Uses and Gratifications Theory Introduction Uses and Gratifications Theory is an influential tradition in media research.

The core question of such research is: Why do people use media and what do they use them for? There exists a basic idea in this approach: audience members know media content and which media they can use to meet their needs.

Establishment of Uses and Gratifications approach According to West and Turner (2007), in the early days of mass media (the era of the penny newspaper, radio, movies and talkies, Mass Society Theory defined the relationships between audiences and the media they consumed. Mass Society was rejected because social science and even simple observation could not confirm the operation of all powerful media and was replaced by limited effects theories in which media effects are limited by certain aspects of individual audience members personal and social lives. Two approaches in limited effects orientation: 1. Individual differences perspective 2. Social Categories Model In response to these unfavorable views of typical audience members, theorists Katz, Blumler, and Guretvitch presented Uses and Gratifications Theory. Uses and Gratifications Theory suggests that people actively seek out specific media and content to generate specific gratifications. Stages in the Uses and Gratifications Research Uses and Gratifications Theory is an extension of needs and motivation theory (Maslow, 1970 as cited in West & Turner, 2007). 1st stage Wanting to understand why so many women were attracted to soap operas, Herta Herzog interviewed soap opera fans and identified three major types of gratification. 1. Some people enjoyed the drama because they allowed them emotional release in listening to the problems of others. 2. Listeners seemed to engage in wishful thinking. 3. Some people felt that they could learn from these programs. 2nd stage Typologies were created to represent all the reasons people had for media use.

RESEARCHERS Rubin (1981)

REASONS FOR MEDIA USE Passing time, companionship, excitement, escape, enjoyment, social interaction, relaxation, obtaining information, learning about a specific content Diversion, personal relationships, personal identity, surveillance Connection with others, separation from others

McQuail et al. (1972) Katz et al. (1973) Source: Adapted from West & Turner, 2007 3rd stage

Uses and Gratifications researchers are interested in linking specific reasons for media use with variables such as needs, goals, benefits, the consequences of media use, and individual factors (Faber, 2000; Greene & Kremar, 2005; Haridakis & Rubin, 2005; Rubin, 1994 as cited in West and Turner, 2007). Assumptions of Uses and Gratifications Theory 1. The audience is active and its media use is goal oriented. y Individual audience can bring different levels of activity to their use of media. y Audience members are also driven to accomplish goals vie the media. y Audience members choose among various media then for different gratifications. 2. The initiative in linking need gratification to a specific medium choice rests with the audience member. y People are active so they take initiative. y Audience members have a great deal of autonomy in the mass communication process. 3. The media compete with other sources for need satisfaction. y Media and audiences do not exist in a vacuum. y Media and audiences are part of the larger society and the relationship between media and audiences is influenced by that society. 4. People have enough awareness of their media use, interests and motives to be able to provide researchers with an accurate picture of that use. y Methodological issue that has to do with researcher s ability to collect reliable and accurate information form media consumers 5. Value judgments of media content can only be assessed by the audience. y Less about the audience than it is about those who study it.

Gratifications sought and obtained from media

Typology of Gratifications Sought and Obtained from Media Gratification Category Examples -Finding out about relevant events and conditions in immediate surroundings, society and the world Information -Seeking advice on practical matters, or opinion and decision choices -Satisfying curiosity and general interest -Learning, self-education -Gaining sense of security through knowledge Personal Identity -Finding reinforcement for personal values -Finding models of behavior -Identifying with the valued others (in the media) -Gaining insight into one s self Integration and Social -Gaining insight into circumstances of others: social empathy Interaction -Identifying with others and gaining a sense of belonging -Finding a basis for conversation and social interaction -Having a substitute for real-life companionship -Helping to carry out social roles -Enabling one to connect with family, friends and society Entertainment -Escaping or being diverted from, problems -Relaxing -Getting intrinsic cultural or aesthetic enjoyment -Filling time -Emotional release -Sexual arousal Source: From McQuail, 1983, pp. 82-83 as cited in Miller, 2005 The Active Audience A theory is based on assumption that media consumers are active must delineate what it means by the active audience (West & Turner, 2007). Blumler suggested kinds of audience activity in which media consumers could engage. 1. Utility- using media to accomplish specific tasks 2. Intentionality- people s prior motives determine use of media 3. Selectivity- audience members use of media reflects their existing interests 4. Imperviousness to influence- audience member construct their own meaning from media Difference between activity and activeness y Activity- what consumer does y Activeness- how much freedom the person really has in the face of media

Conceptual Model of the Uses and Gratifications Theory

Other scholars have worked to understand the underlying theoretical mechanism through which gratifications influence behavior.

Expectance Value explanation This suggests that individual s behavior will be guided by two assessments. y Assessment of the value of a particular outcome y Assessment of the probability of outcome occurring Estimates of value and probability- combine to predict gratification we seek from media which then predict media consumption and gratifications obtained

Media Dependency Theory (Media Systems Dependency Theory) This is an extension of or an addition to the uses and gratifications approach. Loges & Ball-Rokeach (1993) highlight three differences of MSD and U&G (Miller, 2005). 1. MSD provides a more coherent system of theoretical concepts suitable for testing. 2. MSD weakens the power of the active audience by proposing the audience member s relation to the media use as one of inherent subordination . 3. MSD can be applied to dependency relationships at a variety of levels whereas uses and gratifications deal almost exclusively with the individual-media relationship. Criticisms of Uses and Gratifications Theory

y y

y y

The theory suffers from a lack of theoretical coherence (McQuail, 1984 as cited in West & Turner, 2007). The most authoritative critics to the theory come from James Lull in 2002. He criticized the main assumption of the Uses and Gratification Model: people seek out media to satisfy a personal need, especially to entertain themselves ( Uses , n.d.). Ien Ang also argued that Uses and Gratifications Theory tends to focus on individual needs, disregarding the social context ( Uses , n.d.). Explanations in terms of needs and gratifications focuses mainly on the individual person. It attempts to explain complex behavior almost solely on the basis of motivations, needs, gratifications that take place within the psychological functioning of the individual (DeFleur, 2010). Katz in 1987 admitted the doubtful nature of the study itself.

Despite all of its limitations, U&G Theory does help in understanding the selections that people actively make from the media (DeFleur, 2010). Works Cited Communication Theory/Uses and Gratifications. (n.d.). Retrieved August 9, 2011 from the Communication Theory Wiki: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Communication_Theory/Uses_and_Gratifications DeFleur, M. (2010). Mass communication theories: explaining origins, processes and effects. Boston, MA: Pearson Educ., Inc. Katz, E., Blumler, J., & Gurevitch, M. (1973). Uses and gratifications research. The Public Opinion Quarterly, 37(4), 509-523. Miller, K. (2005). Communication theories: perspectives, processes and contexts (2nd ed.). Singapore: McGraw-Hill. Papacharissi, Z. & Mendelson, A. (2007). An exploratory study of reality appeal: uses and gratifications of reality tv shows. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 51(2), 355-370. Uses and gratifications theory. (n.d.). Retrieved August 19, 2011, http://www.12manage.com/description_blumler_katz_uses_gratifications_theory.html from

West, R. & Turner, L. (2007). Introducing communication theory: analysis and application (3rd ed.). Singapore: McGraw-Hill.