Showing papers in "Communication Research in 1976"
TL;DR: The dependency model of media effects is presented as a theoretical alternative in which the nature of the tripartite audience-media-society relationship is assumed to most directly determine many of the effects that the media have on people and society as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: It is suggested that one of the reasons that there is such a lack of clarity as to whether the media have effects is that researchers have proceeded from the wrong theoretical conceptualizations to study the wrong questions. The dependency model of media effects is presented as a theoretical alternative in which the nature of the tripartite audience-media-society relationship is assumed to most directly determine many of the effects that the media have on people and society. The present paper focuses upon audience dependency on media information resources as a key interactive condition for alteration of audience beliefs, behavior, or feelings as a result of mass communicated in formation. Audience dependency is said to be high in societies in which the media serve many central information functions and in periods of rapid social change or pervasive social conflict. The dependency model is further elaborated and illustrated by examination of several cognitive, affective, and behavioral effects which may be...
1,014 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the dominant model of development, the factors that led to its decline in intellectual circles after about 1970, and the emerging alternatives are discussed in terms of such issues as the communication effects gap, the content of mass media messages about development and the limitations of the social structure on developmental communication effects.
Abstract: This article describes the dominant model of development, the factors that led to its decline in intellectual circles after about 1970, and the emerging alternatives. The implications of this academic shift in thinking on the role of communication in development are discussed in terms of such issues as the communication effects gap, the content of mass media messages about development, and the limitations of the social structure on developmental communication effects. Greater use of field experiments and network analysis is recommended.
454 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a content analysis of three media and a survey were conducted to examine whether or not agenda setting is operative at levels 2 and 3, since previous research has consistently shown agenda setting at Level 1.
Abstract: The objective of this study was to extend the theoretical concept of agenda setting to include three levels of peoples' information holding: (1) awareness of general issues; (2) awareness of proposed solutions; (3) specific knowledge about the proposals. A content analysis of three media and a survey were conducted to examine whether or not agenda setting is operative at Levels 2 and 3, since previous research has consistently shown agenda setting at Level 1. Concerning economic issues, high intercorrelations among media regarding economic content were found at Level 2. Agenda setting was found at both Levels 2 and 3, with newspapers primarily setting the agenda for all media users. In contrast to prior agenda setting studies which have found television to play a substantial role in setting the public agenda at Level 1, television was not round to be setting peoples' agenda at Levels 2 and 3.
167 citations
120 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors reviewed the development of communication as a discipline in Latin America, and then concentrated on the recent period when agricultural diffusion became the most frequent type of communication research.
Abstract: This article reviews the eras in the development of communication as a discipline in Latin America, and then concentrates on the recent period when agricultural diffusion became the most frequent type of communication research. The author is critical of diffusion research in Latin America because of its too-close copying of the "made-in-the-USA" classical diffusion model. The theoretical approach of Paulo Freire's "conscientization" is recommended as one corrective influence on the diffusion model in Latin America and elsewhere.
98 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a field experiment in rural Kenya shows that diffusion programs can reach successfully the non-innovative "laggards" and that diffusion has an immediate three-to-one diffusion effect for each farmer directly reached.
Abstract: Diffusion strategies, as currently practiced by most change agencies, often lead to increased inequity and therefore migh t be used as guides for devising revised strategies which avoid what currently practiced strategies predict. This view implies that those who seek more equitable development programs should not carry out further surveys of current diffusion practice, but rather experiment to develop and test new alternatives to such usual diffusion programs. One such field experiment in rural Kenya shows that diffusion programs can reach successfully the noninnovative "laggards." Not only did this project obtain 100% adoption among those reached directly, but it also had an immediate three-to-one diffusion effect for each farmer directly reached.
96 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined television for one of the first times in relation to the communication effects gap and found that the medium of television in the context of organized teleclubs with carefully designed content may actually be effective in leveling previous inequities and thus reduce the gap between larger and smaller farmers.
