Role of Parents as intermediaries between Mass Media and Children's Buying Behaviour in South South Gujarat

The propagation of mass media in South Gujarat, encompassing television, social media, and mobile apps, has obviously increased children’s exposure to commercial messaging. This has deep implications for how children form brand preferences, requests, and buying decisions. In the socio-cultural environment of South Gujarat, parents function as essential intermediaries who sieve, understand, and guide children’s engagement with media content influencing consumer behaviour. This study employs a structured quantitative research design to investigate how mediation strategies of parents in South Gujarat affect the relationship between children’s media exposure and their buying behaviour. Data were gathered through a survey of 350 parents of children aged 7–14 years in urban and semi-urban regions of South Gujarat. Using descriptive statistics, regression, and mediation analysis, findings indicate that parental mediation significantly alters the influence of mass media on children’s consumer behaviour. Active parental guidance, in particular, is associated with reduced impulsive buying and higher advertising literacy among children, while restrictive mediation shows mixed results based on the child’s age and media platform. The study broadens consumer socialization theory within the South Gujarati context and offers actionable insights for policymakers, educators, and marketers in designing responsible media practices. .