Theory Definitions

Theories of uniform influences= The argument of uniform and powerful direct media has been labeled the bullet theory or hypodermic needle theory and even later was known as the stimulus response theory. Studies conducted after World War I indicated that propaganda and advertising campaigns in newspapers were highly effective in shaping the attitudes, beliefs, and consumer behaviors of their audiences.

Theories of selective influences= is a theory of communication, positing that individuals prefer exposure to arguments supporting their position over those supporting other positions, media consumers have more privileges to expose themselves to selected medium and media contents. People tend to engage in information that comforts and agrees with their own ideas and as a result, they avoid information that argues against their opinion.

Disinhibition Theory= is a term in psychologist used to describe a lack of restraint manifested in several ways, including disregard for social conventions, impulsivity, and poor risk assessment. Disinhibition affects motor, instinctual, emotional, cognitive and perceptual aspects with signs and symptoms similar to the diagnostic criteria for mania. Hypersexuality, hyperphagia, and aggressive outbursts are indicative of disinhibited instinctual drives.

Desensitization Theory= This theory posits that because people are exposed to so much violence in the media, violence no longer makes a strong emotional impact upon them. Most people would agree that by watching lots of violent movies, a viewer no longer gets upset while watching violent movies.

Sensitization Theory= says that same continuous exposure of violence would make individuals more reactive to aggressive cues as opposed to violent cues.

Cultivation theory= is a social theory which examined the long-term effects of television on American audiences of all ages.

Developed by George Gerbner and Larry Gross of the University of Pennsylvania, cultivation theory derived from several large-scale research projects as part of an overall research project entitled 'Cultural Indicators'.

Socialization is a term used by sociologists, social psychologists, anthropologists, politicians and educationalists to refer to the process of inheriting norms, customs and ideologies.

Uses and Gratifications Theory is a popular approach to understanding mass communication. The theory places more focus on the consumer, or audience, instead of the actual message itself by asking “what people do with media” rather than “what media does to people” (Katz, 1959) . It assumes that members of the audience are not passive but take an active role in interpreting and integrating media into their own lives. The theory also holds that audiences are responsible for choosing media to meet their needs.

The agenda-setting theory is the theory that the mass-news media have a large influence on audiences by their choice of what stories to consider newsworthy and how much prominence and space to give them.[1] Agenda-setting theory’s main postulate is salience transfer. Salience transfer is the ability of the mass media to transfer issues of importance from their mass media agendas to public agendas.

Reinforcement theory is the process of shaping behavior by controlling the consequences of the behavior. In reinforcement theory a combination of rewards and/or punishments is used to reinforce desired behavior or extinguish unwanted behavior.

According to schema theory, our interpretation of television programs is guided by our application of relevant social and textual schemas.