‘Research evidence suggests that the media has little impact on behaviour.’ Evaluate this view
CAMBRIDGE
A level and AS level
2021
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Introduction
Briefly introduce the debate surrounding media influence, stating the traditional view of strong effects and the opposing view suggesting minimal impact. Conclude by stating your argument - which side you will lean towards.
Arguments for Limited Media Impact
Audience Agency: Discuss the Uses and Gratifications model, emphasizing the active role of audiences in selecting and interpreting media content to fulfill their needs. Provide examples of how individuals with different backgrounds might interpret the same media message differently.
Inconclusive Evidence: Address research on media violence and aggression, highlighting the difficulty in establishing a causal link. Mention studies like Ferguson and Cumberbatch that challenge the direct influence of media on behavior.
Complex Social Factors: Emphasize that individual behavior is shaped by a multitude of factors beyond media, such as family, peers, education, and personal experiences. These factors often hold greater weight than media exposure in influencing actions and beliefs.
Arguments for Significant Media Influence
Ideological Influence: Discuss Marxist and Neo-Marxist perspectives on media as a tool for reinforcing dominant ideologies. Explain how media representations can shape our understanding of social issues like class, race, and gender, even if subtly.
Media Effects in Specific Contexts: Acknowledge that while direct influence might be limited, media can have powerful effects under certain circumstances. Provide examples such as: * The role of advertising in shaping consumer behavior. * The media's contribution to moral panics and deviancy amplification.
Conclusion
Summarize your evaluation of the evidence presented. Reiterate your stance on whether the media has a significant or limited impact on behavior, acknowledging the complexities of the issue. End with a thought-provoking statement about the ongoing debate surrounding media influence in the digital age.
Research Evidence and the Impact of Media on Behaviour
The assertion that the media has little impact on behaviour is a topic of ongoing debate within sociology. While research evidence presents a mixed picture, it is crucial to acknowledge that the media, encompassing television, film, music, and the internet, plays a pervasive role in contemporary society. This essay will evaluate the view that the media has minimal influence on behaviour by examining evidence from various sociological perspectives.
Arguments Supporting Limited Media Influence
One argument supporting the limited impact of media on behaviour is the failure of early fears regarding media's potential to "brainwash" audiences. The hypodermic syringe model, popular in the 1930s, suggested that media messages were directly injected into passive audiences, leading to immediate and powerful effects. However, this model has been largely discredited. Audiences are not passive recipients of media messages but active interpreters, filtering information through their existing beliefs, values, and experiences. For example, Morley's (1980) study on audience responses to the television program "Nationwide" found that viewers from different socioeconomic backgrounds interpreted the same content in vastly different ways, highlighting the role of individual interpretation.
Furthermore, the uses and gratifications model emphasizes that individuals actively choose media content to fulfil specific needs and desires. People select programs that entertain, inform, or provide social connection. This suggests that media consumption is driven by individual agency rather than passive absorption. For instance, Lull's (1990) ethnographic research on families' television viewing habits illustrated how individuals used television for various purposes, such as relaxation, companionship, or information gathering.
Studies exploring the link between media violence and aggressive behaviour also offer mixed results. While some research suggests a correlation, establishing a causal relationship is complex. Factors such as family dynamics, social environment, and individual predispositions can influence behaviour, making it difficult to isolate the specific impact of media exposure. Ferguson's (2010) meta-analysis of media violence research concluded that the relationship between media violence and aggression is weak and often mediated by other factors.
Arguments Against Limited Media Influence
Despite evidence supporting limited effects, dismissing the influence of media entirely is overly simplistic. Marxist sociologists argue that the media plays a crucial role in propagating dominant ideologies that maintain existing power structures. They posit that media, often owned and controlled by powerful elites, present biased information that reinforces capitalist values and legitimizes social inequalities. This perspective suggests that constant exposure to such messages can shape individual beliefs and acceptance of the status quo, even if the influence is subtle and gradual.
Neo-Marxists, like Stuart Hall, emphasize the concept of "hegemony," arguing that dominant ideologies are maintained through the media's ability to shape and define what is considered "common sense." This subtle influence can impact audience perceptions of issues such as gender, race, and class. For example, Cumberbatch's (1989) analysis of media coverage of AIDS demonstrated how representations reinforced negative stereotypes and contributed to public fear and discrimination.
The significant financial investments made in advertising highlight the perceived effectiveness of media in shaping consumer behaviour. Companies invest heavily in marketing campaigns designed to influence purchasing decisions, indicating a belief in the media's persuasive power. Moreover, the media's role in amplifying deviance and creating moral panics, as seen in sensationalized reporting on youth subcultures, demonstrates its potential to influence public opinion and social control measures. Cohen's (1972) study of the "mods and rockers" moral panic exemplifies how media exaggeration and distorted reporting can shape public perceptions and trigger disproportionate societal responses.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the claim that the media has little impact on behaviour is an oversimplification. While evidence suggests that audiences are not passive recipients of media messages and individual interpretation plays a crucial role, dismissing the media's influence entirely ignores compelling counter-arguments. The media's potential to shape ideologies, reinforce power structures, influence consumer behaviour, and amplify social anxieties demonstrates its significant, though often subtle, impact on individuals and society. Therefore, a balanced approach acknowledging both the limits and the complexities of media influence is crucial for understanding the dynamic relationship between media and behaviour.
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Research evidence suggests that the media has little impact on behaviour. Evaluate this view.
The question invites consideration of how far the thoughts and behaviour of audiences are influenced by the media. Answers may include a review of different models of media effects. The hypodermic-syringe model, for example, suggests that the media have a substantial and direct effect in influencing the thoughts and behaviour of audiences. By contrast, the uses and gratifications model claims that people are not passive consumers of the media; on the contrary, in order to satisfy their personal needs people actually make choices about how to use the media. However, the main focus of the answer should be on the available research evidence and whether this supports the view that the media has little impact on behaviour. Studies of media influence on behaviour (such as those by Bandura, Lull, Ferguson, Morley, and Cumberbatch) are likely to feature in well-informed answers.
For:
• Fears prevalent in the 1930s that people would be brainwashed by the media have proved unfounded.
• People are not passive consumers of the media, rather they act choose how they use the media in order to satisfy their own personal needs.
• Media messages can be interpreted in different ways; how individual and groups interpret those messages is influenced by factors which the media have little control over, such as gender, class, age, ethnicity, and community.
• Studies of whether exposure to violence in the media leads people to behave violently have been largely inconclusive; isolating the influence of the media in order to study its effects on the way people think and behave is very difficult to achieve.
• Other studies of media influence, such as those by Lull, Cumberbatch, and Morley.
Against:
• Marxist sociologists believe that the media plays a part in promoting ruling class ideology. Through this ideology people are encouraged to think that the capitalist economic system is fair and acceptable. They would not think in this way without being influenced by ideological agencies such as the media.
• Neo-Marxist sociologists claim that the influence of the media is subtle and indirect; long-term exposure to the media results in people unconsciously absorbing certain ways of thinking and behaving that are contained within media representations.
• Companies and governments would be unlikely to spend so much money on media advertisements if they believed audiences were unaffected by exposure to media content. Studies suggest that the media play a pivotal role in the creation of moral panics and in deviancy amplification. This shows that under certain circumstances the media can have a significant impact on audiences.