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Class notes Introduction To Communication Science (Y)
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All notes for week one till week 12
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Week 1Lecture 1
What is a theory?
- A theory consists of a set of systematic informed hunches about the way things work
o Set of hunches; ideas about an explanation
o Informed; taking into consideration what is already known
o Systematic; the more specific the better; relations between concepts
Specifies the relationship among the theorist’s ideas
o Testable predictions
According to Popper there are different metaphors
o Nets
Need theories to understand the world
o Lens
How we see certain things; put emphasis on certain elements
They shape our perception by focusing our attention on some details
while ignoring others
May encourage us to abandon any search for truth
o Map
Need theories to guide us
What is communication? Communication is the relation process of creating and interpreting
messages that elicit a response
- Messages
- Creation of messages
- Interpretation of messages
- Relational process
- Messages that elicit a response
According to Burgoon a theory is an informed hunch
Communication models
1. Transmission model
a. Communication as a process of transmitting messages
i. A lecturer telling us information
b. Messages is determined by sender
c. Receiver processes this message as was intended by sender
d. Examples
i. Flyer for a political party
ii. Recipe
2. Expressive model
a. Communication as representation of shared beliefs within a society/group
b. Emphasis on performance of message (sender)
c. Emphasis on (shared) experience of message (receiver)
d. examples
i. An experience
ii. Religious events/concert/art
iii. Football game
, 3. Publicity model
a. Communication as a tool to grab and hold attention
b. Competition between sender of attention of public. Attention itself is more
important than the quality of attention
c. Receiver is spectator rather than participant
d. examples
i. Advertisement, election campaigns
4. Reception model
a. Communication as open to multiple interpretations: because between
receivers, the same message can have different meanings
b. Sender transmits message with a certain purpose/meaning
c. But it is possible that receivers
i. Art or poetry
Four models of the mass communication process
McQuail’s, D mass communication theory
Orientation of
Model Sender Receiver
Transmission model Transfer of meaning Cognitive processing
Expressive or ritual model Performance Consummation/shared
experience
Publicity model Competitive display Attention-giving
spectatorship
Reception model Preferential encoding Differential decoding/
construction of meaning
The classic view: powerful media
- Context
o Development of mass media
Printing press 20th century
Radio film tv 1st half 20th century
Video games 2nd half
Computer internet
Mobile medial
o Examples of powerful reactions in response to media
Propaganda WWI
War of worlds 1938
Marshions would invade earth
- Powerful media reaches everyone
- Defenseless, passive audience
- Strong (and bad) effects
- Uniform effects (magic-bullet and hypodermic-needle)
The dangerous social media ‘epidemic’ causing psychological distress
People are worried and negative view on the effect
,Week 2
Lecture 2: Media effects
Cultivation = overall pattern of media shows us a version of the world and this changes our
view of the world.
Three research focuses
1. Institution process analysis
a. Scholarship that penetrates behind the scenes of media organizations in an
effort to understand what policies or practices might be luring there
2. Message system analysis
a. Scholarship that involves careful, systematic study of tv content, usually
employing content analysis as a research method
b. Dramatic violence
i. The overt expression or serious threat of physical force as part of the
plot
3. Cultivation analysis
a. Research designed to find support for the notion that those who spend more
time watching TV are more likely to see the ‘real world’ through TV’s lens
Two kinds of cultivation effects
1. 1st order
a. Estimation of probability of something occurring
2. 2nd order
a. The beliefs you hold about the way people are, the world works. Stereotypes.
b. Mean world belief
Mainstreaming differences in beliefs – because of social differences between people –
disappear because of heavy TV viewing different demographic different belief
Resonance social differences between people – mostly due to the environment and
everyday reality – determine how strong cultivation effects are TV world resembles
everyday life
Critique
1. Difficult to establish causality
2. One tv message vs variation in media content
Explanation:
1. Heavy TV viewers
a. Repeated exposure
2. Worldview quicker to come to mind when making judgement about the world
Social learning theory attention – retention – motivation
Bobo doll experiment
- Learning from observing others
- Don’t simply imitate
- Learn via screen
, Motivation: justification
- Inhibit to use violence
- Reintroduce by media
- Inhibition decreased by justification
Alternative explanations
- Excitation transfer theory
o It’s the arousal that is elicited by violence that makes us more aggressive
- Catharsis theory
o Using violent media makes us less aggressive (venting)
Effects of media content on beliefs (cultivation theory) and behavior (social learning theory).
Critique
- Broad theory, difficult to test in its entirety
- Effects of media violenceon aggressionare critiqued
o Is media exposure equal to real-world-experience?
o How much does an experiment say about real-world effects?
- Small effects: What does it mean?
- Role of media among other risk factors
Knowledge clips
Cultivation theory
- Assumptions
o The overall pattern of media shows us a certain reality
Message system analysis
o And this changes our view of the world
Cultivation analysis
- Research
o Institutional process analysis
o Message system analysis (connect analysis)
Aim: to identify stable, recurring and overarching patterns in TV
content
o Cultivation analysis
cause and effect
effects occur over longer periods of time with repeated exposure
- mainstreaming
o different demographic groups hold different beliefs about the world
- resonance
o TV world resembles everyday environment
o Results in stronger cultivation effects
o If you live in a heavy violent area and see it on tv then you get a ‘double dose’
Social learning theory
- Observing others and modeling their behavior observational learning
- Steps
o (pay) attention
Simple, distinctive, prevalent, useful, positive
o Retention / memorize and recall
o Motivation
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