Chapter 13: Theories and Effects of Mass Communication Flashcards
(110 cards)
1
Q
What are some arguments made by oeioke who think media have limited/minimal effects?
A
- It’s make believe, ppl know it’s not real 2. It’s only for play/entertainment 3. the media holds a mirror to society and reflect the status quo 4. they only reinforce existing beliefs 5. Media only reflects on important issues
2
Q
What is the “early window”?
A
the idea that media give children a window on the world before they have the critical and intellectual ability to judge what they see
3
Q
What does it mean to willingly suspend disbelief?
A
when we willingly accept as real what is put before us
4
Q
What are micro level effects?
A
effects of media on individuals
5
Q
What are macro level effects?
A
media’s widescale social and cultural impact`
6
Q
What is critical research?
A
asking larger questions abour what kind of nation we are building, what kind of people we are becoming
7
Q
What is administrative research?
A
asking questions about the immediate, observable influence of mass communication
8
Q
What is the transmissional perspective?
A
seeing media as senders of information for the purpose of control
9
Q
What is the ritual perspective?
A
seeing media as central to the “maintenance of society in time”
10
Q
What are mass communication theories?
A
explanations and predictions of social phenomena that attempt to relate mass communication to various aspects of our personal and cutural lives or social systems
11
Q
What is cultivation analysis?
A
the idea that people’s idea of themselves, their world and their place in it are shaped and maintained primarilythrough television
12
Q
What is attitude change theory?
A
theory that explais how people’s attitudes are formed, shaped and changed and how those attitudes influence behavior
13
Q
What are some important ideas to remember when understanding mass communication theory?
A
- there is no one mass communication theory 2. mass communication theories are often borrowed from other sciences 3. mass commxn theories are human constructions 4. mass commxn theories are dynamic
14
Q
What are middle range theories?
A
theories that explain or predict specific, limited aspects of the mass communication process
15
Q
Why is mass communication theory particularly open to evolving ideas?
A
- advances in technology/introduction of new media 2. calls for control or regulation 3. protecting democracy andcultural pluralism
16
Q
What is mass society theory?
A
the idea that the media are corrupting influences that undermine the social orger and that “average” people are defenseless against their influence
17
Q
What is hypodermic needle theory?
A
the idea that media are a dangerous drug that can directly enter a person’s system
18
Q
What is magic bullet theory?
A
the idea from mass society theory that media are a powerful “killing force” that directly penetrates a person’s system
19
Q
What is grand theory?
A
a theory designed to explain all aspects of a given phenomenon (ex. mass society theory)
20
Q
What are limited effects theories?
A
the idea that media influence is limited by individual differences, social categories, and personal relationships
21
Q
What is two step flow theory?
A
the idea that media’s influence on people’s behavior is limited by opinion leaders who pass the information onto opinion followers
22
Q
What are opinion leaders?
A
people who initally consume meda content, interperet in light of their own values and beliefs and then pass it on to opinon followers
23
Q
What are opinion followers?
A
people who consume media that has been passed on by opinion leaders
24
Q
What is dissonance theory?
A
the idea that when confronted by new or conflicting information people experience a kind of mental discomfort/dissonance
25
What are selective processes?
processes that help us "select" what information we consume, remember, and interpret in personally important and idiosyncratic ways
26
What is selective exposure/attention?
the process by which people expose themselves to or attend to only those messages consistent with their preexisting attitudes and beliefs
27
What is selective retention?
the idea that people remember best and longest those messages that are consistent with their prexisting attitudes and beliefs
28
What is selective perception?
the prediction that people will interpret messages in a manner consistent with their preexisting attitudes and beliefs
29
What is reinforcement theory?
