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Positivist Theory and Theories of Cultural Outcomes

Positivist Theory
It is a philosophical theory that states that "genuine" knowledge (knowledge of anything that is not true by
definition) is exclusively derived from experience of natural phenomena and their properties and relations.
Thus, information derived from sensory experience, as interpreted through reason and logic, forms the
exclusive source of all certain knowledge. Positivism therefore holds that all genuine knowledge is a
posteriori knowledge. Verified data (positive facts) received from the senses are known as empirical
evidence; thus positivism is based on empiricism.

Positivism also holds that society, like the physical world, operates according to
general laws. Introspective and intuitive knowledge is rejected, as are metaphysics and theology because
metaphysical and theological claims cannot be verified by sense experience. Although the positivist
approach has been a recurrent theme in the history of western thought, the modern approach was
formulated by the philosopher Auguste Comte in the early 19th century. Comte argued that, much as the
physical world operates according to gravity and other absolute laws, so does society.

I. Theories of Individual Outcomes

At the intrapersonal or individual level theories focus on factors within the person that influence behavior,
such as knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, motivation, self-concept, developmental history, past experience,
and skills.

a. Magic bullet (hypodermic needle theories) (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt5MjBlvGcY)

 Magic Bullet Theory. The magic bullet theory (also called the hypodermic needle theory)
suggests that mass communication is like a gun firing bullets of information at a passive
audience. “Communication was seen as a magic bullet that transferred ideas or feelings or
knowledge or motivations almost automatically from one mind to another”. This theory has
been largely discredited by academics because of its suggestion that all members of an
audience interpret messages in the same way, and are largely passive receptors of
messages. This theory does not take into account intervening cultural and demographic
variables such as age, ethnicity, gender, personality, or education that cause us to react

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 differently to the media messages we encounter. However, many people hold the
assumption that media, like television news outlets, simply release information that does
not encourage audience engagement and critical thinking. Rather than give a story with an
unbiased message, that would allow a consumer create an opinion for themselves, media
news outlets present stories to audiences that are attractive to them. Those who believe
reality television shows actually portray reality hold some assumptions of the magic bullet
theory.

b. Two-step flow of media (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csGHExeP3uA)

 Two-Step Flow Theory. After World War II, researchers began noticing that not all
audiences react in the same ways to mass communication. Media had less power and
relatively less affect than previously assumed. The two-step flow theory suggests that mass
communication messages do not move directly from a sender to the receiver. Instead, a
small group of people, gatekeepers, screen media messages, reshape these messages,
and control their transmission to the masses. Opinion leaders initially consume “media
content on topics of particular interest to them” and make sense of it based upon their own
values and beliefs. In the second step, the opinion leaders filter and interpret the messages
before they pass them along to individuals with shared ideologies who have less contact
with the media, opinion followers.

o An example of this theory occurs during political campaigns. Research has shown
that during an election, media influence your voting preferences through the
information they choose to show about a candidate. This research can still be
applied to current political campaigns.
o Pope Francis has over 4 million followers on twitter and is one of the most re-
tweeted social leaders. He uses social media to engage and influence his followers
about what’s going on in the world.
o Also, President Obama’s use of social media is highly credit as a key factor in the
2008 election. Conservatives often argue that they are marginalized by the “liberal
media,” while liberals argue that they are marginalized because wealthy
conservatives own and control the media. Either way, research reveals that media
dependency becomes increasingly important for the public especially during political
campaigns.

c. Reinforcement theory (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYWPuG_u6gE)

 Reinforcement theory is a limited effects media model applicable within the realm of
communication. The theory generally states that people seek out and remember
information that provides cognitive support for their pre-existing attitudes and beliefs. The
main assumption that guides this theory is that people do not like to be wrong and often
feel uncomfortable when their beliefs are challenged.
 Additionally, this theory focuses on the behavior to consequence connection within the ABC
model. ABC is an acronym for Antecedents, Behavior, Consequences. It is used as a tool
for the assessment and formulation of problem behaviors and is useful when clinicians,
clients, or careers want to understand the ‘active ingredients’ for a problem behavior. This
theory, in management, can also be referred to as operant conditioning or the law of effect.

