it. 15 16 boy, disadvantaged
• I know my boyfriend has taken cocaine when weve
  been out, he smokes weed and drinks too. 15
  16 girl
• For minority of disadvantaged appeal of drugs is
  rooted in the fact that they can make money via
  them serves to differentiate from alcohol
• Alcohol is not as popular as drugs because you
  cant make money from it. 15 --- 16 boy,
  ethnic
• Not everybody is doing/accessing drugs, there is
  a sense among some younger 12 14 year olds that
  it is mainly the province of ones that come from
  bad families, implies that drugs become more
  accessible normalised for older, 15
• Violence
• Serious violence on the up for some ethnic and
  disadvantaged, as well as other urban and
  suburban violence increasingly a first course of
  action
• Last year was not innocent, but compared to last
  year, the violence has really escalated 15
  16 boy, ethnic
• One of our 15 16 disadvantaged respondents
  turned up late for interview because he had just
  been involved in a fight
• Schools okay theres always trouble,
  arguing, fights between students, fights between
  teachers and students. 15 16 boy,
  disadvantaged

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3. TRENDS, FADS cont.

• For ethnic/disadvantaged it tends to be rooted in
  pursuit of respect and peer acceptance, or
  territorial skirmishes which are typically
  gang-related
• If somebody crosses into our territory there has
  to be retaliation, sometimes weapons get involved
  knives, hammers, anything thats sharpnot guns
  yet, though me and him know people who own guns.
  15 16 boy, disadvantaged
• Yeah, I think one of the biggest trends is
  violence on the street, out on the estate, at
  school, fighting, random fights and
  retaliations. 15 16 boy, ethnic
• We all made resolutions that if something
  happens, if somebody violates, we retaliate. 15
  16 boy, ethnic
• Everyone is in a gang at both of our schools, if
  you dont show respect you get what you get.
  15 16 boy, disadvantaged
• A sense that some suburban respondents are
  attempting to emulate their urban counterparts
• Interesting to note that trend for happy slapping
  appears to be on the decline, lost its shock
  value, no longer belongs to them, become media
  fodder
• Female on female violence seems to be on the
  increase, particularly among disadvantaged/urban
  our paired depth immersion among 12 14 female
  disadvantaged confirms this, talk of attacking a
  female peer on grounds that she insulted a friend
  
• Knives increasingly common no longer a last
  resort, something that lends holder respect
• Some ethnic and disadvantaged talk of guns being
  brought into school to impress in our 15 16
  paired depth immersion among ethnic, one
  respondent knows 3 people whove died from gun
  violence, the other knows 1
• Worth noting that above is not part of rural
  experience possible to find random violence eg
  drunk teenagers, violent horseplay eg spin the
  bottle and attack person bottle ends up pointing
  at, but nothing on scale of urban/suburban

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3. TRENDS, FADS cont.

• Bullying
• A sense that bullying is more in the limelight as
  an issue, schools being forced to deal with it by
  press exposure and parental pressure but not
  always successfully sense that adults dont
  deal with it effectively, can actually help
  perpetuate and exacerbate situation by wading in
  too heavily, violently even
• Cyber bullying feels like its on an upsurge, our
  respondents talk of spiteful and vindictive
  targeting of individuals, sometimes by
  themselves for some, a sense that hours are
  spent trawling social networking sites, looking
  for individuals to poke fun at which is one of
  the reasons why there seems to be the beginnings
  of a backlash against these sites among some of
  our sample, particularly BC1
• Perhaps a sense that medium suits female bullying
  
• On Piczo, you get to create your own website,
  you let other people see it but this girl we
  know got bullied on a Haters site the site was
  called amyakabutters.piczo.comshe was forced to
  move theres quite a lot of calling people names
  on their sites. 12 14 girl, disadvantaged
• Above represents downside of social networking
  phenomenon the more teenagers reveal about
  themselves on what are basically public sites,
  the more they lay themselves open to cyber
  bullying
• New Technology
• Strong sense of convergence being a defining
  trend among our sample, more marked than among
  adults sense that children and teenagers are
  welcoming, significant number of adults resisting
  
• Increasingly the norm for mobile phone to be used
  as camera, radio, MP3, even for playing games
• Ive got a Nokia 6230i phone and I use it to
  play music or take pictures or make videos. 15
  16 boy, ethnic
• I listen to the radio on my phone, mainly Kiss
  100. 12 14 disadvantaged

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3. TRENDS, FADS cont.

