Media effects Does media content affect society or reflect society?

The Payne Fund Studies n A series of studies of the effect of movies on children's behavior. n They were paid for by The Payne Fund, a private foundation, and performed in the late 1920s and early 1930s.The Payne Fund n They have been criticized as lacking scientific rigor…but…

The Payne Fund Studies n …but … were the first attempt to rigorously study the media. n They were politically significant and were instrumental in the enforcement of the Hays Code.Hays Code u MPAA began strictly enforcing it in 1934 n They are credited with contributing to the demise of Pre-Code film- making in Hollywood.Pre-Code

Immense Popularity of Film

The Payne Fund Studies ( ) n Offshoot of public concern and emergence of social science in the 1920s. n Designed to find out impact of films on children and adolescents, using social scientific methods. n Phase One: Content Analysis by Edgar Dale u Attempted to categorize movies according to most popular themes. u What were the most popular themes from 1920 to 30, accounting for 75% of 1500 films?

Dale’s Movie Categories n Children n Comedy n Crime n History n Love n Mystery n Sex n Travel n Social Propaganda n War

The Payne Fund Studies ( ) n Dale also had coders content analyze films... In “real time” in movie theaters! u Coded for nine types of “social values,” with numerous measured variables under each one: F Nature of American life and characters F Nature of foreign life and characters F Motivation of characters F Emotional appeals to audience F Crime/delinquency/violence F Relations of the sexes F Military situations F Depictions of underprivileged peoples F Deportment

The Payne Fund Studies ( ) n Dale’s diverse findings included this “balance sheet” for 1930: n EmphasizedNot emphasized Portrayals of life in the upper economic strata Life among the middle and lower economic strata Problems of the unmarried and youngProblems of the married, middle-aged, and old Problems of love, sex, and crimeEveryday problems Motifs of escape and entertainmentMotifs of education and social enlightenment Individual and personal goalsSocial goals Physical beautyBeauty of character

The Payne Fund Studies ( ) n Another Phase: Emotional Responses to Romantic or Sexual Content (Dysinger & Rucknick) u Physiological measures used. u Younger children not affected but adolescents were—became more aroused by content.

The Payne Fund Studies ( ) n Another Phase: Effects of Movies on Social Attitudes (Peterson & Thurstone) u Series of experiments involved exposing children and adolescents to films with social messages and measuring before and after attitudes. u One experiment used D.W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation as stimulus—shown to 434 high school children in Illinois.

Effect of Birth of a Nation School children’s attitudes toward Blacks went down, from a mean of 7.46 to 5.95 (on a 0-10 Unfavorable/Favorable scale)... The effect was still apparent 5 months later (Peterson & Thurstone, 1933; also studied impact of Four Sons on attitudes toward Germans)

Reaction… n What inaccurate portrayals of race, gender, religion, etc. are on TV or in movies? n What effect do such portrayals have on people? n What unrealistic ‘living situations,’ ‘relationships,’ ‘relationships’ are there on TV or in movies? n What effect do such portrayals have on people?

The Payne Fund Studies ( ) n Another Phase: Behavioral Effects of Motion Pictures (Blumer) u Used questionnaires and interviews. u Asked respondents to recall instances when they were affected by media. n What are some strengths and weaknesses of this technique? n How have you been affected by media?

The Payne Fund Studies ( ) n Huge role in development of the study of media effects. n Helped establish legacy of fear, or belief that media is powerful and dangerous and might pervert and upset proper social order. n Does this still exist today?

Laswell’s Model of Mass Communication n Who n Says What n In Which Channel n To Whom n With What Effect

Effects Theories n Walter Lippmann: Public Opinion (1922) n We see the world as "pictures in our heads" n Media shape perception of things we have not experienced personally

Powerful Effects Theory n Media have immediate, direct influence n Assumes people are passive and absorb media content uncritically & unconditionally n “Hypodermic Needle” model n “Magic Bullet” model

Minimalist Effects n Paul Lazarsfeld Erie County study (1940) n Mass media had hardly any direct effect n Personal contact more important than media contact n Media effects mostly indirect

Two-step Flow model n Media affect individuals through opinion leaders n Opinion leaders are those who influence others u Clergy, teachers, neighborhood leaders, etc.

Diffusion of Innovations n Everett Rogers—the main developer u Adapted ideas from Gabriel Tarde and from the Hybrid Seed Corn Study (Ryan & Gross) n This theory has been used and studied across many fields: Rural sociology, Medical sociology, Anthropology, Economics, Marketing

Innovation n Innovation = An idea, practice, or object perceived as new by an individual or other unit of adoption n The Diffusion of Innovations Theory attempts to predict adoption of innovations... Typically, the adoption follows a standard pattern:

The Classic S-Shaped Adoption Curve

The corresponding Classic Bell-Shaped Adopters Curve

Many studies have looked at how these groups differ: Innovators are highly cosmopolite and open to new things. Early adopters tend to be opinion leaders. Early majority provide “ legitimization ” of the innovation. Late majority are skeptical. Laggards put trust in the status quo.