Abstract: The medium of television in the context of organized teleclubs with carefully designed content may actually be effective in leveling previous inequities and thus reduce the gap between larger and smaller farmers. The present research is unique in several respects: (1) it examines television for one of the first times in relation to the communication effects gap; (2) its results run contrary to many previous studies; (3) the study was conducted under field conditions in India on an extremely low budget, demonstrating a necessary resourcefulness ; (4) survey research methods are combined with content analysis; and (5) the results are crucially relevant to the Indian government's policy and to the recently initiated Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE), in which the A TS-6 satellite broadcasts television programs to schoolchildren and adults in almost 2,400 villages in six different Indian states.
62 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, three scales measuring para-social interaction (imaginary interaction but not identification with the personae of the screen), capture and long-term identification are presented with respect to school-children's TV use.
Abstract: In earlier research into the relationships between the adult TV viewer and the TV content consumed by him, three relationships have been mentioned as especially interesting: para-social interaction (imaginary interaction but not identification with the personae of the screen), capture (both interaction and identification with the personae of the screen), and long-term identification (possibly an effect of capture). This paper, mainly methodological in its approach, presents three scales measuring these relationships with respect to school-children's TV use. The scales are tested for validity by means of the multitrait-multimethod technique. In connection with the validity tests the scales are shown to behave differentially when related to different TV content viewed by the respondent. This finding casts some doubt on the current practice of asking respondents about use of and attitudes towards TV in general. Finally, the scales are related to several social characteristics of the respondents. It turns out...
55 citations
TL;DR: A tape-recorded interview in which a woman gave a favorable evaluation of the intrauterine device was created in eight versions which effected a factorial variation in the degree of age similarity between the interviewee and the subjects, the type of experience that the interviewees had had with the IUD, and the interviewer's level of medical expertise.
Abstract: A tape-recorded interview in which a woman gave a favorable evaluation of the intrauterine device was created in eight versions which effected a factorial variation in (a) the degree of age similarity between the interviewee and the subjects (peer, nonpeer), (b) the type of experience (primary, secondary) that the interviewee had had with the IUD, and (c) the interviewee's level of medical expertise (expert, nonexpert). Aside from these variations, all evaluative and factual aspects of the interview were identical in the eight versions. Male and female college students were exposed to one of the eight versions, purportedly in connection with an experiment on communication styles. In a later, supposedly unrelated questionnaire, subjects who had been exposed to the peer communicator rated themselves as significantly more likely to choose the IUD as a contraceptive method than subjects exposed to the nonpeer. Also, there was a tendency for subjects hearing a source who had used the IUD herself to rate the IU...
25 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a two-wave panel study during and following the 1973 Middle East War was conducted to determine the relative contribution of television, radio, and newspapers in fulfilling cognitive, affective, social-integrative, and escapist needs of a sample of housewives.
Abstract: Based on the "uses and gratifications" approach to the mass media, a two-wave panel study during and following the October 1973 Middle East War was conducted to determine the relative contribution of television, radio, and newspapers in fulfilling cognitive, affective, social-integrative, and escapist needs of a sample of housewives. The findings indicate that (a) cognitive needs were most important and escapist and affective needs were least important in both periods, (b) there was more exposure to the electronic media in war-time but no difference for newspapers, and (c) television and radio were generally more helpful in fulfilling most of the media-related needs in war-time compared with peace-time, whereas newspapers generally were less beneficial in fulfilling most of the needs in war-time compared to peace-time.
24 citations
TL;DR: This paper examined the effects of verbal and nonverbal messages indicating cooperativeness or competitiveness on negotiation outcomes, and found that verbal messages had much more impact than did non-verbal messages.
Abstract: Within the communication literature there is an assumption that the congruency of verbal and nonverbal messages is important for accurate and persuasive communication and that nonverbal messages are more powerful than verbal messages in communication. Research by conflict theorists and educational psychologists indicate just the opposite. This study examined the effects of verbal and nonverbal messages indicating cooperativeness or competitiveness on negotiation outcomes. In two of the conditions the verbal and nonverbal messages were congruent, in the other two conditions they were contradictory. The results indicate that congruency of verbal and nonverbal messages was not an important factor in determining negotiation outcomes, although it did affect accuracy of communication. Verbal messages had much more impact than did nonverbal messages. The communication of cooperative intentions promoted a decision by the receiver to engage in cooperative behaviors and to arrive at cooperative negotiation outcomes.