• Even a sense that mobile phone is usurping iPod
  at least with mobile phone when listening to
  music, phone ring cuts through with iPod a sense
  of being more isolated
• Re camera, again a sense that mobile phone has
  potential to usurp digital camera expectations
  are that new generation of mobile phones will be
  on par in quality terms
• Lots of uploading photos from social events or
  gatherings to sites where photos can be viewed by
  all increasingly common for oldest to view
  weekend shenanigans in the cold, sober light of
  Monday or Tuesday
• Even evidence of short films being made where
  parts of the filming have been undertaken via
  video function on mobile accessibility and ease
  outweighing quality issues
• Where iPods still in use, interesting to note
  that some of our respondents have two either
  one as mother lode and other as smaller or as
  fashion accessory where one is different colour
  to other
• Increasing evidence of females encroaching on
  what was traditionally male territory computer
  games
• Nintendo Wii is really percolating through,
  adding a new physical dimension to interaction
  with games perceived as beginning of next
  generation expect more
• Also increasing evidence of females having more
  confidence with computer technology eg where
  uploads and downloads used to be province of
  brother or boyfriend now undertaken solus
• Online
• Dealt with in more detail in media section
• Vast majority of our sample, including
  disadvantaged, have access to online, often
  inhome
• MSN and social networking sites unsurprisingly
  drive online interaction for many
• Perhaps a sense that Myspace is losing ground
  amongst teenage respondents, versus Bebo, even
  Facebook and Faceparty latter feel a little more
  exclusive, more for their age sense that MySpace
  has been taken from them by big business

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3. TRENDS, FADS cont.

• Also a sense among some that increasing boredom
  with these sites novelty wears off
• I got addicted to MySpace when I first joined at
  the beginning of Year 10, everyone was talking
  about it so I wanted to see what the fuss was
  about, I really got into it, but then it started
  to feel really shallow, it felt like more of a
  waste of time. I started not going out much,
  just sitting in my room. 15 16 girl
• Evidence that some meeting partners via online
  environment has very quickly become normalised,
  a new way to meet partner
• Fashion
• Lots of micro trends noted, especially by 12
  female sample eg
• People wearing one glove
• Slicking girls gelling hair to their head
• Girls wearing bags back to front
• Teen girls appropriating childrens iconography
  eg Dora the Explorer rucksacks, Winnie the Pooh
  umbrellas
• Wearing trousers at half mast still common,
  though females increasingly adopting
• Ethnic boys talk of new era caps like baseball
  caps except fuller and more decorative in terms
  of imagery emblazoned on them
• Adoption of American urban casual wear by
  disadvantaged and ethnic respondents marked eg
  Avirex and Nike track suits
• ¾ length leggings with skirts
• Urban and suburban 11 females accessing catwalk
  type fashions via Top Shop, Primark, H M

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3. TRENDS, FADS cont.

• Race/Religion
• Some urban respondents note that religion can be
  a touchy subject at school, especially where
  there are devout Muslims/practising Christians
• Some parental concern that religious fervour is
  cause for concern eg Somerset 12 14 who is
  practising Christian says some of her friends are
  prevented by their parents from visiting her home
  
• A sense that some racial groups keep to
  themselves in the school playground perhaps a
  feeling, commented on by one or two parents, that
  the UK is less integrated than it was in wake of
  asylum seeker panic and post-Iraq
• eg Turkish boys keeping to themselves in Lewisham
  schools
• eg West African boys steering clear of their
  Jamaican counterparts
• eg Russians stand apart, even for East Europeans
• eg Pakistani boys increasingly conscious of their
  identity
• Saying stuff about religion, race and families
  can cause tension at our school. 12 14 boy,
  disadvantaged
• At our school there are some Somalis, a lot of
  Asians, Russians, Turkish, English and three
  Americans some groups do mix, but some stay
  separate. 12 14 boy, disadvantaged
• White disadvantaged and some BC1
  unselfconsciously appropriate aspects of black
  urban culture, from patois and slang see
  vocabulary section later loads of slang
  emanating from black culture picked up by white
  counterparts, via fashion, to mode of walking
  and music even hair styling tight bunches at
  weird angle on head for females, patterns shaved
  into close cropped nape and sideboards for men
• Food
• Increasing accessibility to ethnic food manifest
  in urban and suburban take up of African and East
  European food stuffs

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3. TRENDS, FADS cont.

