The Media-Effects Trend

Chapter 4 explains the media effects trend and how this research became dominant in
America. Media-Effects trend is defined in the book by the way media effects on individuals,
because of their importance, should be the focus of research; postpositivist methods provide the
best avenue of inquiry. (Baran 93) Media has many ways to effect the way the public thinks but
this research that was conducted was to be able to understand the force that newspapers, movie,
radio and television holds. These trends were developed by two methodologists named Paul
Lazarsfeld and Carl Hovland. Carl Lazarsfeld specialized in survey research and studied how
much of a factor media was in the way people thought and acted. Hovland on the other hand
used experimental methods to study how the influence that the media had on its audiences. There
are a couple theories that are attached to postpositivist research. One of those theories being the
communication systems theory which dealt with mass communications and its process. It let us
study how big of a role media played and how much power media holds. There were 6 factors
that made media effects trends possible. All of these factors deal with empirical social research.
For example, the first factor being the refinement and broad acceptance of empirical social
research methods was an essential factor in the emergence of the media-effects trend. Next is the
empirical social researchers successfully branded people who advocated mass society and
propaganda notions as unscientific. The third factor in this trend would be social researchers
exploited the commercial potential of the new research methods and gained the support of
private industry. (Baran 96) The next 3 are also important the developments. These trends
became to dominate research in America. This chapter also highlights the selective processes.
Which deals with the cognitive consistency, cognitive dissonance, selective exposure, selective

retention and selective perception. Media obviously affects us all as people and this research
explains the level in which it does.
Discussion Questions
1. Do you believe that the research of media effects helped people with the how much they were
affected by it and how they regulated their consumption of media?
2. Is research of how media effects speculation because of the methods used to obtain the
information to begin these trends?
Communication Theory and the Concept of Goal
This chapter in the Explaining Communications book explains why we engage in
communication. We as people communicate because there is a goal. Conceptualizing goals
believes that people have goals and situations do not. These goals are what motivate and explain
how we act. They are endings to what we desire. Sometimes we make up goals to explain the
way we act. People must communicate with others to achieve their goals that they set out to
reach which describes the nature of interaction goals. There are two classes of goals which are
primary and secondary. A primary goal is the desire to change a persons behavior and a
secondary goal is how you would shape the behaviors of someone that is trying to change
someone elses behavior. It has a push and pull effect. Also included in this theory is defining the
situation. This chapter explains how behaviors and interactions make goals pursuable by us and
that there is a purpose behind it. All communication is goal driven and interpersonal interaction
plays a big role.
I can apply this by giving an example of goal driven communication that I engage in. I
think this is a big part of my communication with my teammates when we are playing basketball.

There are goals behind trying communicating with them and you have to alter you
communication depending on who you are dealing with. In one scenario if I am talking to a
teammate that is not responsive to yelling or intimidation I have to use different communication
skills to get that teammate to perform in a way that will accomplish the goal. Also this theory can
be applied to roommate situations in college. You choose your words in different manners when
trying to get someone or something to go in the way you want it to because our actions are
motivated by goals we set. My roommate never takes out the trash or helps around the room so
sometimes I might give him of my food or just do little things for him but its not just so he can
call me a good roommate, it is goal driven. So then when I ask him to help around the room I can
always bring up the times when I helped him and now he performs the actions I ask of him
which was the ultimate goal. Everything we do in life through behavior and communications has
a goal.
Discussion Questions
1. Does cultural differences affect the way we go about achieving goals through communication
and behavior?
2. If we sometimes invent goals after the fact to explain our actions, does that mean that we can
engage in actions without first having a goal to even accomplish?
3. Are secondary goals solely influenced by who we are as a person or based on the target?