Joseph Klapper's idea that if any media have any impact at all, it is the direction of reinforcement
30
What is the uses and gratifications approach?
claims that the media do not do things to people, rather people do things with media; influence of media is what people allow it to be
31
What is agenda setting?
theory that argues that media doesn't tell us what to think but rather what to think about
32
What is dependency theory?
idea that media's power is a function of audience members' dependency on media and their content
33
What is social cognitive theory?
the idea that people learn through observation
34
What is modeling?
people copying the behaviors that they see
35
What is imitation?
the direct replivation of an observed behaviour
36
What is identification?
a special form of imitation in which observers do not copy exactly what they have seen but make a more generalized response
37
What is observational learning?
a type of learning where observers can learn new behaviors simply by seeing them
38
What are inhibitory effects?
seeing a model punished for behavior reduces the likelihood that the observer will perform that behavior
39
What are disinhibitory effects?
seeing a model rewarded for prohibited or threatening behavior increases the likelihood that the observer will perform that behavior
40
What is critical cultural theory?
the idea that media operate primarily to justify and support the status quo at the expense of ordinary people
41
What is neo-Marxist theory?
the theory that people are opporessed by those who control the culture, the superstructure, as opposed to the base
42
What is the Frankfurt School of media theory?
the approach that sees consumption of art as a means to elevate people toward a better life
43
What is british cultural theory?
theory of elites' domination over culture and its influence on bounded cultures
44
What is news production research?
the study of how economic and other influences on the way news is produced distort and bias news coverage towardd those in power
45
What is meaning making perspective?
the idea that audience members use media content to create meaning
46
What is symbolic interaction?
the idea that symbols are learned through interaction and then mediate that interaction
47
What is product positioning?
the perception of products as symbols beyond the product's basic functrion via advertisement
48
What is social construction of reality theory?
theory that argues that ppl who share a culture also share an "ongoing correspondence" of meaning
49
What are symbols?
things that have "objective" meanings
50
What are signs?
things that have "subjective" meanings
51
What are typification schemes?
collections of meanings assigned to some phenomenon or situation
52
What are some arguments made by oeioke who think media have limited/minimal effects?
1. It's make believe, ppl know it's not real 2. It's only for play/entertainment 3. the media holds a mirror to society and reflect the status quo 4. they only reinforce existing beliefs 5. Media only reflects on important issues
53
What is the "early window"?
the idea that media give children a window on the world before they have the critical and intellectual ability to judge what they see
54
What does it mean to willingly suspend disbelief?
when we willingly accept as real what is put before us
55
What are micro level effects?
effects of media on individuals
56
What are macro level effects?
media's widescale social and cultural impact`
57
What is critical research?
asking larger questions abour what kind of nation we are building, what kind of people we are becoming
58
What is administrative research?
asking questions about the immediate, observable influence of mass communication
59
What is the transmissional perspective?
seeing media as senders of information for the purpose of control
60
What is the ritual perspective?
seeing media as central to the "maintenance of society in time"
61
What are mass communication theories?
explanations and predictions of social phenomena that attempt to relate mass communication to various aspects of our personal and cutural lives or social systems
62
What is cultivation analysis?
the idea that people's idea of themselves, their world and their place in it are shaped and maintained primarilythrough television
63
What is attitude change theory?
theory that explais how people's attitudes are formed, shaped and changed and how those attitudes influence behavior
64
What are some important ideas to remember when understanding mass communication theory?
1. there is no one mass communication theory 2. mass communication theories are often borrowed from other sciences 3. mass commxn theories are human constructions 4. mass commxn theories are dynamic
65
What are middle range theories?
theories that explain or predict specific, limited aspects of the mass communication process
66
Why is mass communication theory particularly open to evolving ideas?