• Interestingly sushi regarded as absolutely
  mainstream by urban and suburban BC1 and some
  ethnic/disadvantaged what pallets 5 or 10 years
  ago would have found adventurous is now par for
  the course
• Ill eat Thai or Vietnamese, we have a great
  Vietnamese café in Camberwell. 15 16 boy,
  disadvantaged

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4. WHAT SCHOOLS HAVE BANNED

• The gap between urban and rural is never so
  marked as when discussing what schools have
  banned at most extreme end, schools in Lewisham
  and Camberwell have officially banned hand guns
  and knives, while their Suffolk counterparts have
  banned British bulldog
• Certain things that schools frown on more of an
  issue in urban environment
• Sexual harrassment clearly a problem in some
  inner city schools
• Sheriff raped a girl in Year 8, or maybe it
  wasnt rape, he fingered her without her consent,
  he tried to touch me up once, but I got someone
  to beat him up. He tried to do it to Amy. 12
  14 girl, disadvantaged
• At younger end, banning revolves around
• Fighting or games that involve fighting
• Collectibles on the grounds they cause disputes
  and upsets
• Games that involve rough and tumble such as
  British bulldog
• 7 9 year olds have been banned from taking
  handheld consoles to school on the grounds that
  they are a huge distraction and may also cause
  disputes
• Chocolate and chewing gum
• Among 10 11 year olds, revolve around similar
  to above, though more specific reference to games
  that involve fighting and ball games for fear of
  damage to property
• Big shift noted among 12 14 year olds
• Mobile phones on grounds that they are
  distracting and invite crime
• iPods and PSPs for similar reasons
• Fashion accessories eg big earrings, wearing hats
  in class, branded shoes on grounds that
  introduces a competitive element that can cause
  friction

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4. WHAT SCHOOLS HAVE BANNED cont.

• Particular fashion apparel or footwear which
  become associated with modes of behaviour that
  the school doesnt approve of eg Converse, criss
  cross tights, cropped tee shirts that expose
  midriff, spaghetti strap tops, short skirts if
  not worn with opaque tights
• Smoking
• 15 16 year olds similar to 12 14 with
  additional provisos about intoxicants, weaponry
  especially guns knives, extreme hairstyles
• Were not allowed to sell drugs or anything
  else, were not allowed to fight, were not
  allowed weapons, were not allowed to bring
  phones and electrical equipment like PSPs into
  schoolbut no one follows these rules. 15 16
  boy, ethnic

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5. ROLE MODELS

• A sense that for over 11 traditional notion of
  role models is a bit hackneyed
• Under 11s generally dont have a problem citing
  favourite sports heroes or TV characters
• Tendency to cite people who are close to home,
  either immediate family members for BC1 or
  extended family members for some ethnic and
  disadvantaged need to empathise with role model
  before they claim them
• Over 12s sometimes have a tendency to respect
  peers and friends first, then family
• A friend with what is perceived as a talent can
  be elevated to a pedestal within their peer group
  
• My friend is nearly better than Mariah Carey.
  12 14 girl, disadvantaged
• Older BC1 respondents sometimes talk in more
  abstract terms about the kinds of people they
  respect
• People who are sure of who they are and respect
  themselves. 15 16 girl
• People who do brave things like standing up to
  bad people or people who have got through
  something really difficult, I respect Angelina
  Jolie because she had a bad childhood and has
  grown up well. 15 16 girl
• Significant minority of ethnic males aware of
  their lack of positive male role models being
  talked about in media recently
• 1 or 2 ethnic/disadvantaged talk of themselves as
  their own role models no one else in their
  family achieving anything, they are pulling
  themselves out of the mire, educating themselves
• Interesting to note young females talking of
  anti-role models, girls they dont want to end up
  like
• Nasty girls, hos and give-heads, they wear mini
  skirts and let boys touch them, they do dirty
  things. 12 14 girl, disadvantaged
• Girls who like to look chung, but take it too
  far with make-up and short skirts. 12 14
  girl, disadvantaged

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5. ROLE MODELS cont.

