Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ESAME SCRITTO
THE USES AND GRATIFICATION THEORY IN RELATION TO
TELEVISION
STUDENT
BERNICE AGYEKWENA
154166
PROFESSOR
AUGUSTINE SAVARIMUTHU
ROME,
FEBRUARY, 2006
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Introduction
For one to examine the ‘Uses and Gratification Theory with regards to
television in order to lay a solid foundation on how the theory relates to television. This
will enable the writer to assess how far the theory helps to study television audiences
This theory was first propounded in the 1940’s, was revived in 1974 by Blumler
and Katz and 1985 by Rosengren, Palmgreen, & Werner. It springs from a functionalist
paradigm of the social sciences since it presents media use in relation to the satisfaction
needs’.
The Uses and Gratification Theory (U&G) is one of several audience theories that
attempt to explain the role of the mass media from the point of view of the audience. It is
a major breakthrough in mass communication studies because it was the first theory to
envisage the audience not as passive and easily manipulated but active users of mass
mediated messages. Hence, it moved from the classical approach of the functionalist
theories of Harold Laswell1, Paul Lazersfeld2, Everrett Rogers and Shoemaker3, whose
main focus was on what the media does to the audience, to what the audience does with
1
Lasswells model, “who said what, through what channel, to whom and with what effects” does not
consider the role of the audience in the communication process.
2
Lazersfeld’s two-step model of communication recognizes the role of interpersonal communication in the
spread of media messages but does not consider what the audience does with the messages.
3
Rogers and Shoemaker preach a multiple step model of communication but still do not consider how the
audience use the messages.
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the media. Thus, this theory preaches functionalism from the point of view of the
It also differs from other audience theories like the Cultivation theory4 and the
Social Modeling theory5 (Bandura, 1976: 204). Whilst these two behavioral theories view
audience as actively interacting with the contents of television in goal directed activities.
Stuart Hall and the ‘Birmingham School6 of Thought’ who view audiences as continually
resisting media messages in order to escape class domination, U&G views media
“The U&G theory argues for the pre-existence of needs and intentions that direct
media attendance toward gratifications and uses respectively” (Anderson, 1996: 212).
The use of media is thus highly selective and motivated by the social and psychological
needs of the individual. Empirical studies on U&G over the years has revealed a regular
pattern of responses from the audience with regards to how they use the media to meet
certain needs. These needs have been classified into informational needs, the need for
identity, the need for social integration and interaction and entertainment (McQuail,
1987: 73). The fulfillment of these needs can be obtained from the contents of a medium,
4
The cultivation theory propounded by George Gerbner teaches that the repeated exposure of heavy
television viewers to its messages teaches them common roles, common values and a common worldview.
5
The social modeling theory propounded by Albert Bandura says people, especially children, tend to model
their behavior by observing others through the media or the environment. The theory views television as a
source of behavior modeling.
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Reception theory teaches that the audience have three reading positions vis a vis media messages, the
dominant reading, the negotiated and oppositional reading. The audience try to resist the dominant ideology
in television and other media messages.
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from a particular genre within the medium, from the social setting within which the
Informational needs: People use the media to inform themselves about their
society and the world. Such information may also serve as a source of advice and
knowledge on practical issues, and also satisfy their curiosity and interest.
Personal identity: The audience find reinforcement for personal values from the
media by seeking role models whose behavior they identify with and sometimes copy and
Integration and social interaction: Stories depicted by the media helps the
audience to gain insight into the circumstances of others, offers them a feeling of
participation and a sense of belonging. The media provides the agenda for conversation
and assists in the undertaking of social roles (Morley, 1986: 20,21; Lull, 1990: 37,42).
circumstances. It serves as a relaxant and sexual stimulant, provides cultural and aesthetic
The U&G theory has been criticized as being individualistic. It ignores the social
setting under which people watch television and does not consider the fact that not all
media use is related to the pursuit of gratification or choice since it can sometimes be
forced on people.
The retrospective use of self-reports to verify the theory is limiting since viewers
may not know why they watched some programs and thus may not offer the right reasons
5
The theory does not examine the meanings that people attach to media content. It
is politically conservative since it assumes that people will always find gratifications
What is television?
crucial part of the social dynamics by which the social structure maintains itself in a
constant process of production and reproduction, meanings, popular pleasures, and their
circulation are therefore part and parcel of this social structure”. (Fiske, 1987: 1).
Like all other mass media, the functions of television are to maintain surveillance,
to inform, to educate and to entertain. However, because television combines the visual
with the aural, it possesses certain attributes that print and radio do not share which gives
The ability of television to give live coverage of events and the use of close ups
to capture the emotions of people being screened that whips up the power of
One does not need special training to watch television but the ability to
understand its messages increases with more exposure. “Children must be taught
to read but they learn television literacy on their own by watching television”
(Greenfield, 1984:17).