TL;DR: This introductory essay describes how conceptualizations of development have recently shifted from a dominant model to alternative paradigms, thus implying new and different roles for communication in development.
Abstract: This introductory essay describes how our conceptualizations of development have recently shifted from a dominant model to alternative paradigms, thus implying new and different roles for communication in development.
TL;DR: In this article, the role of communication in human behavior change is examined and the authors close this theoretic work by suggesting ways in which communication theory and research can effect change, including behavioral change.
Abstract: This article questions certain of the underlying assumptions about the role of communication in effecting change. For instance, change may occur without communication and vice versa. But in many situations, communication may play a key role in effecting human behavior change, including the behavior that is part of development. The author closes this theoretic work by suggesting ways in which communication theory and research can effect change.
TL;DR: A set of "idio-logical attributes" was used to identify styles of "concludifying" in texts of paid political campaign advertising broadcast during the 1972 presidential election.
Abstract: A set of "idio-logical attributes" was used to identify styles of "concludifying" in texts of paid political campaign advertising broadcast during the 1972 presidential election. Republican and Democratic advertisements were found to be similar in the variety and proportion of concludifying styles employed. Advertisements tended to avoid styles classified as "informal logical fallacies," but included common "cognitive maneuvers." Patterns of subject/ object association among candidate, party, and issue themes were found to reflect common interpretations of Nixon and McGovern campaign strategies.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors studied how support for the basic values of widespread information and the use of specialized knowledge by the public and leaders is related to community structure as measured by homogeneity and heterogeneity.
Abstract: Two midwestern cities were studied to evaluate how support for the basic values of widespread information and the use of specialized knowledge by the public and leaders is related to community structure as measured by homogeneity and heterogeneity. The public in the more heterogeneous community was more likely to support wide distribution and use of information. There were fewer differences between leaders in the two communities. The authors suggest that as social differentiation increases, information is evaluated in terms of perceived relevance for specific social ends.
TL;DR: The authors found that both of these media impart knowledge to the same extent and that the forgetting of the knowledge is not media-specific However, emotional impressions were found to be different for television viewers and radio listeners.
Abstract: The experiment dealt with the question of the comparative learning effects of television and radio It was determined that both of these media impart knowledge to the same extent and that the forgetting of the knowledge is not media-specific However, emotional impressions were found to be different for television viewers and radio listeners These media-specific emotional impressions do not change with the passing of time after the program presentation Thus the media-specific emotional impression seems to remain constant over time and seems to be largely independent of the retained or forgotten cognitive content
TL;DR: The results indicate that the previously proposed hypotheses-the "passive viewer" and "first choice only" hypotheses-concerning viewer behavior are deficient and suggest that television viewing can be increased by the addition of new alternatives if they are sufficiently dissimilar to programs presently being shown.
Abstract: This paper employs data from a "natural experiment," the televised coverage of the Senate Watergate hearings, to examine several hypotheses which have been advanced concerning television viewer behavior. This paper postulates a more general theory of audience preferences and develops a model to represent separate groups of viewer's with distinct preference orderings for program types. The results indicate that the previously proposed hypotheses-the "passive viewer" and "first choice only" hypotheses-concerning viewer behavior are deficient. These results also suggest that television viewing can be increased by the addition of new alternatives if they are sufficiently dissimilar to programs presently being shown. The programming decisions of the three networks can be represented as strategies in economic games involving audience-maximizing, loss-minimizing, and cost-minimizing payoffs. Collective action by the networks to provide rotated coverage, a departure from the usual practice of providing simultaneo...
