Chapter 13

Paul Lazarsfeld introduced which of the following methods to the study of mass communications?

polling survey research

With what do media researchers credit the 1938 radio broadcast of Orson Welles's The War of the Worlds?

the emergence of the limited effects perspective

The motives of which of the following are emphasized by the uses and gratifications approach?

media consumers

Which of the following theories argues that although the media may not tell us what to think, it can influence what we think about?

agenda setting

True or false: British cultural theory assumes that media is an inherently negative force in society.

False

True or false: People generally agree about the strength and presence of media effects.

False

Which of the following statements about the social construction of reality theory are true?

Signs have more subjective meanings. According to the social construction of reality theory, people who belong to the same culture generally assign the same meaning to things.

True or false: The combination of meaning-making and cultural theories highlights the importance of people becoming media literate.

True

The uses and gratifications approach was developed to explain several issues, including which of the following?

apparent parallels between televised violence and real-world crime the impact of advertising the media's role in sentiment against the war in Vietnam

Which of the following theories directly emerged from the Experimental Section of the army's Information and Education Division?

attitude change theory

According to agenda setting theory, which of the following groups have the most power to shape political reality?

broadcasters newsroom editors

Which of the following prompted the development of mass society theory?

charges that society was becoming too pluralistic urban growth totalitarian propaganda

Which of the following argues that the media work to support the status quo?

critical cultural theory

In social cognitive theory, modeling occurs in which of the following ways?

identification imitation

According to limited effects theories, which of the following limit media influence?

individual differences personal relationships social categories

The content of a television news report that discusses the concerns of residents, business owners, and public service providers regarding a growing homeless camp would be considered

informational.

Cultural theories give perspective on the ______ between the audience and the media.

interaction

The theories that emerged from the first systematic, scientific study of media effects are now called ______ theories.

limited effects

The larger, cultural impact of media occurs at the ______ level.

macro

Joseph Klapper wrote a highly influential book on the effects of ______ in 1960.

mass communication

Which of the following is/are used to relate mass communications to our personal lives and social systems?

mass communication theories

Which of the following argues that media are corrupting influences that negatively affect defenseless, "average" people?

mass society theory

Social cognitive theory argues that people learn through

observation.

Stuart Hall developed the idea of the media as a ______ in which various forces fought to shape perception.

public forum

The theory developed by social scientist Joseph Klapper, often called ______ theory, is based on social science evidence developed prior to 1960.

reinforcement

The assumption that people better remember messages that are consistent with their preexisting beliefs is known as selective

retention.

Which of the following are the selective processes in attitude change theory?

selective exposure selective retention selective perception

According to dissonance theory, people consume, remember, and interpret information using three interrelated

selective processes.

The Frankfurt School assigned a higher value to which of the following?

serious art

In social construction of reality theory, what term describes something that has subjective meaning?

sign

The content of a television news report on the problem of urban poverty that relies heavily on images of low-income African Americans walking in a dense urban environment and then of people in a line at a soup kitchen would be considered ______ content.

symbolic

Which of the following, an example of a limited effects theory, argues that voter behavior is limited by opinion leaders and followers?

two-step flow theory

The Surgeon General's Scientific Advisory Committee on Television and Social Behavior was formed to investigate which of the following?

violence

Which of the following are considered underrepresented "outgroups" in the United States?

women gays African Americans

Match the argument with the most significant counterargument.

- Media content has limited impact because it is only make-believe. matches Choice, Most film and television dramas are meant to seem real to viewers. Most film and television dramas are meant to seem real to viewers. - Media simply hold a mirror to society. matches Choice, Media are very selective in what they show and how they show it. Media are very selective in what they show and how they show it. - Media's effects are only on the unimportant things in our lives. matches Choice, The billions of dollars spent on swaying opinion on critical social issues suggest media's effects are not limited to fads and fashions. The billions of dollars spent on swaying opinion on critical social issues suggest media's effects are not limited to fads and fashions. - Media content has limited impact because it is only play or just entertainment. matches Choice, People develop knowledge of themselves and the world through play. People develop knowledge of themselves and the world through play.

Match the type of mass communication research to its description.

- administrative matches Choice, asks questions about the immediate, observable influence of mass communication asks questions about the immediate, observable influence of mass communication - critical matches Choice, asks broader questions about the greater implications of mass communication asks broader questions about the greater implications of mass communication

List the following theories in order of their historical emergence, putting the earliest one at the top of the list.

1. mass society theory 2. limited effects theory 3. cultural theory 4. meaning-making perspective

Which of the following are among the assertions of dependency theory?

Dependency is related to the number and importance of a medium's information-delivery functions and the amount of change and conflict present. We are dependent on media to understand the social world, act meaningfully in it, and find diversion. The central factor in media's influence is the relationship among the social system, the media's role, and how we relate to the media.

True or false: The Frankfurt School of media theory believed that typical media fare, such as popular music and movie comedies, elevated all people toward a better life.

False

True or false: The upsurge in violence in the 1960s was directly related to television becoming a dominant mass medium at the same time.

False

The radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds had which of the following effects on mass communication theory?

It helped scientists discover that people were not all influenced in the same way.

Which of the following researchers warned in 1941 against relying on administrative research?

Paul Lazarsfeld

Who was the social scientist that argued mere speculation about the impact of media was insufficient, and that more sophisticated studies were needed?

Paul Lazarsfeld

According to modern neo-Marxist theory, which of the following are true?

People are oppressed by the powers that control the culture. The superstructure, which includes religion, politics, and mass media, oppresses people.

Which of the following statements about the link between advertising and alcohol abuse are true?

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism believes advertising causes an increase in alcohol consumption. There is scientific research that alcohol advertising does not cause an increase in alcohol consumption.

In 1995 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that "______ stimulates higher consumption of alcohol by both adults and adolescents."

alcohol advertising

Theories that assume that our experience of reality is an ongoing, social construction are called ______ theories.

cultural

Which of the following argues that media content is increasingly necessary for people to act effectively in society?

dependency theory

The micro-level view holds that media have few ______ effects on most people.

direct

Which attitude change theory argues that new information can cause people mental discomfort?

dissonance theory

Scientific research has shown that positive media portrayals of cooperation can lead to

good behavior and prosocial effects.

Which of the following examines how audience members create meaningful experiences using media content?

meaning-making perspective

Which of the following are considered to be the major contemporary forms of mass communication theory?

meaning-making perspective cultural theory

People who receive media information, interpret it in light of their own beliefs, and pass it along to followers with similar beliefs are known as

opinion leaders.

Which of the following are prosocial behaviors?

problem solving cooperation

The social construction of reality theory explains that cultures use which of the following to construct and maintain a uniform reality?

signs symbols

Mass communication theories attempt to explain or predict which of the following?

social phenomena

Applying a standardized image to members of a particular group is called

stereotyping.

The army's Information and Education Division's Experimental Section was given the task of

testing the effectiveness of the government's mass communication campaigns.

What event in particular revealed the inadequacies of mass society theory?

the 1938 War of the Worlds broadcast

Which of the following, according to James W. Carey, sees media as senders of information for the purpose of control?

the transmissional perspective

Which of the following are terms used in James Carey's cultural definition of communication?

transmissional perspective ritual perspective