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Television overcomes barriers of illiteracy and has the power to reach wide
audiences instantaneously.
These special attributes of television play a major role in the gratifications that
people derive from the television viewing experience since it can serve several
needs. Consequently, television has emerged as the most widely used mass medium
Over 3.5 billion hours are spent daily by people worldwide in watching
Csikszentmihalyi, 1990:71).
1994:108).
From the above overwhelming statistics on the prevalence of television use, one is
left wondering how television manages to capture and meet the needs of a heterogeneous
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worldwide audience. This can be explained by the differentiation of television texts into
genres that are tailored to meet the needs of a particular audience and bear characteristics
Some of televisions popular genres include the news genre, the sports genre, soap
Since television genres have been designed with special audiences in mind with the
view of meeting the needs of such audiences, it will necessary to examine the U&G
The news genre monitors the world for whatever is threatening or unexpected and
confirms what is expected. Hence, it plays a major role in keeping surveillance over
society.
society. Whilst food and water are essential to survival, they are inadequate for
for reality maintenance and assurance. These need to be carried out regularly for
People plan their lives and initiate personal goals using the assurance given by the
By keeping people informed, television news dispels the uncertainty that arises
out of not being sure of ones environment and prevents disorder or disabling
Television news brings politicians closer to their electorate and dispels the awe
bringing their human frailties such as stammering, sweating and stumbling to the
scrutiny of the ordinary citizen. This enables the electorate to identify with the
1995:48,49).
People are able to participate and share in important national and international
events through messages from television news, which allows the rapid spread of
information.
Individuals derive entertainment from television news. “Many people also find
out that television news entertains while it informs and assures. Like situation
members of the audience from the pressing cares of daily existence” (Fowles,
1992: 183).
The sports genre attracts a wide audience on television. A billion people watch the
world cup and the Olympic Games on television world wide while more than a 100
countries purchase television rights to these games. In the United States alone, the three
major television networks broadcast sports programs on an average of 1,200 hours to five
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billion viewers every year. The following are some of the gratifications that people derive
• Televised sports allows ordinary people to view important sporting events like the
Olympic games, world cup and other sports tournaments which they can never
attend because of financial difficulties, time pressure or ill health. People thus get
the chance to view these games whilst paying nothing for them apart from
• People watching sporting events on television from the comfort of their living
rooms do sometimes get a clearer picture of the event and hence get more
involved in the game than some unfortunate spectators whose positioning in the
stadium may not give them a clear view of events. They tend to have a higher
replays of key moments in the sporting events and slow motion techniques. This
• People watching sporting events from the comfort of their homes are shielded
from the violence that normally characterizes some of these events7. They
therefore watch these events in a feeling of safety. The history of sports is replete
with violence. In Ghana, over a 100 people died in the Accra sports stadium in
2000 when police tried to control spectators with tear gas. In 1985, 39 people
were killed and 437 were injured during the world cup finals between Liverpool
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Television by bringing sports tournaments to the doorsteps of spectators may actually be playing a key
role in the reduction of sports related violence by reducing the potential number of people at such events.
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and Juventus while 95 people died at the Heysel stadium in Hillsborough (Real,
1996: 52).
• The adult male also benefits from the element of fantasy inherent in all sporting
programs which center around various forms of assaults. “The idea of conflict is
(Newcomb, 1974: 192). “Hence, in sports, balls and other surrogates rather than
• Sports viewers identify with sports heroes just like any other genre.
• People get relieved from stress when they watch sporting programs. Sports
programs therefore serve as an antithesis for a day of hard work. In 1978, a report
in the Time magazine said violent assaults doubled in Dallas after the end of the
Soap operas command a large audience, mostly women worldwide. In the United
States alone, they make up 43 percent of daytime broadcast and are the dominant form of
entertainment for women who comprise two-thirds of the audience. The following are
some the uses and gratifications that people derive from soap operas:
• Women derive psychological benefits from soap operas because their dramatic
time mimic reality by depicting events such as the maturing of characters, the
establishment and loss of relationships, the loss and gain of health among
several others. This contrasts with situation comedies and action adventure
• People tend to relate to, identify and bond with soap opera characters as if they
existed in real life because most soap operas are screened daily and women
come into contact with the characters more often than their friends and
relatives. Thus, they people and extend the social life of viewers.
• Soap operas through their plots and subplots provide women with something to
• Soap operas have played a key role in the social integration of women by
spawning soap opera clubs where women can meet other women with the same
interests as themselves.
