Posted: September 14th, 2017

“Effects of Mass Communication

“Effects of Mass Communication
• “Effects of Mass Communication,” by Byron Reeves and Robert Hawkins. On Canvas.
• “Scientific Methods in Media Effects Research,” in Media Effects Research 3rd, by Glenn Sparks. On Canvas.
• “Media/Society” text, these sections of Chapter 7 (Media Influence and the Political World):
o The Minimal Effects Model
o Agenda Setting and Priming

Instructions: Open a Word document on your computer and save it. Type your name and student number at the top of the document. Type your answers to the required questions, numbering them to match the questions in the Study Guide.

Answer only the 10 required questions in your Study Guide. The additional questions (11 and above) do not need to be answered in your Study Guide. They are there to help you focus on other key points in the readings and to help you prepare for the Feb. 28 quiz.

Your Study Guide answers should be brief and direct. Many of the questions can be answered in a few words.

Upload your completed study guide to the appropriate Canvas location by 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 18. (Canvas accepts files only in Word’s .doc or .docx format.) Then bring a printed or electronic copy of your completed study guide to class on Thursday, Feb. 20. This study guide may be used for in-class work those days.

We will not accept your Study Guide during class nor will we accept it by email. No exceptions. The only way to get credit for this assignment is to upload it to Canvas by the date and time it’s due.

Your Study Guide is worth up to 10 points. In grading the Study Guide, we will select one “3-point question” at random and evaluate its answer for correctness and completeness. You will earn three points for answering it correctly and completely. For the other questions, we will look for complete and thoughtful answers – not necessarily correct answers. A thoughtfully answered question is one that responds directly to the question posed, following the instructions within that question. Please see the grading rubric in Canvas for more information.

Required questions for your Study Guide

“Effects of Mass Communication”

1. For each of the following dimensions of media effects, provide a one-sentence definition:
a. Micro (or micro-level) effect
b. Short-term effect
c. Cumulative effect
d. Mental effect

2. For each of the following, listone dimension of media effects that’s appropriate. There may more than one dimension that’s appropriate for each example.
a. Demand for electricity increases nationwide during the Super Bowl, as more people turn on their television to watch the game.
b. You’re browsing the web and an advertisement pops up saying that Dominos is offering a special deal on pizza today. Realizing you’re hungry, you call Dominos and order a pizza.
c. You attend a debate between candidates for ASUW president. The debate reinforces your support for your favorite candidate.
d. At that ASUW debate, you learn that one candidate is advocating that the UW athletics department restore the swimming program instead of establishing a new sand volleyball program for women.

3. When considering media effects, what is “the stimulus”? Answer this in a phrase. (This is one of the types of evidence needed to document a media effect.)

4. In the section “Who Gets the Message,” there’s a discussion of a second type of evidence needed to document a media effect – exposure. What does exposure mean? You can answer in a sentence or two.

5. Define the concept of “mutual causation.” Again, a sentence or two is sufficient.

6. Over time, ideas about media effects have changed. In three or four sentences, describe how these ideas have changed. In other words, how would you characterize the original thinking about media effects, and what’s happened since then?
“Scientific Methods in Media Effects Research,” in Media Effects Research 3rd, by Glenn Sparks.

7. Go to the Media Effects Module on our Canvas site and find link to “Children Now-Prime Time Diversity.” What research method was used to produce this report?

8. Give a definition of a random sample. Please underline it so that we can clearly see your definition. Then explain, in your own words, what researchers who use random samples in their research want to be able to claim about their research findings. In other words, why might a random sample be critical in their work?

9. The reading identifies three requirements – three things that must be documented – to establish a causal relationship. List these three things. For each, say whether the concept is clear to you or is not clear to you. By “clear,” I mean that you understand this idea completely.
“Media/Society” text, these sections of Chapter 7 (Media Influence and the Political World):

10. Who sets the news media’s agenda? Briefly describe at least two important influences.
Additional questions that do not need to be answered in your Study Guide
“Effects of Mass Communication”

11. Briefly describe what’s meant by “the influence of third factors” in discussions of media effects?

12. What is the “hypodermic needle model” of media effects?

13. What is a contingent condition? And what is a contributory condition?

“Scientific Methods in Media Effects Research,” in Media Effects Research 3rd, by Glenn Sparks.

14. What are “descriptive findings”? The reading doesn’t specifically define that term, so you’ll need to draw an inference from its references to “descriptive findings.”

15. A carefully executed experiment – a type of research method – has an advantage over other research methods when it comes to the issue of causality. What is that benefit?

“Media/Society” sections of Chapter 7 (Media Influence and the Political World):

16. What is the “minimal effects model” of media effects?

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