• Some disadvantaged find it easier to cite
  celebrities, particularly music and sports stars,
  whether they be from past such as Pele, Eric
  Cantona or from the present like 50 Cent
• I love NDubz, hes sick, the tunes he makes are
  just wicked. 12 14 girl, disadvantaged
• However tendency is to acknowledge impact of
  celebrities but question their worth or
  pertinence on closer perusal
• The one group of role models consistently cited
  by disadvantaged Afro-Caribbean respondents in
  London centres around grime music, they come from
  the same council estates and milieus as our
  respondents, spit about violence and drug
  dealing, show understanding
• Interesting that disadvantaged Afro-Caribbean
  have means to express creativity closer to hand,
  find it easier to make/create music utilising
  software like Abletontheir role models in that
  sense are much closer to them than BC1
  counterparts
• DJing and mcing is a route to respect for
  disadvantaged Afro-Caribbean also more
  achievable in some instances than being a
  straightforward musician
• They respect people who sing that stupid grime
  music. 12 14 parent, ethnic
• They can relate to it, these people are singing
  about the lifestyle they are now living, its
  like dreaming, that could be me one day. 12
  14 parent, ethnic
• Same respondents talk of respecting post codes
  territorial sensibility emerges when discussing
  people they respect
• Some disadvantaged respondents occasionally talk
  of respecting teacher who gives them time, shows
  understanding and respect

25
5. ROLE MODELS cont.

• This teacher showed boys in his year that he
  respects their opinion, he aint going to treat
  them no different, he gave them leeway, okay, I
  understand, but dont do it again. They all
  looked up to him. He was a bit more lenient than
  other teachers. He also taught them business and
  out of his own pocket he incentivised them, he
  gave them certain tasks and if they got good
  enough grades, they got a fiver. It made them
  very competitive but in a business sense rather
  than postcode sense, it made them think hard.
  12 14 parent, ethnic
• Jill, a teacher who helps in student support,
  shes got time for you, shes caring. 12 14
  girl, disadvantaged

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6. HOPES

• Interesting trend among disadvantaged to note
  prevalence of more long-term hopes
• Significant number speak of desire to be
  educated/gain a skill, first rung in independence
  ladder talk about this kind of thing as a
  concrete process rather than something abstract
  education as functional rather than edifying
• I need to get 5 GCSEs, then I can go to college
  and move out, if I get 5 GCSEs, the government
  will pay for my apartment. 15 16 boy, ethnic
  
• Some express overt desire for independence as
  manifest in owning/having their own apartment or
  space
• BC1 respondents talk more in terms of self
  expression and happiness
• Desire is for a job that is enjoyed in its own
  right and isnt something you do to survive
• Interesting how disadvantaged are sometimes
  already expressing themselves in creative terms
  but dont talk of this kind of thing as a route
  out/means of earning a living, whereas BC1s who
  arent expressing themselves in quite the same
  way talk of self-expression as an ultimate goal
• BC1 females more likely to talk about abstract
  notions of friendship/relationships than their
  disadvantaged counterparts
• Younger disadvantaged girls who can really focus
  on peoples appearances often talk of moving into
  beauty as a profession
• I want to have my own beauty store, Ive planned
  on being a beautician since I was 9. 12 14
  girl, disadvantaged
• When talk turns to travel intentions among 13 ,
  disadvantaged more likely to think in terms of
  two week holiday breaks in Mediterranean/Western
  Europe, others more likely to think in terms of
  gap year and worldwide experience

27
7. FEARS

• Already discussed in first presentation, but
  worth reiterating that gun crime and violence
  much more of a real concern/threat for urban
  respondents
• Somebody close to us was murdered by the Peckham
  boys in Deptford, near The Albany, a couple of
  months ago. 12 14 parent, disadvantaged
• Parental fears, unsurprisingly revolve around
  their children or teenagers being exposed to
  drugs, violence, corruption
• Tendency for parents to think that their child is
  likely to be corrupted rather than a corruptor
• Parents recognise that they were far more free
  range as children, were allowed out more on their
  own at a younger age, these days scared of their
  children meeting corrupting influences, or being
  abducted or on the receiving end of or involved
  with violence/crime
• Move from primary to secondary school is a flash
  point for parental concern