1. advances in technology/introduction of new media 2. calls for control or regulation 3. protecting democracy andcultural pluralism
67
What is mass society theory?
the idea that the media are corrupting influences that undermine the social orger and that "average" people are defenseless against their influence
68
What is hypodermic needle theory?
the idea that media are a dangerous drug that can directly enter a person's system
69
What is magic bullet theory?
the idea from mass society theory that media are a powerful "killing force" that directly penetrates a person's system
70
What is grand theory?
a theory designed to explain all aspects of a given phenomenon (ex. mass society theory)
71
What are limited effects theories?
the idea that media influence is limited by individual differences, social categories, and personal relationships
72
What is two step flow theory?
the idea that media's influence on people's behavior is limited by opinion leaders who pass the information onto opinion followers
73
What are opinion leaders?
people who initally consume meda content, interperet in light of their own values and beliefs and then pass it on to opinon followers
74
What are opinion followers?
people who consume media that has been passed on by opinion leaders
75
What is dissonance theory?
the idea that when confronted by new or conflicting information people experience a kind of mental discomfort/dissonance
76
What are selective processes?
processes that help us "select" what information we consume, remember, and interpret in personally important and idiosyncratic ways
77
What is selective exposure/attention?
the process by which people expose themselves to or attend to only those messages consistent with their preexisting attitudes and beliefs
78
What is selective retention?
the idea that people remember best and longest those messages that are consistent with their prexisting attitudes and beliefs
79
What is selective perception?
the prediction that people will interpret messages in a manner consistent with their preexisting attitudes and beliefs
80
What is reinforcement theory?
Joseph Klapper's idea that if any media have any impact at all, it is the direction of reinforcement
81
What is the uses and gratifications approach?
claims that the media do not do things to people, rather people do things with media; influence of media is what people allow it to be
82
What is agenda setting?
theory that argues that media doesn't tell us what to think but rather what to think about
83
What is dependency theory?
idea that media's power is a function of audience members' dependency on media and their content
84
What is social cognitive theory?
the idea that people learn through observation
85
What is modeling?
people copying the behaviors that they see
86
What is imitation?
the direct replivation of an observed behaviour
87
What is identification?
a special form of imitation in which observers do not copy exactly what they have seen but make a more generalized response
88
What is observational learning?
a type of learning where observers can learn new behaviors simply by seeing them
89
What are inhibitory effects?
seeing a model punished for behavior reduces the likelihood that the observer will perform that behavior
90
What are disinhibitory effects?
seeing a model rewarded for prohibited or threatening behavior increases the likelihood that the observer will perform that behavior
91
What is critical cultural theory?
the idea that media operate primarily to justify and support the status quo at the expense of ordinary people
92
What is neo-Marxist theory?
the theory that people are opporessed by those who control the culture, the superstructure, as opposed to the base
93
What is the Frankfurt School of media theory?
the approach that sees consumption of art as a means to elevate people toward a better life
94
What is british cultural theory?
theory of elites' domination over culture and its influence on bounded cultures
95
What is news production research?
the study of how economic and other influences on the way news is produced distort and bias news coverage towardd those in power
96
What is meaning making perspective?
the idea that audience members use media content to create meaning
97
What is symbolic interaction?
the idea that symbols are learned through interaction and then mediate that interaction
98
What is product positioning?
the perception of products as symbols beyond the product's basic functrion via advertisement
99
What is social construction of reality theory?
theory that argues that ppl who share a culture also share an "ongoing correspondence" of meaning
100
What are symbols?
things that have "objective" meanings
101
What are signs?
things that have "subjective" meanings
102
What are typification schemes?
collections of meanings assigned to some phenomenon or situation
103
What is mainstreaming?
moving individual and different people towards a shared, television-created understanding of how things are
104
What is the stimulation model?
of media violence, viewing mediated violence can increase the likelihood of subsequent aggressive behavior
105
What is the aggressive cues model?
the idea that media portrayal can suggest certain classes of poeple are acceptable targets for real-world aggresssion
106
What is catharsis?
the idea that watching violence in the mdia reduces people's innate drive
107
What is vicarious reinforcement?
the idea that observed reinforcement operates in the came manner as actual reinforcement
108
What are environmental incentives?
the notion that real-world incentives can lead observers to ignore the negative vicarious reinforcement they have learned to associate with certain behaviors
109
What is desensetization?
the idea that viewers become more accepting of real-world violence because of its constant prescence in television fare
110
What is stereotyping?
the aplication of a standardized image or concept to members of certain groups, usually based on limited information
