Lule Chapter 2: Studying media

Question 1

theory

Answer 1

an idea or system of ideas intended to explain something– to study media effects, analysts needed a theory

Question 2

direct effects theory of media

Answer 2

assumes that media audiences passively accept media messages and exhibit predictable reactions in response to those messages– largely abandoned in modern day (ex: War of the Worlds radio broadcast)

Question 3

two-step flow theory of media

Answer 3

media influences people who, in turn, influence you– indirect effects of media (discredited direct effects theory)

Question 4

agenda-setting

Answer 4

mass media determine the issues that are of most importance to society and thus determines the issue’s place within the public agenda– if media spends time talking about it, we spend time thinking about it

Question 5

users and gratifications theory of media

Answer 5

consumers use the media to satisfy specific needs or desires– many people use the internet to seek information, entertainment, or to communicate

Question 6

symbolic interactionalism theory of media

Answer 6

people learn to interpret, communicate, and give meaning to the world through their interactions with others, and these interactions take place through the use of symbols– words, images, and symbols share important cultural meanings

Question 7

spiral of silence theory of media

Answer 7

those who hold a minority opinion often silence themselves to prevent social isolation– if you have a view that’s less mainstream, you’re less likely to share it with your peers because it’s less socially expected

Question 8

media logic theory of media

Answer 8

common media formats and styles shape how the media create shows and programs, and also how people understand those shows and programs

Question 9

cultivation analysis theory of media

Answer 9

heavy exposure to media causes individuals to develop, or cultivate, a perception of reality based on the most repetitive and consistent messages of a medium– the “mean world syndrome”

Question 10

the “mean world syndrome”

Answer 10

when watching violent TV or playing violent video games, consumers believe violence to be more likely to happen to them

Question 11

content analysis (research method)

Answer 11

a research technique that involves analyzing the TRENDS in media, in which researchers hope to understand the people who created the content and the people who consume it

Question 12

archival research (research method)

Answer 12

focuses on reviewing historical documents and analyzes older media

Question 13

surveys (research method)

Answer 13

descriptive survey finds the current state of things (public opinion or preference) while analytical survey finds out why a particular situation exists (answering hypothesis about media)

Question 14

social role analysis (research method)

Answer 14

examines various individuals in the media and analyzes the type of roles that each play– people play roles in their daily lives to navigate between responsibilities (ex: analyze media for the roles depicted for women)

Question 15

depth interviews (research method)

Answer 15

allowing researchers to ask a study participant specific questions to gain a fuller understanding of the participant’s perceptions and experiences

Question 16

focus groups (research method)

Answer 16

Allows participants to establish a group dynamic that more closely resembles that of normal media consumption

Question 17

rhetorical analysis (research method)

Answer 17

closely examining the “styles” used by different media and attempting to understand the kinds of messages those styles convey

Question 18

experiments (research method)

Answer 18

comparing a control group to a test group to measure a key element about experiences and effects involving media use

Question 19

ethnography/ participant observation (research method)

Answer 19

researchers try to become a part of the group they are studying

Question 20

stereotypes

Answer 20

ordered, more or less consistent picture of the world, to which our habits, our tastes, our capacities, our comforts, and our hopes have adjusted themselves– incomplete picture of the world