Abstract:

This paper discusses findings of the most extensive research on the media usage of kids aged from 8 to 15 years ever carried out in Germany. To provide as complete a picture as possible, media usage habits were studied in a 1600 case representative diary survey, including all other activities during the day as well. The complex design of the study with three visits and two interviews with each interviewee made it possible to follow memory traces of editorial content and advertising. These quantitative findings are complemented with a brief summary of qualitative research on the functions that media have for kids this age.