COMM1003 - Chapter 2

industrialization

people went from small communities to a mass society with mass media sources

is everyone socialized similarity or differently?

everyone has been socialized differently

limited effects model

there were not dramatic, predictable, or consistent effects of media messages on the public

payne fund studies

• sponsored a series of 13 studies

• small number of basic themes continuously appeared in movies

• people could remember a large amount of what they had seen in the movies

social influence of movies

• critics say movies may be responsible for moral decay

• movies are a central part of society

• movies have a strong influence on society

who conducted “the people’s choice”?

Paul Lazarsfeld

what did Lazarsfeld find in “the people’s choice”?

found that people who paid the most attention to the media campaign were the least likely to be influenced

opinion leaders

influential community members who spend significant time with media

how does info. flow?

the media to opinion leaders to the rest of the public

what is more important, interpersonal influence or the media?

interpersonal influence

what do campaigns typically reinforce?

existing political predispositions

message effects

• how messages might change people’s behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs

• can take a variety of forms

• most common message effect: short-term learning of info.

attitudinal effects

• changes in feelings about a product, an individual, or an idea based on media content

• easier to convince people to form new opinions than to change existing ones

behavioral effects

• media content can influence buying a product, making a phone call, and voting for a candidate

• most difficult to achieve because people are reluctant to change their behavior

psychological effects

• media content can inspire fear, joy, happiness, and other feelings

• major psychological effect of media = arousal

medium effects

• the particular medium being used to transmit messages

• McLuhan, “the medium is the message”

ownership effects

• the influence of those who own and control the medium

active audience effects

• unique members who respond as individuals, not as undifferentiated members of a mass

what did Harold Lasswell say media does?

media performs 3 social function

what are the 3 social functions?

1. surveillance

2. correlation

3. transmission

surveillance

• media shows us what’s happening in ours and other cultures

• constant flow of info. from the media allows us to survey our surroundings

• surveillance can also serve to undermine society

status conferral

the process by which media coverage makes an individual gain prominence

correlation

the selection, evaluation, and interpretation of events to impose structure on the news

socialization

• falls under transmission

• process of integrating people within society through the transmission of values, social norms, and knowledge to new members of the group

entertainment

communication designed primarily to amuse, even if it serves other functions as well

agenda-setting theory

an alternative explanation that doesn’t minimize the influence of the media on society

social learning theory

• Albert Bandura and Bobo doll

• children mimic the behavior they see

uses and gratifications theory

• looks at the reasons why people choose to spend time with media in terms of wants and needs

• individuals are constantly seeking gratifications, and the media compete to provide them

symbolic interactionism

• george herbert mead

• what holds us together as a culture is our common creation of society through our interactions based on language

what is the biggest source of shared meanings in our world?

mass media

cultivation analysis

• George Gerbner

• watching large amounts of TV cultivates a distinct view of the world that is sharply at odds with reality

• mean world syndrome

critical/cultural approach

examining how meaning is created within society, who controls the media, and the roles the media plays in our lives

critical theory

• WW1 - WW2

• addressed the connection between ideas and values, the context of the development of ideas, and the commodification of culture

• addressed sensitive topics such as media and body image, representation, photo manipulation

Which theory describes individuals who make decisions about media use based on their wants and needs?

• symbolic interactionism

• mean world syndrome

• uses and gratifications theory

• social learning

uses and gratifications theory

Correlation of the news can be accomplished by persuasive communication through ______.

• socialization

• transmission of culture

• surveillance

• editorializing

editorializing

______ are influential community members—friends, family members, and coworkers—who spend significant time with the media.

• opinion leaders

• researchers

• campaign leaders

• the media

opinion leaders

true or false:

Mass media research before 1950 centered on direct and indirect media effects.

true

Fears that media messages would have strong, direct effects on individuals grew out of propaganda campaigns during which of the following conflicts?

• american civil war

• vietnam war

• world war 1

• world war 2

world war 1

Which theory suggests we attempt to share the experience of our feelings by telling others about those feelings?

• uses and gratifications theory

• symbolic interactionism

• mean-world syndrome

• social learning

symbolic interactionism

true or false:

The People’s Choice study found that voters use information from the media instead of information from family members to make up their minds during elections

false

With the rise of ______ in the nineteenth century, we started to see massive migration from the rural areas into the cities and from various countries to the United States.

• world war 2’s effects

• world war 1’s effects

• nazi germany

• the industrial revolution

the industrial revolution

Behavioral effects are generally the most difficult effects to achieve because people are resistant to changing their ______.

• political views

• attitudes

• appearance

• behavior

behavior

Which theory claims that the media have the power to make people think about certain topics based on what they present to the public?

• uses and gratifications

• agenda-setting

• mean world syndrome

• social learning

agenda-setting

true or false:

Media theorist Marshall McLuhan argued for “medium neutrality”; the medium used to communicate did not change how a message is received.

false

A media scholar is trying to find out if the editorial focus of a television station’s news programming changed after it was purchased by a large media conglomerate. What kind of effects is this scholar looking for?

• medium effects

• active audience effects

• ownership effects

• message effects

ownership effects

Which process demonstrates no massive effects of messages from opinion leaders, but a reinforcement of people’s attitudes and opinions?

• interpersonal influence

• transmission model

• two-step flow

• political media campaigns

two-step flow

true or false:

Media researchers have noted that the social relevance of communication can be functional or dysfunctional.

true

Marta watches quite a bit of television, including a lot of crime dramas. She believes that the city she lives in has a much higher crime rate than it actually does. Which theory describes Marta’s behavior?

• symbolic interactionism

• uses and gratifications

• social learning

• mean world syndrome

mean world syndrome