Week 9 Flashcards
Social Cognitive Theory
Theory of learning through interaction with the environment that involves reciprocal causation of behavior
General Aggression Model
Enactment of aggression is largely based on knowledge structures (scripts, schemas) created by social learning processes
Catharsis (also called sublimation)
The idea that viewing mediated aggression satiates (reduces) people’s natural aggressive drives
no longer accepted- aggression is learned not innate
Imitation
Direct mechanical reproduction of behavior
Identification
a special form of imitation that springs from wanting to be and trying to be like an observed model relative to broader characteristics/qualities
-more lasting and significant of media effects
When does imitative learning occur
-observers are motivated to learn
-cues/elements of behaviors to be learned were present
-performed given behaviors
-one is positively reinforced for imitating those behaviors
Operant (traditional) learning theory
people learn new behaviors when presented with stimuli, they make a response to those stimuli, and the response is reinforced
-new behaviors are learned and added to their behavioral repertoire
Modeling
efficient way to learn a range of behaviors that we wouldn’t experience
Basis of social cognitive theory
Things experienced in your environment (mass media) can affect people’s behavior and the effect is influenced by personal factors of the individual and situation
Social cognition through media representation
- Observational Learning
- Inhibitory Effects
- Disinhibitory Effects
Observational Learning
Consumers can acquire new patterns of behavior by watching such representation
Inhibitory Effects
Seeing a model representation punished for exhibiting a certain behavior decreases likelihood that observers will make that behavior
Disinhibitory Effects
Media representation of reward for prohibited/threatening behavior increased the likelihood that consumers of the representation will make that behavior
Vicarious Reinforcement
Reinforcement that is observed but not directly experienced
-tells us where to place observationally learned behavior is in our behavioral hierarchy
Reinforcement contingencies
The value (positive/negative) associated with a given reinforcer
Behavioral Hierarchy
likelihood of choosing a behavior in a given situation
Social prompting
demonstrating previously learned behavior that is socially acceptable
Aggressive Cues
Cues in media tell viewers when and against whom violence is acceptable
-people who see mediated violence subsequently show higher aggression levels
Cognitive neoassociatonistic perspective
Frequent viewers of violent media prime constructs (hostility for example) making them more likely to be used in behavioral decisions
- reward/punishment
rewarded aggression is more frequently modeled (disinhibitory), while punished aggression is less frequently modeled (inhibitory)
7 contextual variables
- reward/punishment
- consequences
- motive
- realism
- humor
6.identification with media characters
7.arousal
- consequences
mediated violence accompanied by portrayals of negative/harmful consequences produces less modeling (inhibitory)
- motive
Motivated media aggression increases level of modeling while unjustifiable violence decreases viewer aggression
- realism
Realistic media violence produces more real world aggression
- humor
humorously presented media violence leads to greater possibility of viewers behaving aggressively in real life
- identification with media characters
The more viewers identify with the medias characters the more they will model the behaviors demonstrated
- arousal
arousal and emotional attachment to violent characters are likely to result in aggressive behavior
Active theory
viewers (children specifically for violent viewing) actively and consciously work to understand television content
Viewing schema
developed at 2 1/2, allows comprehension of specific tv content conventions
active audience theories
average audience members can routinely resist influence of media content and make it serve their own purpose
Downward Spiral model
individuals tend to seek out violent media that is constant with their aggressive tendencies which reinforced those tendencies
Developmental perspective
learning from media specifies different intellectual and communication stages in a child’s life that influence the nature of media interaction and impact
-age impacts understanding of media content
Videogame violence
players interact in the violence and not just viewers of it
-rehearsal of behaviors increase the amount of modeling
Weapons effect
highly realistic guns in VG increases realism
Similarity identification
observer identification with a character because they share salient characteristics (typically present in social cognitive theory)
Wishful identification
observer desire to emulate the character ( as a role model for future action) or to (imitate specific behaviors)
Strengths of Developmental Perspective
- provides an age-based perspective on media effects
2.respects children as competent self-aware media consumers
3.offers evidence of eventual reduction of harmful effects and increase in positive media influence
Weaknesses of Developmental Perspective
- misused to state as children grow up negative effects decline
- Overestimated children’s confidence and self-awareness as media consumers
- doesn’t appreciate role media use has in disrupting/ influencing development
Social Cognitive Theory Strengths
- Causal link with media and behavior
- Applicable to several viewing and viewer situations
- Has strong explanatory power (rejects catharsis and shows the importance of context cues and environment)
Social Cognitive Theory Weaknesses
- Had demonstration decrease generalization (ex.validity)
- Experimental design overestimates medias power
- Doesn’t explain long-term effects of media consumption
- Underestimates individuals active use of media messages
- Too narrowly focused on individual effects and not cultural effects
Cultivation Theory
TV is a message system that cultivates a worldview that becomes reality
Ice-age analogy by Gerbner
relatively small persuasive influence makes a crucial difference
4 step process to demonstrate TV as a culturally influential medium
- Message system analysis (detailed content analysis)
- Formulation of questions about viewers social realities
- Survey audience
- Compare social realities of light and heavy viewers
Cultivation occurs in two ways
- mainstreaming
- resonance
Mainstreaming
(heavy viewers especially) TV symbols dominate other sources of information and ideas about the world
Resonance
Viewers see things on TV that are consistent/congruent with their own lives and everyday realities
Mainstreaming manifests in two ways
- First order cultivation effects: viewers estimate an occurrence of a phenomenon, making judgments about the world
- Second order cultivation effects: attitudes and beliefs formed as a result of that judgment
3 B’s of TV
TV blurs traditional distinctions of peoples view on the world
TV blends realities
TV blends the mainstream to institutional interests of TV and its sponsors
Cultivation Analysis Strengths
- Combines macro and micro level theories
- provides detailed explanations of TV’s unique role as a storytelling system
- Enables empirical study of humanistic assumptions
- redefines effects as more than observable behavior change
5.links media effects to genre specific content - sees media as important for storytelling and links it to important effects
Cultivation Analysis Weaknesses
- Early research had methodological limits
- assumes homogeneity (similarity) of tv content and embedded worldview
- initially focused on heavy tv users
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