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 Quite simply, this theory notes that a behavior will continue with a certain level of frequency
based on pleasant or unpleasant results.
II. Theories of Cultural Outcomes

Cultural theory seeks to understand the relationships between individuals, environments, institutions and
everyday activities. Paying close attention to power dynamics in our everyday lives, cultural theory helps
shed light on how social and material conditions frame our experiences.

A. Functions of mass media

The four functions of mass communications are: surveillance, correlation, cultural transmission and
entertainment. In many ways, the four functions of mass communication are still relevant and transferable
to contemporary media

1. Surveillance of the Environment

 Mass communication exists to observe and inform. Mass media keeps citizens informed of
news and events. In times of crisis, mass media announcements offer warnings and
instructions. For example, when natural disasters occur, such as hurricanes, blizzards and
tsunamis, traditional and social media outlets are the key communication tools to relay
information about the path of an impending storm or to inform people about school and
business closures, and how to seek shelters and find evacuation routes. Media is also used
as tools of government authorities to protect citizens with important updates.

2. The Correlation Function

 Traditional news outlets once were the only arbiters of what was selected as newsworthy
and of how broadcasters and journalists interpreted information. Alternatively,
newspapers tapped experts in the field. Although publishers and news stations may have
had their biases, most organizations maintained the old, hard-formed principles of
journalism.

 Today, social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook may indicate that often, no
middleman exists, who can correlate events in an objective, interpretative way. Users can
be fed farfetched stories that look like "real news," when, in fact, they are anything but. In
particular, Facebook, has been the site of fake news stories that has caused the platform
more than a few headaches. Although the company is an important part of mass media, it
is not a news site.

 The correlation function is not in the hands of Facebook executives, and Facebook doesn't
claim it to be so. In January, 2018, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg determined that users
themselves could decide the difference between real and fake news when he wrote, “We
could try to make that decision ourselves, but that's not something we're comfortable with.”

3. Cultural Transmission and Influencing Societal Norms

Although the first two functions are to provide and interpret news and information, the third allows
media to reflect and influence societal norms. The media serve as transmitters of cultural messages,
letting the masses understand what are considered acceptable forms of behavior. Cultural transmission,

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however, evolves. What once was taboo can become the norm when enough people embrace it and
when the media report on it.

The news may be what’s happening on TV or on social media but it can also be what’s happening on
television stations and on YouTube channels. In the 1950s, Lucy and Dezi slept in separate twin beds
on "I Love Lucy" but the show presented Lucy as pregnant. The Brady family shared a bed on "The
Brady Bunch" long before any other sitcom or television drama, and now "The Fosters" present foster
kids raised by a lesbian couple. All three shows reflected the culture of the times while also setting up
and condoning new norms.

4, Education and Entertainment

Media also serves as cultural transmitters that educates and entertains. Long before the advent of mass
media, people were forced to entertain themselves. They may have participated in activities or attended
live events. The advent of mass communication enabled viewers and listeners to see and hear and
learn in real time from wherever they are.

Social media platforms take that entertainment factor even further. You no longer need to rely on radio
broadcasters or producers to provide your entertainment. Any kid with a smartphone can upload a silly
video to YouTube and make you laugh for hours.

Theories whose roots were at the dawn of mass communication are still relevant today, even though
these forms of communication continue to evolve.
Source: smallbusiness.chron.com

a. The diffusion of innovation

Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) Theory, developed by E.M. Rogers in 1962, is one of the oldest social
science theories. It originated in communication to explain how, over time, an idea or product gains
momentum and diffuses (or spreads) through a specific population or social system. The end result of this
diffusion is that people, as part of a social system, adopt a new idea, behavior, or product. Adoption
means that a person does something differently than what they had previously (i.e., purchase or use a
new product, acquire and perform a new behavior, etc.). The key to adoption is that the person must
perceive the idea, behavior, or product as new or innovative. It is through this that diffusion is possible.

Adoption of a new idea, behavior, or product (i.e., "innovation") does not happen simultaneously in a
social system; rather it is a process whereby some people are more apt to adopt the innovation than
others. Researchers have found that people who adopt an innovation early have different characteristics
than people who adopt an innovation later. When promoting an innovation to a target population, it is
important to understand the characteristics of the target population that will help or hinder adoption of the
innovation. There are five established adopter categories, and while the majority of the general
population tends to fall in the middle categories, it is still necessary to understand the characteristics of the
target population. When promoting an innovation, there are different strategies used to appeal to the
different adopter categories.