• Women derive some information and education from soap operas. For instance,
when Pap smear was repeatedly mentioned on ‘Guiding Light’, a soap opera,
for several months, it increased the awareness of women that it is a test for
cervical cancer.
• Psychotherapists use soap operas as a point of entry into the minds of patients
• Women use soap operas as an outlet for feminine anger because they strip the
male head of the family of the stereotypical authoritative and powerful image
• Women thus use soaps to “test the waters to see how far they can go in
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Ann Kilguss, a psychiatrist, has found this strategy to be helpful. “From the program, one works back to
the individual and her concerns (Fowles, 1992: 172).
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The uses and gratifications that viewers derive from quiz programs
normally revolve around self-rating appeal, basis of social interaction, excitement appeal
Self-rating appeal
o They experience a feeling of victory when the team that they favor wins. They
o It normally brings family members together by providing them with the same
interest.
Excitement appeal
o Viewers momentarily forget their worries when they get involved in quiz
o Viewers feel good about themselves when they get the right answers.
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Educational appeal
o Viewers are able to grade themselves academically by using how well they
o Viewers reflect on some of the questions afterwards. Hence, it provides food for
Research studies conducted by Brown et al. on 12-15 year olds in 1986 revealed
that 80 percent of the study group watched music videos while another study by
television (Christenson & Roberts, 1998:39). What then are the uses and gratifications to
Cognitive needs: Viewers of MTV use the lyrics to keep abreast with political
and economic issues and are informed about other cultures. Viewers use the
information derived from them to reflect on social issues and their personal
relationships because most musical themes are on love (Christenson & Roberts,
1998: 43).
antidote to tension.
Identification: Young viewers normally identify with musical stars and build
youth cultures around them. These youth cultures then extend the social life of the
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youth because individuals subscribing to the same youth culture normally identify
be it rap, funk, punk or heavy metal, depend on music videos to learn the trade
mark for the culture in terms of hairstyles, clothing, other accessories and the
Withdrawal: Viewers of MTV can also use it to insulate themselves from their
target children. The response to these programs by children has been overwhelming so it
Children use the aggression they see on cartoons to cope with their
feelings of powerlessness.
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“The greatest developmental lessons of childhood are learning how to control retaliatory impulses and
directing them into proper channels” (Fowles, 1979:186).
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Children use cartoon violence to work out their frustrations safely on the
screen through which they experience the illusion of power that eludes
them in real life (Lopiparo, 1977: 346). Cartoons therefore have a cathartic
effect on children10.
them as a way of escape from the real world where the consequences of
because young minds lack the skill to sort out relevant information from a
characters with ease and without a sense of guilt because they are tuned to
Other key areas where television gratifies the needs of viewers are in the field of
reports on the weather and stock market. People use reports on the weather to decide on
how to dress when leaving the house and to plan activities for the day; whether to remain
indoors or go to the beach. People invest or sell off bonds on the stock market based on
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Research shows that aggressive contents on television lessen and control the expression of aggression in
aggressive boys from low socio-economic backgrounds.
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People have also come to rely on television not only for relaxation but as a means
difficulties, low utilization of time, low incomes, lack of education and negative
experiences.
constitute the heaviest television users. They use television as a source of companionship
and derive Para social experiences from television figures because their faces and voices
become familiar with time and create the illusion of being real in their lives.
While engaging in daily activities masks emotional problems, they rush to the foe when
the victims are unoccupied in the evenings so television is used to numb these emotions.
The availability of time and energy saving devices for domestic use means people
now have more leisure time than before which is invested in watching television.
People in low income groups who cannot afford to attend the theatre, go on
holiday tours, buy books or VCR’s or participate in sporting events that require capital
entertainment.
People with low education who cannot derive pleasure from novels and activities
Conclusion
The fact that people respond to different genres on television and that television
programmers can target specific groups of people with particular genres by tailoring them
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to suit them through anticipating their needs means that there is an underlying uses and
This is borne out by the reluctance of people to let go of the set once they have
acquired it. Of 120 families who were offered 500 dollars by the Detroit Press give up
television viewing for a month, only five families gave in after much coaxing. Similar
Those families that gave up the set reported feeling bored, nervous and depressed.
They experienced a rise in domestic violence, smoking and the use of tranquilizers.
Therefore, the Uses and Gratification Theory, which identifies needs that correlate
with ‘Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs’11 has been proved right as far as the television
viewing television and it is these needs that determine their preferences in television
genres.
11
Maslow’s seven- tier hierarchy of needs start with physiological needs, safety needs, belongingness, love
and self-esteem needs, cognitive needs, aesthetic needs and self actualization.
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