Exam 2 Flashcards
Agenda Setting Theory
Repeated news coverage of an issue over time raises the importance of that issue in public mind
Agenda Setting assumes that…
the public does not have the ability to know all and must rely heavily on media
Agenda settings mode
if an issue is repeated (frequently) covered by the media people will think about that issue more
Unobtrusive issues
those we have little or no personal experience with
obtrusive issues
those that public can experience directly
Issue obtrusiveness
third variable (whether an issue is obtrusive or unobtrusive alters the relationship)
Need for cognition
basic level of interest in actively seeking out information
high need for cognition
actively seeking out information and critically process news
low need for cognition
passive news consumers; rely on shortcuts to get information
Frame
a central organizing idea
value of frames
supplies context, which simplifies the interpretation of that issue
Hostile Media Perception
viewers who hold strong views about an issue will perceive neutral media coverage as biased
Media Hybridity
In hybrid media enviorment, genres that were once uniformly enforced are now murky and contested
News Desert
a community with limited access to credible and comprehensive news
Goal of persuasion
to change or reinforce attitudes and behaviors
Persuasion
Communication with the goal of persistent change of attitudes and behaviors
Elaboration Likelihood Model
Prediction: There are two main routes by which people can be persuaded
2) Central
3) Peripheral
Central Route
motivated to process the message, pays close attention, knows a message is their, scrutinize the message
Peripheral Route
NOT motivated, NOT paying close attention, doesn’t try and scrutinize the message
How does the peripheral route make judgements?
1) Source credibility
2) Source attractiveness
3) Emotional response: humor & fear
Third Person Effect
People overestimate the influence of media on others, and underestimate the influence of media on themselves
ex: you’re obsessed w social media, not me
Why does the third person effect occur?
Self enhancement & Illusion of personal invulnerability
Self enhancement
We have a tendency to perceive ourselves in ways that make us look good or at least better than other people
Ex: you think im better than you? its because i am
Illusion of personal invulnerability
We have the tendency to be overconfident about the change of experiencing a positive event (or avoiding a negative one)
Health Campaigns (entertainment education)
Persuasive messages that encourage people to adopt healthy behaviors or reject unhealthy behaviors
(health campaigns often use emotional appeals)
Ex: Elmo teaching kids to brush their teeth
Fear Appeals
Fear Appeals are effective if they can convice audience severity of a threat, their vulnerability to a threat, and their ability to respond effectively
Ex: drunk driving commercial
Guilt Appeals
Guilt appeals induce a feeling that we’ve done something wrong by failing others or not completing an obligation
Ex: children in a commercial talking about their parents smoking might influence parents to stop smoking
Persuasive Framing
Selection, exclusion, and emphasis in persuasive message to accomplish attitude or behavioral goals
(ex: vitamin water not mentioning sugars or diet sweeteners)
Counter marketing
Using marketing tactics to challenge advertising messages for unhealthy products
Reactance Theory
Prediction: If someone perceives persuasive pressure they will be motivated to regain freedom by doing what the persuasive message tells them NOT to do
Explanation: We don’t like to feel that our free choice is threatened
Entertainment Education
Def: Inserting health messages designed to change behaviors into entertainment
Benefits and Drawbacks of Entertainment Education
- If audience likes or looks up to the main character of the program and the message is central to the plot, the message will be more persuasive
- However, intended goal of the message may not correctly reach the audience; humor can make the health behavior message more difficult to identify
Ad Targeting
The practice of targeting specific groups or individuals with persuasive messages through the use of demographic or psychographic information
Demographic Information
Variables used to categorize people by life characteristics: race, gender, age, education level, income
EX: White married woman lives in AZ
Targeted Food Ads
Television targeted to Black and Spanish children that includes ads for more fast food and sugar-sweetened beverages
(Also works for billboards in predominately black or latino areas)
Psychographic Information
Variables used to reflect personality values, attitudes, and behavior
EX: Person prefers cats over dogs
Algorithm
The set of rules a computer uses to complete a task
Social Displacement
