Deck 28: Uses and Gratifications

Question 1

Instead of asking, "What do media do to people?" Katz suggested the question to ask is:

A) "how should we use media?"
B) "what do people do with media?"
C) "what effect does the media have on people?"
D) "why do people gravitate towards certain mediums?"

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The ________ model assumes that a media message affects most consumers in the same way.

A) global effects
B) limited effects
C) personal effects
D) uniform-effects

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which of these conclusions reflects a "straight-line effect of media"?

A) Both Caroline and Ralph thought it was a good film, but for different reasons: Caroline enjoyed the acting, while Ralph thought it has a good story.
B) It's hard to find a movie that both Caroline and Ralph enjoy, but they agree that they prefer to watch movies at home rather than in the theater.
C) Since it was a "feel good" movie, both Caroline and Ralph enjoyed it.
D) Since it was a "feel good" movie, Caroline was in a good mood but Ralph was miserable throughout the show.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

In the context of assumptions that underlie uses & grats, which of the following statements is true about media consumers' ability to discern and report the motivations behind their media choices?

A) Researchers vary in their opinions of whether or not consumers can be trusted to efficiently report their reasons; the question remains debated.
B) Consumers are mostly unable to draw parallels between their media usage and the motivations behind it.
C) Millennials and educated consumers are most capable of accurately reporting the motivations behind their media use.
D) Consumers are overly self-serving; they are more likely to give socially desirable answers than accurate reports.

Question 5

Katz suggests that ________ must be uncovered to understand people's media choices.

A) needs versus wants
B) the source of our needs
C) the structure and hierarchies of motivations
D) underlying needs

Question 6

Emma is overwhelmed with the amount of work she has to do in the next 48 hours. When she thinks about it, her blood pressure rises and she feels rather sick to her stomach. She finds that even 10 minutes of the video game Angry Birds helps to diffuse the situation. What is her most likely motivation?

A) enjoyment
B) escape
C) excitement
D) passing time

Question 7

A ________ relationship develops when viewers become attached to media personalities and characters.

A) gratification
B) mediated
C) paranormal
D) parasocial

Question 8

Bradley Greenberg suggested that, in addition to the eight categories given by Rubin, people may consume media because of ________.

A) curiosity
B) habitual usage
C) need to individualize
D) social pressure

Question 9

If people can't accurately report their own motives for media usage, which evaluation criteria is in question?

A) predictability
B) simplicity
C) testability
D) utility

Question 10

According to the chapter, which of the following illustrates the practical utility aspect of uses & grats?

A) The conclusive findings of the theory have made most major media theories redundant, and that has opened up a new paradigm of media studies.
B) The theory helps in raising people's personal consciousness and realization and guides people while they take control of their media choices depending on the positive or negative effects.
C) The large volume of qualitative data from the theory has the potential to save the field of communication in the future.
D) With the emergence of more diverse forms of new media, the theory has ceased to have practical application.

Question 11

A criticism of uses and gratification theory is that it:

A) endorses the "magic-bullet" or "hypodermic-needle" model of mass communication.
B) emphasizes description rather than explanation and prediction.
C) rejects the idea of parasocial relationships as being a reason for media consumption.
D) portrays the consumers of media content as selfish, insatiable, and materialistic.

Question 12

Uses & grats is a new theory and, as such, is still largely untested.

Question 13

Katz proposed that audiences are passive targets who are just waiting to be hit by a magic bullet.

Question 14

One of the key assumptions of uses and gratifications theory is that uses of media are inextricably tied to the gratifications people receive from those media.

Question 15

The uses & grats approach focuses on the competition between media messages but stops short of considering how media competes with non-mediated activities.

Question 16

According to Elihu Katz, the same media message doesn't necessarily affect everyone the same way.

Question 17

In order to understand why people make the media choices they do, you must understand what underlying needs motivate our behavior.

Question 18

Reasons for media consumption should fit under only one media consumption in Rubin's typology.

Question 19

According to Katz, parasocial relationships tend to be destructive and anti-social.

Question 20

For most critics, the emphasis on prediction and explanation rather than description is the strength of uses & grats theory.

Question 21

Primarily an interpretative theory, uses & grats has been widely tested using qualitative methods.

Question 22

In order to understand what motivates media usage behavior, you need to uncover ________.

Question 23

In Rubin's typology, each category includes both a(n) ________ and a(n) ________.

Question 24

A(n) ________ is a sense of friendship or emotional attachment that develops between viewers and media personalities.

Question 25

________ refers to a classification scheme that attempts to sort a large number of specific instances into a more manageable set of categories.

Question 26

How does Elihu Katz' media theory weave together media use and gratifications?

Question 27

How does the uses & grats approach differ from the uniform-effects model?

Question 28

Uses & grats relies on self-reported data. How is this both a strength and a potential weakness?

Question 29

Underlying needs drive individuals to different media behavior. Explain how this might lead to different outcomes from one person to another.

Question 30

Rubin's typology of eight categories addresses most explanations that people give for their media behavior. At least two other motivations were included in the chapter. Can you explain at least one novel (unaddressed in the chapter) motive?

Question 31

Assuming that people are capable of accurately self-reporting their own motives, but also aware that as communicators we all engage in some face-management, what motives do you think are minimized (and hence, under-reported) and which are exaggerated (over-reported)?

Question 32

What are some potential reasons for the development of parasocial relationships?

Question 33

Explain one evaluation criteria that uses & grats fulfills and one where it falls short.

Question 34

Katz' perspective was originally proposed when media choices were more limited (radio, movies, newspapers, and magazines). Does this theory still apply in the age of Twitter and text messages, Skype and social networking websites, iPods and interactive television?

Question 35

Discuss how uses & grats fulfills the criteria of relative simplicity, testability, practical utility, and quantitative research.

Question 36

Berelson thought the field of communication was doomed as media was no longer a persuasive medium. Other than Katz, what other theorists might beg to differ?

Question 37

How do issues of power factor into uses & grats? What might either Deetz or Hall suggest about the role of corporations in shaping our needs and perceptions of how those are fulfilled through media?

Question 38

Is Elihu Katz' position compatible with Walther's hyperpersonal perspective?

Question 39

Social constructionists such as Mead or Pearce and Cronen assume that people create the worlds in which they inhabit with the meanings they develop. Where do our meaning about media and its usage come from?

Question 40

McLuhan postulated that "the medium is the message." Is that a straight-line effect of media or more in line with the uses & grats perspective?

Question 41

Explain each of the eight motivations for TV viewing proposed by Rubin. Cite real-life examples to support your answer.

Question 42

What is a parasocial relationship? Elaborate on how it is used in the consumer market.