The purpose of this study was to examine the socializing effect the viewing of adult-oriented commercials has on young children of differing socioeconomic backgrounds. The subjects, 227 children in the first, second, and third grades, included 109 lower-socioeconomic-level black children and 118 white children representing upper-middle-income families. After viewing a half-hour television program that included six commercials, the children were interviewed about their recall of the commercials and their attitudes toward them. Analysis of the results indicated that the white middle-class children understood commercial intent significantly more often than did children in the other group. The white children were more skeptical of commercials' truthfulness and rejected the idea that people need products or money to be happy. The lower-socioeconomic-level black children did not seem to understand commercial intent, and they perceived commercials as truthful. They tended to recall lifestyle details portrayed in the commercials more than did the white children, and they strongly agreed that products and money are necessary to happiness. (Author/GW)