Individual Differences and Adoption n Rogers originally identified key social indicators (demographics) as related to innovativeness: u SES (socio-economic status) u Education n Atkin, Neuendorf, & Jeffres (1998; 2003), studying adoption of audio information services and digital TV, identified a trend: u Attitudinal and communication variables more important than demographics

Individual Differences and Adoption n Blake et al. (2004 – 2009) identified national or cultural differences in factors that seem to affect adoption of online shopping; e.g.: u In Poland, “perceived newness” is a positive factor u In Greece, online shopping is seen as highly compatible with past practices (catalog shopping)

The Role of Opinion Leaders n Opinion Leadership was first identified by Lazarsfeld, Berelson, and Gaudet in their 1944 book The People’s Choice n Reported on first (1940) in a series of studies of voters in Erie County, Ohio u Unexpectedly found a Two-Step Flow of communication about the presidential race... F Mass Media  Opinion Leaders  Opinion Followers u A combination of media and interpersonal channels resulted in information and influence re the election

Status Conferral n Media coverage can create prominence for issues & people Agenda Setting n Maxwell McCombs & Don Shaw n Media tell people what to think about – but not what to think

Media can: n Create awareness n Establish priorities n Perpetuate issues

Narcoticizing dysfunction n Media do not energize people into taking action n Media lull people into passivity by overwhelming them with information n People deceive selves into believing they’re involved when they’re actually only informed

Cumulative Effects Theory n Media influence is gradual over time n Effect is often powerful Spiral of Silence (Noelle-Neumann) n Vocal majority intimidates others into silence

Focus on the audience n 1940s challenge to audience passivity

Uses & Gratifications n People choose media that meet their needs & interests Needs such as: n Surveillance n Diversion n Socialization

Surveillance n Media provide info about what’s going on n Both news & entertainment

Diversion Media as entertainment n Stimulate n Relax n Release

Socialization n Mass media can help initiate people into society n And help them fit in n Demonstrate dominant behaviors and norms n “Observational learning”

Role modeling n Imitative behavior n Impact can be negative or positive ("prosocial”)

Socialization via eavesdropping n Children learn about adult topics by seeing them depicted in media

Parasocial interaction n False sense of participating in dialogue n Communication is actually one- way

Consistency theory n Individuals exercise control over media’s effects on them n People choose media & messages consistent with their existing views & values Selective: n Exposure n Perception n Retention & Recall

Selective Exposure n People choose some media messages over others n People ignore messages that contradict their beliefs

Selective Perception n People tend to hear what they want or expect to hear

Selective retention & recall n People retain & recollect some media messages and not others

Bottom line: n Individuals have a large degree of control over how the mass media affect them … but n Propaganda Model – do recipients know when they’re exposed? n ‘let the buyer beware’ – but…

War of the Worlds Why did – OR ‘did’ the Orson Welles broadcast have such a powerful effect on its audience? War of the World’s, 1938 Mercury Radio Theatre Radio Drama on CBS, Mars invasion, panic Newspapers’ role in ‘myth’

The War of the Worlds Broadcast, 1938 n Halloween eve—CBS radio show Mercury Theater on the Air (narrated by Orson Welles) broadcast an adaptation of H. G. Wells’ novel War of the Worlds. n Around 6 million heard the broadcast. n More than 1 million were frightened or disturbed.

Orson Welles on the air

Aftermath

The War of the Worlds Broadcast n Aftermath studied by sociologist Hadley Cantril. n Why did it frighten some and not others? n 1) Characteristics of the Broadcast u Highly realistic u Dramatic excellence n 2) Characteristics of Affected Listeners u Naive, rural, low SES country u Had faith in broadcasting n 3) Situational Variables (maximized influence) u Tuning in late u Poor reception from competing stations

The War of the Worlds Broadcast n BUT... n Research company that night counted 2% audience n Many in later years said they heard it that night, but is that true n The War of the Worlds ‘effect’ may be a very different kind of study about society than about media effects

Determining Causality n Correlation means that 2 or more variables coexist n Causality means that one variable causes another n Beware of bad science (studies purporting causality)

X causes Y n Anecdotal evidence n ‘measure whether 55 mph gives better MPG than 75 mph’ n Measure how? Variables? n Measure effects of violence on kids n Measure how? Variables? n ###