• Chapter 13 • Effects• Studying the Effects of the Electronic MediaScientific Methods• Experimental methods: – in controlled laboratory experiments• Cause and effect conclusions possible– natural field conditions• Not as controlled• Outside influences• Survey methods: – Difficult if not impossible to show cause and effect – only correlations • Subjects sampled once • Longitudinal – different samples over a continuing period of time• Panel study - same sample studied over period of time• Studying the Effects of the Electronic Media• Survey method cont.• Content analysis: systematic method for analyzing and classifying communication content– Cannot be used to draw a conclusion without an audience study• Meta-analysis: looks at a number of existing studies about a similar topic and summarizes the main findings using statistical procedures that highlight what results are all about– Critics complain that meta-analysis can oversimplify complex patterns of results• Theories of Media Effects• Hypodermic Needle Theory: “shooting” beliefs into people’s minds– Critics claim theory is too simplistic• Limited-Effects Theory: – Media does not have direct influence on audience. – Influence over attitude change is filtered by several factors. • Two Step Flow Theory– Opinion Leaders– Klapper’s Law of Minimal Effects • Critics claim Klapper’s research was done primarily before TV began dominate media• Klapper’s Minimal Effects Theory• Communication "...does not serve as a necessary and sufficient cause of audienceeffects, but rather functions among and through a nexus of mediating factors and influences."• Theories of Media Effects• Selective Exposure & Congruence Theory• Selective Perception– Boomerang Effect• Agenda setting• Specific-Effects Theory: – Media competes with or complements • other sources of influence such as friends, family, and teachers– Under certain circumstances specific media can • influence certain members of the audience• Video Violence• Video ViolenceHistory• Concern about impact of media violence – surfaced with 1930s gangster films• Video violence – became issue in 1950s• Urban violence of 1960s – sparked new interest• U.S. Surgeon General’s Office studies– 1982 update reinforces conclusions about link with aggressive behavior– 1992 TV networks under increased pressure to reduce violence• Issue embedded with subject of the V-Chip and 1996 Telecommunica-tions Act• Video ViolenceResearch Evidence• Catharsis Theory: watching would reduce viewers’ aggressiveness• Stimulation Theory: watching prompts aggression– Experiment/Study results tend to support stimulation theory: individuals show increase in levels of aggression after viewing violence on TV– Longitudinal (survey) studies in U.S. and Europe have similar results: • viewing TV violence causes viewer aggression– Field experiments - less consistent results than “lab” experiments, but still tend toward support of stimulation theory.• Simplified Diagram for Catharsis vs. Stimulation Experiment• Survey Design Examining Effects of TV Violence• Video and ViolenceResearch findings• Consensus of findings:– TV violence is a cause of • aggressive tendencies in viewers– Impact of TV is affected by • many other factors (such as age, sex, family interaction)– While there are apparently effects of TV violence on aggression • tends to be small• Videogame Violence• Notes:– 70 percent of all US households have a game console or handheld game device• Lab experiments show some short-term effect in the increase of violent behavior after video game sessions• Other studies have indicated at least some apparent limited affect on aggressive behavior• Videogame Violence• First-person shooter – new breed of ultra-violent games in early 1990s (e.g. Doom)– Games popular with boys ages 8 to 13– Official interest raised after Columbine tragedy• Videogame Violence• No long-term longitudinal studies on effects of playing violent games– Research still at a formative level• Video/computer games have small effect on subsequent aggression – – effect smaller than TV• Effects of game play are – same on young and old• Violence against humans – seems to produce stronger effects than sports-related violence• Perceptions of Reality• Cultivation Theory: the more one is exposed to TV, – the more likely that person’s construction of social reality will reflect TV and less of reality.• Additional studies say other factors (age, sex, race, education) may have an impact– Mainstreaming: heavy viewing will result in similar attitudes among subgroups– Resonance: double-dose from TV and reality (heavy TV viewers in crime areas)– Long-term cumulative exposure to TV cultivates a small but significant acceptance of ideas and perceptions that are similar to the world portrayed on TV• A Mean and Scary World? Perceptions of RealityCultivation Studies Summary:• Motivation for viewing:– low-involvement viewing may be more potent than planned viewing• Amount of experience with the topic: – Resonance not withstanding, cultivation works best when audience has only indirect contact with the topic in question• Perceived realism of the content: – cultivation may be enhanced when viewer perceives the content to be realistic• Stereotyping• Gender Stereotyping• Racial Stereotypes– Italians generally depicted as Mafia.– Asians as invaders or Karate experts.– Hispanics and African Americans comics or gang members.– Native Americans as savages, victims, cowards, medicine men.– People from the Middle East as terrorists or oil sheks.• Although Latinos accounted for 9 percent of the U.S. population, a Center for Media and Public Affairs study said they comprised 1 percent of the all characters portrayed in the 1992-93 television season. • In comparison, African Americans, who represent 12 percent of the population, accounted for 17 percent of all TV characters.• The Latino Media Gap: A Report on the State of Latinos in U.S. Media, June 2014– Latino talent in top movie and television programming is extremely limited (less than two percent) and not increasing at a rate near the rise of the U.S. Latino population.• Stereotypes• Have a negative effect, because they tend to reinforce society's negative image of certain classes of