Overview

Dr Young joined the Business School in 2009 when he taught Advertising and Consumer Psychology and Children and Youth Markets.

His first research interests emerged at the University of Edinburgh where he was a member of a research team that looked at language and thinking in children and how these developed during the pre-school period. He obtained his PhD in Hong Kong in Chinese-English bilingualism and developed interests in cross-cultural psychology and how different value systems and languages can frame and influence our thoughts, feelings and behaviour.

At the University of Salford he worked in a Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Psychology teaching and researching in media psychology including advertising and wrote Television Advertising and Children published by Oxford University Press in 1990.

Brian arrived at the University of Exeter in 1989 and was a member of the economic and social psychology research group in the Department of Psychology until 2007. He has also been Editor of Young Consumers; a quarterly journal published by Emerald, since 2006 and is a member of the Editorial Advisory Boards of several journals including the International Journal of Advertising.  He has authored and co-authored five books and published over 80 research papers, reports and book chapters.

Qualifications

• BSc (Edinburgh)
• PhD (Hong Kong)

Back to top

---

External Engagement and Impact

Conferences and invited presentations

• Attended as member of the Scientific Committee and chaired a session on ‘The development in the representation and categorisation of foods by children’ at a conference on ‘Food consumption, child culture and education’ organized by Centre Européen des Produits de l’Enfant (CEPE), 186 rue de Bordeaux, 16025 ANGOULEME CEDEX, France and held at the University of Poitiers, Angoulême from April 1 to April 2, 2010
• Presented on ‘CIAA survey of European Food and Beverage Manufacturers:  Meeting the changing needs of European consumers through reformulation, innovation and labeling’ held in the Charlemagne Building of the European Commission (Health & Consumers Directorate General) in Brussels as part of the Plenary of the EU Platform on Diet, Physical Activity and Health on 2 July 2008
• Gave invited talk on ‘Marketing and children’ at the Industry Day at the British Toy and Hobby Association (BTHA) AGM held at the Thistle Hotel, Marble Arch, London on 24 May 2007
• Gave invited presentation on ‘Weighing the risk of the anti-obesity campaign’ to a conference S07/5 on ‘Managing risk: Sensible precautions or fear of trying’ held at Wilton Park on 26 to 29 March 2007 organised by the Democracy Institute
• Hoeger, I., Young, B. M., & Schroeder, J. E. (2006). Shopping - differences between genders or differences in interests? Paper presented at the 8th ACR Gender Marketing and Consumer Behavior Conference, Edinburgh
• Gave paper on ‘Celebrity endorsement: Theory and experiments with children’ at  the 2nd International Conference on Pluridisciplinary Perspectives on Child and Teen Consumption, Child and Teen Consumption 2006, held at Copenhagen Business School, Denmark on April 27-28 2006
• Gave invited presentation to Marketing Week conference Kids 2006 on ‘Dissecting the modern family dynamic’ held at the Alton Towers Hotel, Staffordshire ST10 4DB on 27 February 2006
• Gave invited presentation to Market Research Society conference on ‘Researching kids in the 21st century’ held at the Mayfair Conference Centre, London W2 on ‘Responsible advertising to kids as consumers’ on 20 February 2006
• Gave an invited presentation on ‘Obesity, children, and marketing’ to a seminar on ‘Ideology and advertising’ as part of an ESRC Research Seminar Series for Critical Marketing held at Warwick Business School, Scarman Road Building Room A1.01, University of Warwick on 21st September 2005
• Gave an invited presentation on ‘Children and advertising’ to a conference on ‘Advertising to children: Responding to the communications and regulatory challenge’ organised by Media and Marketing Europe and held at the Royal Garden Hotel, London W8, UK on Tuesday, 14 June 2005
• Gave an invited presentation on ‘Children and advertising – a subtle view on a complicated issue’ at De Beukenhof near Amsterdam, The Netherlands as part of a ‘National Debate’ on advertising and marketing to children organised by Stichting Reklame Rakkers on Thursday 7 April 2005
• Gave an invited presentation entitled ‘Obesity and the role of advertising’ to a meeting of the ‘Better Business Breakfasts’ organised by the French Chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA) and held at the Press Club, Paris on 29 September 2004
• Gave an invited presentation entitled ‘The role of advertising in children’s food choice’ to the Westminster Diet & Health Forum Keynote Seminar on Advertising to Children and Nutrition and Education held at the Lewis Media Centre, Millbank Tower, Millbank, London SW1P 4RS on 20 May 2004.

External positions

• Editor, Young Consumers

Back to top

---

Teaching

Consumer psychology is not an unknown subject in Business Schools but linking it with commercial communications as is done at Exeter brings a very different flavour to the topic.  Here we are dealing with how people understand and use commercial communications in their everyday lives as consumers.  It is vital to have a systematic understanding of both advertising and consumer research in order to generate consumer insights in business.  Examples of advertising will be discussed in class and students will be encouraged to contribute and deliver presentations.

I am interested in children and the commercial world and children and youth markets is a rapidly developing sector that provides unique opportunities as well as ethical and socially responsible issues for the aware and concerned marketer.  It will provide you with a niche speciality that is in great demand as well as an understanding of how the minds of children work.

Modules

2023/24

Information not currently available

Back to top

---