Day 065 - 09 Dec 94 - Page 60
1 research. "Pester power", as we have talked about
2 previously, maybe is not a term that certain people feel
3 very comfortable with, but it certainly exists, whatever
4 one might call it.
5
6 Q. Can we look over the page, please, at page 4 of the summary
7 which I take it, though approved by MORI, was written by
8 you?
9 A. Yes, MORI made it very clear and we were in total
10 agreement on this, that we wanted MORI to be happy with
11 what we were saying about reporting their results and
12 conclusions that we might draw and anything that might
13 arise in the discussion. That was important from MORI's
14 point of view as well as being important from the National
15 Food Alliance's point of view.
16
17 Q. You wrote under the discussion on page 4: "The results of
18 MORI's survey clearly shows that parents have strong views
19 about food advertising and children's diets". You have
20 told us there is no gradation of the question as there
21 sometimes is in these polls. I wonder what you base the
22 word "strong" and the word "clearly" on?
23 A. The fact there were some very clear trends that came
24 out from the questions.
25
26 Q. Maybe, but how do you know about the strength of their
27 views?
28 A. Because of the size of number of parents who expressed
29 them.
30
31 Q. How does the number of parents affect the strength of a
32 single parent's or even a group of parents' views?
33 A. Well, I think views that one might want to listen to or
34 otherwise may be the number of people with those views
35 might have some bearing on that.
36
37 Q. You do not know at all, you have no idea what the parents'
38 response might have been secretly. "Do you think there
39 should be tougher restrictions on parents advertising?"
40 "Oh, yes, I suppose so, it depends what you mean". That
41 is what I call a weak positive response. A strong positive
42 response might be -----
43 A. MORI carried out the survey for us. I think if anyone
44 is in a position to judge MORI would be. As I say, MORI
45 were entirely happy with the presentation in this summary.
46
47 Q. Very well. Do you remember, Ms. Dibb, being at a seminar
48 at Peterhouse College, Cambridge I think sometime in July
49 1984?
50 A. Yes, I do.
51
52 Q. Was that seminar run by the Advertising Association?
53 A. It was.
54
55 Q. Yes. Do you remember at or before that seminar being
56 provided with a copy of some research undertaken by The
57 Psychology Business Limited entitled "Influences on
58 Children's Diet"?
59 A. That research was presented, I think, maybe for the
60 first time to an audience beyond its sponsors, I believe,