28
8. WHAT MAKES PEOPLE LAUGH in real life

• Across 10 sample a sense that elements below
  elicit laughter humour in real life often
  revolves around slapstick or crudity
• Pain, particularly somebody hurting themselves
  unexpectedly
• Transgressive behaviour
• Bodily functions, especially in inappropriate
  settings
• Humiliation
• Gratuitous swearing
• Cussing eg denigrating family members ethnic and
  disadvantaged
• Taking the mickey out of people who have what is
  perceived as an obvious flaw
• Prank calling

29
9. HOW THEY COMMUNICATE WITH THEIR PEERS
Can talk 1 on 1 about private/personal issues
phone interface also allows for discussion of
embarrassing matters e.g. asking someone out on a
date media diaries suggest landline used as much
as mobile for cost reasons
MORE MEANINGFUL
Can talk about private/personal issues, out of
earshot of others
Minority usage but where 1 to 1, more trusted
than MSN
Nature of sitting at PC on own engenders feelings
of privacy some talk of shockingly intimate
discussions on public MSN service for some,
usurping texting
Less personal, more joking, messing around or
discussion about lessons, work etc less private
so more cautious
Potential to misinterpret not private
More frivolous e.g. random silliness, gossip
orientation e.g. asking where a person is NOT
trusted by gang members because of potential to
be misinterpreted sense of significant numbers
moving from texting, despite current portability
issues
LESS MEANINGFUL
30
10. LANGUAGE

• Respondents talk of language on the playground or
  in the street as constantly evolving
• Disadvantaged, ethnic and urban respondents have
  appropriated the language of urban Americans,
  Afro Caribbeans gangsters
• Rural respondents, particularly BC1, have
  appropriated text and MSN speak, as per the last
  chart in this section

31
10. LANGUAGE cont.
32
10. LANGUAGE cont.
33
10. LANGUAGE cont.
34
11. WHAT WORKS IN ADVERTISING TERMS FOR OUR
SAMPLE

• We didnt spend a lot of time over the course of
  interviews probing what works re advertising
  though in perhaps the majority of groups and
  interviews we would spend a few minutes talking
  about advertising from outside of the road safety
  sector that resonated below represents what
  weve extrapolated from those conversations its
  not definitive, more of a starting point for
  discussion and/or additional research
• Across 8 to 16 communications that stand out
  exhibit at least one of the following
• Helps to be advertising in a sector that
  respondents feel close to eg computer games, or
  is in a sector that is very pertinent eg STI
  advertising for 13
• Intelligence, may require a degree of effort to
  decode once decoded offers a sense of reward so
  not just willfully obtuse for its own sake unless
  in a sector such as gaming or new technology
  where obtuseness can be perceived as a virtue in
  communications
• eg current Apple advertising enjoyed by PC
  literate respondents who enjoy how computer
  language is linked to real life
• Doing or showing something markedly different or
  unexpected for the medium or sector can elicit
  stand out although if gratuitous and somehow
  get nuance wrong, will be dismissed 3 network
  executions cited as good example of doing
  something so willfully leftfield and different it
  has stand out
• For older, discretion sometimes important,
  branding not too in your face, no desperate hard
  sell
• Humour always cited across sample, respondents
  always say they like the funny ones
• Obviously humour comes in hundreds of forms
  examples cited currently include Fosters beer ads
  for oldest respondents, GHD which outlines social
  etiquette rules in a kind of commandment
  structure for females, willfully silly Crunchy
  Nut Cereals for youngest, adult/child role
  reversal in Haribo executions, man caught in a
  bear trap in Virgin advertising which manages to
  be both violent and funny, etc

35
11. WHAT WORKS IN ADVERTISING TERMS FOR OUR
SAMPLE

cont.

• A catchy strap line or visual or auditory
  mnemonic that stands for product/brand can help
  stand out eg Phones 4U, Mazda and zoom, zoom
  zoom, Renault shake your
• Visual wow factor can engender stand out eg some
  Sony Playstation, Sony Bravia, Sony bouncing
  balls, and increasingly T Mobile executions
  eg building sinking to the floor etc
  respondents like advertising which looks like
  effort was expended on its creation
• Utilisation of music can enhance appeal, stand
  out
• Most credit given for discovering a tune, least
  credit for appropriating a current pop hit
• Sonic cues can get under respondents skin eg
  Intel for oldest
• Music can be effective because music makes you
  feel all different things. 15 16 girl
• I like the old Hedgehog that teaches kids
  safety, I used to hum the song when I crossed the
  road when I was little. 15 16 girl
• Shock factor can create impact eg dont get
  hooked anti-cigarette advertising talked about
  across sample
• Evolving narrative across a number of executions
  or number of executions around a theme can
  facilitate impact, each new execution serving to
  remind about previous ones
• Females and younger males talk of advertising
  which elicits genuine emotion as having stand out
  eg dog trust advertising with cute dogs which are
  homeless
• The picture of a man with Downs Syndrome and it
  says, you have looked at him longer than an
  employer has, its quite sad, it makes an
  impact, it makes you feel something. 15 16
  girl
• Showing understanding of respondents milieu,
  whether thats normal family life or one of their
  subcultures, or them with their peers etc but
  get nuance wrong and very negative response will
  be elicited

