Chapter 1. Launching your study of communication theory
What is a theory and what does it do?
A theory consist of a set of systematic, informed hunches about the way things work.
Theories always involve an element of speculation. Links among informed hunches are
clearly drawn so that a pattern emerges. We need theories to understand the world so we
illustrate them as nets. Theories influence how we see the world so we can see them as
lenses. And they also guide us so we can see them as maps.
What is communication?
Communication is the relational process of creating and interpreting messages that
elicit a response. The content and form of a message are usually constructed, invented,
planned, crafted, constituted, selected, or adopted by the communicator. A message is
open to multiple interpretations.
Chapter 2. Talk about theory
An objective approach
Objective scientist assume that there is one single truth. According to them a theory
reflects reality, or a net that captures part of it. Theorists needs to give empirical
evidence for their claims. An objective researcher adopts a theory and then tests it to see
if it covers everyone. The theory must be tested.
An interpretive approach
Interpretive scholars seek truth as well, but because of multiple ways to interprent
something, they believe in multiple truths. Critical interpreters value socially relevant re-
search. An interpretive researcher uses theory to make sense of unique communication
events. It is focused on meaning of text and language.
Chapter 29. Cultivation Theory of George Gerbner (more objective)
Gerbner claimed that because TV contains so much violence, people who spend the most
time in front of the tube develop an exaggerated belief in a mean and scary world. Accord-
ing to Gerbner, violence is one of the major staples of the TV world. Gerbner was con-
cerned that it affects viewers’ beliefs about the world around them and the feelings con-
nected to those beliefs. But cultivation theory isn’t limited to TV violence.
The first prong institutional process analysis
Gerbner labeled the research after the reason why media companies produce the
messages they do, institutional process analysis. Gerbner was fond of promoting his
own views about the inner workings of Hollywood.
The second prong message system analysis
With quantitative content analysis Gerbner investigated what messages TV transmits. The
systematic study of TV content is called message system analysis. Before one can ex-
amine how certain messages might affect perceptions of social reality, it’s important to
know exactly what those messages contain.
The third prong cultivation analysis
Message system analysis deals with the content of TV; cultivation analysis deals with
how TV’s content might affect viewers, especially the viewers who spend lots of time
glued to the tube. Those who spend more time “living” in the world of television are more
likely to see the “real world” in terms of the images, values, portrayals and ideologies that
emerge through the lens of television. The magnitude of TV’s influence is not the same for
every viewer, but all are affected by it. The accessibility principle states that when peo-
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, ple make judgments about the world around them, they rely on the smallest bits of infor-
mation that come to mind most quickly, the information that is most accessible. For
those who consume lots of TV, the most accessible information for making judgments is
more likely to come from TV shows than anywhere else
Mainstreaming: blurring, blending, and bending of attitudes
Mainstreaming is Gerbner’s term to describe the process of “blurring, blending, and bend-
ing” that those with heavy viewing habits undergo. Television homogenizes its audience
so that those with heavy viewing habits share the same orientations, perspectives, and
meanings with each other. The resonance process means that the cultivating power of
TV’s messages is especially strong over viewers who perceive that the world depicted
on TV is a world very much like their own.
The major findings of cultivation theory
1. Positive correlation between TV viewing and fear of criminal victimization.
2. Perceived activity of police.
3. General mistrust of people.
This cynical mindset is called the mean world syndrome.
Chapter 31. Social learning theory of Albert Bandura
The social learning theory concentrates on the power of example, we can learn by
observing others. The theory has three stages: attention, retention and motivation.
Attention, retention and motivation
To grab someone’s attention the content has to be simple (easy to understand),
distinctive (different than usually), prevalent (frequent), useful (with a purpose) and
positive (attractive or similar types). We store event through visual images and through
verbal codes. If the image is shown often, the stronger the memory will be in the future,
this is retention. Learning through modeling is more a matter of abstracting rules than
mimicry. Production is act out the same behavior in a different context. Bandura uses
the term motivation to refer to rewards and punishments. The latest version of social
learning theory places increasing emphasis on self-regulation.
Alternative explanation
According to instigation theorists, it’s the arousal in the violent programs that stimulates
aggression, not the imitation processes Bandura emphasizes. The catharsis theory
suggests that the depiction of physical force actually reduces aggression. The
destructive impulses are safely drained off through exposure to fantasy violence.
Chapter 25. Media ecology of Marshall McLuhan (more interpretive)
McLuhan’s theory suggests that media should be understood ecologically. Changes in
technology alter the symbolic environment, the socially constructed, sensory world of
meanings that in turn shapes our perceptions, experiences, attitudes, and behavior. When
we consider the cultural influence of media, we are usually misled by the illusion of con-
tent. The medium is the message. We need to focus on our everyday experience of tech-
nology. A medium shapes us because we partake of it over and over until it becomes an
extension of ourselves.
Analysis of human history
Human history has four periods. It started with the tribal age, hearing and smelling were
the dominant sense receptors. When someone invented the alphabet, the literate age
began. Sight became more important. The phonetic alphabet made visual dependence
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