People who use the internet will have less time to spend with the people around them, and will get fewer benefits from their social networks
(negative effects all around)
Social Augmentation
People who use internet to communicate will expand their social networks and get increased benefits
(positive effects all around)
Social Compensation
For people with smaller social networks offline, the internet will increase their sense of connection; no effects for people who already have bigger networks offline
(both negative and positive effects)
Digital Divide
Disparities in ACCESS to the internet and digital technology
Usage Divide
Disparities in HOW PEOPLE USE the internet and digital technology
Digital Media Affordances
the possibilities for interaction between users and their environment (including media)
Transmission (affordance)
All users can broadcast messages to individuals or public
Persistence (affordance)
Online expressions are automatically recorded and archived
Replicability (affordances)
Content can be easily duplicated
Scalability/Spread (affordance)
The potential visibility of content
Searchability (affordance)
Content in networked publics can be accessed through search
Personalization
Content can be micro-targeted to users based on characteristics and past online behaviors
Ex: cookies
Portability (affordance)
Many digital devices can be easily transported and carried
Filter Bubble
An enviorment, especially an online enviorment, in which people are exposed to only opinions and information that conforms to their existing beliefs
Social Capital
The benefits we gain from having social connections; access to resources and information
What are the two types of social capitals?
1) Bridging Social Capital
2) Bonding Social Capital
Bridging Social Capital
weak ties among people who are less homogenous
Bonding Social Capital
strong ties among people who are more homogenous
Context Collapse
the flattening out of multiple distinct audiences in one’s social network, such that people from different context become part of a singular group of message recipients
Ex: a wedding, a bunch of different social circles come together for one event
Meta-Analysis
A type of research study that analyzes findings from studies that have already been completed; average results across many studies to understand research trends
Catharsis Theory
consuming violent media decreases violent behavior, and releases violent energy
ex: listen to sad song, scream cry into pillow
Priming
Exposure to a stimulus influences the way we think or behave in another context
Ex: speaking with someone about climate change might have them connecting climate change with “severe weather” thoughts
Effect Size
A statistical tool to determine the magnitude, or size, of an effect. Also known as “practical significance”
Social Learning Theory
1) Prediction: If we observe violent or aggressive behavior, we are likely to model it in our own lives
2) Explanation: When we observe rewarded or punished for their behavior, we learn vicariously about how we should behave in similar situations
Bobo Doll Experiment
Treatment Group: Watched an adult model attack a doll
Control Group: Watched an adult play with other toys and ignore the doll
Identification: Children and younger people are more likely to identify with a wide variety of characters (Identification lessens with age)
Abstractive Modeling
Observing models to learn knowledge and skills to adapt for future use in similar situations (not imitation, adaptation)
Ex: Bobo Doll experiment
Ex: the son in big daddy throwing a stick in front of a runner because his dad did it and got a positve reaction
Vicarious Reinforcement
Is the behavior you observe punished or rewarded?
Inhibitory Effects
Seeing behaviors punished in media teaches us to model those behaviors
Ex: truth campaign
Disinhibitory Effects
Seeing rewards for behaviors that is considered negative makes us more likely to model that behavior
Ex: bullying in a movie will make a child think it is okay to bully someone in reality
Contextual Factors
Characteristics of a situation or an individual that determines whether an observed aggressive behavior is likely to be modeled
Social Aggression
A type of aggression that damages a target’s self-esteem or social standing
(This can include gossip, dirty looks, etc). Includes indirect (like spreading rumor) and direct acts of aggression (verbal attacks)
Ecological Validity
The extent to which a study represents the real world
Accumulative Effects
the effects of media consumption over time
ex: agenda settings (if an issue is repeatedly covered by the media people will think more about the issue)
Cultivation Theory
Media images mold society by the long-term presentation of relatively uniform visions of social reality
Ex: Parents watching a show with a lot of crime and then warning the kids about potential crime
Efficacy
Whether we can or cannot do something?
Ex: in video games we can fly, in reality we cannot