1. Innovators - These are people who want to be the first to try the innovation. They are venturesome
and interested in new ideas. These people are very willing to take risks, and are often the first to
develop new ideas. Very little, if anything, needs to be done to appeal to this population.
2. Early Adopters - These are people who represent opinion leaders. They enjoy leadership roles,
and embrace change opportunities. They are already aware of the need to change and so are very

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 comfortable adopting new ideas. Strategies to appeal to this population include how-to manuals
and information sheets on implementation. They do not need information to convince them to
change.
3. Early Majority - These people are rarely leaders, but they do adopt new ideas before the average
person. That said, they typically need to see evidence that the innovation works before they are
willing to adopt it. Strategies to appeal to this population include success stories and evidence of
the innovation's effectiveness.
4. Late Majority - These people are skeptical of change, and will only adopt an innovation after it has
been tried by the majority. Strategies to appeal to this population include information on how many
other people have tried the innovation and have adopted it successfully.
5. Laggards - These people are bound by tradition and very conservative. They are very skeptical of
change and are the hardest group to bring on board. Strategies to appeal to this population include
statistics, fear appeals, and pressure from people in the other adopter groups.

Source: sphweb.bumc.bu.edu

b. Spiral of silence

The spiral of silence theory, which states that those who hold a minority opinion silence themselves to
prevent social isolation, explains the role of mass media in the formation and maintenance of dominant
opinions. As minority opinions are silenced, the illusion of consensus grows, and so does social pressure
to adopt the dominant position. This creates a self-propagating loop in which minority voices are reduced
to a minimum and perceived popular opinion sides wholly with the majority opinion.
For example, prior to and during World War II, many Germans opposed Adolf Hitler and his policies;
however, they kept their opposition silent out of fear of isolation and stigma.

Because the media is one of the most important gauges of public opinion, this theory is often used to
explain the interaction between media and public opinion. According to the spiral of silence theory, if the
media propagates a particular opinion, then that opinion will effectively silence opposing opinions through
an illusion of consensus. This theory relates especially to public polling and its use in the media.

c. Cultivation analysis

Cultivation theory questions how active we actually are when we consume mass communication. For
example, the average American views between three and five hours of television a day for an average of
21 hours per week (Hinckly). According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, by age 18, the average
American child will have watched 200,000 acts of violence on television. This statistic does not even take
into account the violence a child has access through YouTube videos, Instagram, Facebook, music videos
or any other media distribution. When violence is shown on television, rarely are the negative
consequences of it acknowledged-47% of victims show no evidence of harm and 73% of perpetrators
were not held accountable for their violent actions (Huston et al.).

d. Agenda setting

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In contrast to the extreme views of the direct effects model, the agenda-setting theory of media stated
that mass media determine the issues that concern the public rather than the public’s views. Under this
theory, the issues that receive the most attention from media become the issues that the public discusses,
debates, and demands action on. This means that the media is determining what issues and stories the
public thinks about. Therefore, when the media fails to address a particular issue, it becomes marginalized
in the minds of the public (Hanson).
When critics claim that a particular media outlet has an agenda, they are drawing on this theory. Agendas
can range from a perceived liberal bias in the news media to the propagation of cutthroat capitalist ethics
in films.
For example, the agenda-setting theory explains such phenomena as the rise of public opinion against
smoking. Before the mass media began taking an antismoking stance, smoking was considered a
personal health issue. By promoting antismoking sentiments through advertisements, public relations
campaigns, and a variety of media outlets, the mass media moved smoking into the public arena, making
it a public health issue rather than a personal health issue (Dearing & Rogers, 1996). More recently,
coverage of natural disasters has been prominent in the news. However, as news coverage wanes, so
does the general public’s interest.

Figure 2.7

Through a variety of antismoking campaigns, the health risks of smoking became a public agenda.

Media scholars who specialize in agenda-setting research study the salience, or relative importance, of an
issue and then attempt to understand what causes it to be important. The relative salience of an issue
determines its place within the public agenda, which in turn influences public policy creation. Agenda-
setting research traces public policy from its roots as an agenda through its promotion in the mass media
and finally to its final form as a law or policy.
Source: open.lib.umn.edu

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