36
11. WHAT WORKS IN ADVERTISING TERMS FOR OUR
SAMPLE cont.

• I hate it when they show normal families saying
  things that they think normal families would say
  but then getting it like its really false like
  Oh no, you have my low fat corn 15 16
  girl
• Advertising that feels overly contrived or
  visibly strains in its attempts to show
  understanding always poorly received
• Adolescent boys being adolescent boys,
  advertising which has semi-clad good looking
  women will always catch their eye, even if
  branding can be problematic and they all merge
  into one
• In online terms, degree of interactivity which
  gives consumer chance to get up close to product
  and engage with it Mini Cooper viral for 15 16
  year old males or takes advantage of the medium
  and reflects it somehow sense that the best
  online communications are more targeted and
  discrete
• 1 or 2 respondents talk about online advertising
  which has an almost transgressive note cutting
  through respondents not sure whether its proper
  or fake advertising eg VW ad on YouTube in which
  Muslim man gets in a car, drives in front of a
  crowd, reaches to push a button
• Disadvantaged/some ethnic talk of standout being
  facilitated by advertising in media that they
  feel ownership of eg Channel U which has status
  of underground/pirate in their culture

37
12. MUSIC

• Overview
• For significant numbers music is background
  rather than something regularly, actively
  consumed
• Soundtracks other activities
• Substantiated when we asked respondents which
  particular songs or acts they like and they
  struggle to identify names beyond genre
  descriptors
• For the majority music is not defining,
  increasingly eclectic tastes are the norm outside
  of disadvantaged and some ethnic
• R n B and hip hop seemingly ubiquitous across
  lots of the sample
• For 14 disadvantaged who are really into music
  Hip Hop has lost relevance and salience, apart
  from UK hip hop a term that would have been an
  oxymoron a few years ago
• Indian pop and Bangra is massive across Asian
  sample though press reports that it is breaking
  out into the mainstream seem unfounded
• Traditional dance music such as house clearly
  descending, music for adults not our sample
  unless its soundtracking films, television
  programmes
• Grime and bashment regularly cited by ethnic and
  disadvantaged in London but seem a London only
  phenomena. Within these circles, represents the
  genuine sound of the underground
• Where interest in music is really marked there is
  sometimes a tendency for preferences to be a
  little less eclectic eg sample who are really
  into grime unlikely to be into rock music, or
  sample into the more esoteric end of indie less
  likely to be into R n B
• At youngest end of sample, High School Musical
  soundtrack is a genuine phenomenon
• Among 9 not surprising to find respondent
  listening to music from the dim and distant past
  as well as the present

38
12. MUSIC cont.

• eg names commonly cited range across likes of
  Jimi Hendrix, Queen absolutely huge still,
  Nirvana, Pink Floyd even Johnnie Cash
• Clearly accessing parental music
• The majority are downloading rather than
  purchasing music although interesting phenomenon
  noted among 1 or 2 indie aficionados which is to
  reject downloading in favour of purchasing
  imbues music with more meaning and resonance when
  its paid for and actively sought out rather than
  passively downloaded also noted that CD artwork,
  lyrics etc are desirable and all part of the
  music package
• More information about specific preferences
  across age breaks can be found in appendix, below
  represents a taster
• 7 9 year olds
• Taste defined by pop music thats in the charts
  eg Girls Aloud, Charlotte Church, Shane Ward,
  smattering of the most accessible end of R n B
  such as Beyonce
• High School Musical enormous
• At oldest end occasional accessible indie rock
  such as The Killers implies older sibling
  influence
• 10 11 year olds
• Evidence that some 10 11 year olds starting to
  get more engaged in music. Pre group activi