exam 3 Flashcards
what is mass communication?
the dissemination of messages from one person or group to large numbers of people via media including tv, radio, computers, newspapers, magazines, billboards, video games, etc
what is the cultivation theory?
regular exposure to media affects attitudes, beliefs, & judgments of reality
-media has the greatest impact on people’s belief when messages are consistent, people consume large amounts of media, & people have limited knowledge about the topic
what is the third-person effect?
the perception that one is less susceptible to the effects of media portrayals than others
what is the social cognitive theory?
knowledge acquisition is acquired by observing others
-people observe others perform behaviors & experience the rewards or punishments of that behavior
-observing others guides an individual’s future behavior
-media may guide one’s understanding of relationships & social norms
what is the agenda-setting theory?
attention given to issues by the media influences the public’s perceptions of the importance of issues
-news media sets the agenda
-media tells us what to think about but not how to think
-more macro-level
what is framing?
suggests that media not only sets an agenda but also selects, emphasizes, excludes, & elaborates on particular elements of a news story
-information on a more micro-level
what is pathologizing the human body?
making natural functions seem weird & unnatural
what is the internalization of the thin ideal?
the extent to which an individual cognitively “buys into” socially defined ideals of attractiveness & engages in behaviors designed to produce an approximation of these ideals
what are the effects of media & body image on women?
-internalization of the thin ideal
-body dissatisfaction & eating disorders
what are the effects of media & body image on men?
males exposed to ideal body images are likely to be depressed & have muscle dissatisfaction
what are the media portrayals of sex?
-the number of shows w/ depictions or implications of sex has doubled since 1997/1998
-not a lot of depictions of safer sex:
~often shown as humiliating or humorous
~boys often shown as sexually gluttonous
~girls often shown as responsible for sexual protection
what are the changes in media portrayals of sex?
-more portrayals of same-sex couples on prime time
-decrease in the amount of teen sex portrayed
-slightly fewer acts of sexual aggression
what is the relationship between adolescents, sex, & the media?
-as of 2010, adolescents aged 15-18 spend about 7.5 hours a day on media
-adolescents often rely on inadequate sources of sexual health info
-media popular w/ adolescents is commonly filled w/ sexual content, very little which is portrayed accurately
-consequences: cultivation theory & viewing large amounts of sex on tv may lead to adolescents having sex at a younger age
what are statistics about alcohol beverage ads?
-in 2009, youth aged 21 & under were exposed to 71% more alcohol ads than in 2001
-in a typical year, youth see an estimated 67,656 more alcohol ads than adults
-teens who are regularly exposed to positive media messages about drinking are more likely to drink heavily & start drinking at an early age
-alcohol depictions in reality tv glamorize & normalize over-consuming alcohol
-people of color are disproportionately shown drinking compared to other cast members on reality tv
what is entertainment education?
the intentional placement of educational content in entertainment messages
-transportation & identification
what is transportation?
convergent process, where all mental systems & capacities become focused on events occurring in the narrative
-more susceptible to persuasive messages
what is identification?
the emotional & cognitive process by which a viewer takes on the role of a character in the narrative
-if you identify w/ a character, you’re more likely to feel good when something good happens to them, bad when something bad happens to them, & are more likely to uphold the attitudes they have
what are health promotion campaigns?
systematic efforts to influence people to engage in health-enhancing behaviors; may involve the use of many communication channels, from face-to-face communication to mass media
what are health prevention campaigns?
systematic efforts to influence people to engage in preventive behaviors or reject an undesirable behavior
what are the aspects of exemplary campaigns?
-get to know the audience
-invest in communication infrastructures
-make healthy options available
-take a multimedia approach
-set clear goals & measure your success
how do you plan a health campaign?
-come up w/ a behavior you want the audience to accept, reject, modify, or abandon
-identify a priority audience that can benefit the most from the campaign
-understand the channels you’ll use to disseminate the carefully crafted messages to the priority audience
-evaluate the success of the campaign & make changes accordingly
what is to accept?
to engage in a behavior someone’s not currently engaging in
what is to reject?
to not engage in a behavior someone is currently not engaging in (preventive)
what is to modify?
replacing a behavior w/ a different behavior
what is to abandon?
quitting an undesirable behavior
what is the first step in designing a health campaign?
defining the situation & potential benefits
-What do you want people to do?
-How does the behavior benefit people?
-Who currently participates in the behavior? Why?
-Who doesn’t currently participate in the behavior? Why?
what is the second step in designing a health campaign?
analyzing & segmenting the audience
-What methods can I use to learn about my audience?
~questionnaires, focus groups, interviews
what is segmenting the audience?
identify specific groups who are alike in important ways & whose involvement is important to the purpose of the campaign
what are questionnaires?
a set of printed or written questions w/ a choice of answers, devised for the purposes of a survey or statistical study
what are focus groups?
a small number of people who respond to questions posed by a moderator
what is the third step in designing a health campaign?
establishing campaign goals & objectives
-What exactly do we want people to start/stop/continue doing?
-When & for how long should people perform this health behavior to experience health benefits?
-How will we know if our campaign is successful?
what are objectives?
clear & measurable terms that state exactly what a campaign’s designers hope to achieve
what is the fourth step in designing a health campaign?
selecting channels of communication
what is a channel?
a means of communicating information, either directly (in person) or indirectly (via technology)
-characteristics: reach, specificity, impact
what is reach?
the number of people who will be exposed to a message via a particular channel
what is specificity?
how accurately the message can be targeted to a specific group of people
what is impact?
how influential a message is likely to be
what is the elaboration likelihood model?
a dual-process model aimed to describe how individuals process messages & change attitudes
-central & peripheral route
-which route one takes when presented information is based on one’s motivation to think critically about the information presented & one’s ability (relevant knowledge, time, & resources) to process an argument