TL;DR: The use of graphical humor as an indicator of social and psychological attitudes is reviewed in this article, where a novel method for assessing attitudes using cartoons as projective devices is introduced, and the results suggest that graphical humor might be developed successfully in constructing alternative methods for measuring attitudinal ambivalence.
Abstract: The use of graphical humor as an indicator of social and psychological attitudes is reviewed. A novel method for assessing attitudes using cartoons as projective devices is introduced. Analysis of responses from 275 students who were given both discursive, sentence items and graphical humor, projective items, demonstrates the potential of cartoons as stimuli for attitude measurement. The results suggest that graphical humor might be developed successfully in constructing alternative methods for measuring attitudinal ambivalence. Greater attention should be given to the ambivalence dimensions of social attitudes because ambivalence is a common and expected outcome of the inconsistencies and contradictions inherent in social life.
TL;DR: The hypothesis that the media (radio, television, and newspaper) would be rated more positively by people who rated themselves as satisfied with the results of an election and who had received the news over one or more of the media was tested as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The hypothesis that the media (radio, television, and newspaper) would be rated more positively by people who rated themselves as satisfied with the results of an election and who had received the news over one or more of the media was tested A sample of 70 subjects was taken from people who had written a letter in support of a candidate to the Editor's Mailbox of the local newspaper These subjects were called either before and after the election or after the election only, and asked questions about the election and the various media Analysis of the data indicated that the hypothesis was supported Those subjects who rated themselves as satisfied with the election results did rate the media more positively than subjects who rated themselves as dissatisfied In addition, this was shown not to be due to perceived media influence on the election outcome
TL;DR: In this article, cognitive and affective data for these behavioral groups are used in a model that allows an analyst to predict changes in the share of choices which any specific communication strategy can achieve.
Abstract: In developing an effective communication strategy, the sponsor of a good, service, or idea must make allowances for the differences in the characteristics of competing offerings and differences in the needs and perceptions of the individuals who buy and use these offerings. By aggregating individuals that display similar choice and use behavior, the procedures described here analyze groups whose members tend to share common perceptions of the relevant choice objects.Cognitive and affective data for these behavioral groups are used in a model that allows an analyst to predict changes in the share of choices which any specific communication strategy can achieve. By examining a range of possible communication strategies and accounting for all of the associated costs, the model will identify the most promising approach to improving the acceptance of a particular offering.
TL;DR: A decade has passed since Wilbur Schramm helped create the first Ph.D. program in communications at the University of lowa. as discussed by the authors, and during the intervening years, he has gathered together the productions of various scholars and these anthologies became, in the minds of some of us, interim handbooks of communication.
Abstract: A generation has passed since Wilbur Schramm helped create the first Ph.D. program in communications at the University of lowa. Severa! times, during the intervening years, he has gathered together the productions of various scholars and these anthologies became, in the minds of some of us, interim handbooks of communication. Now, in company with Ithiel de Sola Pool and others, he has assembled a volume explicitly claiming to be a Handbook of Communication. Unfortunately, in my judgment, it falls short of fulfilling the promise in that title. Perhaps that was inevitable, since a handbook of communication
TL;DR: In this paper, male college students were induced either to assist or not to assist their partner under conditions where they had previously established a norm of assistance or nonassistance, and they then were in formed of either a bad news (experimen group) or a good news (control group) message intended for their partners.
Abstract: Male college students were induced either to assist or not to assist their partner under conditions where they had previously established a norm of assistance or nonassistance. They then were in formed of either a bad news (experimen tal group) or a good news (control group) message intended for their partners. As predicted, subjects who learned of good news transmitted more completely/ spontaneously than those who learned of bad news (p < .001). Greater transmission of bad news by subjects who initially agreed to assist their partner (p < .025) was explained in terms of Ss perception of the role relationship betuveen Ss in the experimental situation. The finding that the effects of both actual (behavioral) assistance, which resulted in a marginally significant increase in the transmission of bad news (p < . 10), and the establishment of a norm of assistance were additive in their effect on the transmission decision is explained in terms of increasing salience of the social responsibility norm.