PARADIGM SHIFT & TWO STEP FLOW OF INFORMATION

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Theories of Communication MCM 511

LESSON 11

PARADIGM SHIFT & TWO STEP FLOW OF INFORMATION

In out previous session we discussed the theories that propounded that media has a powerful effect on

people. We discussed the theories which were the reason for the theories that media can be used as

powerful propaganda tool.

Now we will discuss how a radical transformation in media theory took place. And the focus from

powerful effect of media shifted to Limited Effects of Media. And how this became the dominant

paradigm in U.S media research from 1940 till 1960s. We will discuss the work of the pioneer

researchers in this field who were responsible for bringing this shift. We will discuss the work of Paul

Lazarsfeld of Princeton University and then the work of Carl Hovland

But before we proceed lets look at the term Paradigm shift. Thomas Kuhn in 1970 a science historian

argued that the way science progresses is through these radical breaks in theory. For a period of time a

single theoretical perspective or paradigm dominates most research. It provides a useful guide for

research as long as its basic assumptions are accepted. But sometimes small opposition research

communities emerge to develop and investigate alternate theories. Sometimes their work is ignored and

sometime they are able to conclusively demonstrate the validity of their perspective.

Sometimes researchers committed to a dominant paradigm uncover important findings that are

inconsistent with it. And as they explore these findings more and more contradictory data are obtained.

Eventually researcher makes an effort to explain for these inconsistencies and develop a new body of

theory.

Sometimes an important role is played by a scientific iconoclasts-people who rebel against key

assumptions in the dominant paradigm or who are convinced that new research methods should be used

These rebels work in isolation as they develop alternate perspective; the value of their ideas and findings

might not be recognized until decades after the original research was done.

Paradigm Shift In Mass Communication Theory

The people who led the paradigm shift in mass communication theory during the 1940s and 1950s were

primarily methodologists not theorists. They were convinced that the influence of media can be

assessed by employing objective, empirical methods to measure it.

They were impressed by the accomplishments being made in the physical science. The ability to

understand and control the physical world was being vividly demonstrated e.g. the highly sophisticated

bombs- which could be used for either good or evil- to defend democracy and bolster totalitarianism.

Similarly the scientific methods provided the essential means to control media's power. They argued

that new research methods such as experiments and surveys made it possible to observe the effects of

media. These observations would permit definitive conclusions to reach and would guide the

construction of more useful theory.

The researchers were trained in the empirical research methods adopted; statistical techniques were

adapted to the study of media effects to bring validity in their approach. Large-scale expensive studies

were conducted.

Two-Step Flow of Information And Influence

Paul Lazarsfeld was a mathematician, but also interested in psychology, sociology and mass

communication. He and his research institute at Colombia University pioneered research in the effects

of radio and introduced. The notion that interpersonal communication was an important mediating factor

in certain mass media effects.

Theories of Communication MCM 511

Lazarsfeld preferred inductive approach to theory construction that is; research should begin with

empirical observation, not with armchair speculation.

After the facts are gathered they are sifted and the most important pieces of information are selected.

This information is used to construct empirical generalizations assertions about the relationships

between variables.

This research approach is cautious and inherently conservative. It avoids sweeping generalizations that

go beyond empirical observations and demand that theory construction be disciplined by data collection

and analysis. Theory is gradually created by combining generalizations to build what Robert Merton in

1967 referred to as middle-range theory.

Middle range theory comprises of empirical generalizations that are solidly based on empirical facts.

Lazarsfeld studied the election campaign of 1940 between Roosevelt against Republican Wendell

Willkie. He assembled a large research team in May- the voters were interviewed seven times from May

till November. His findings contradicted mass society theory. He argued that the most important

influence of mass media was to reinforce a vote choice that had already been made. Media simply gave

people more reasons for choosing a candidate to whom they already favored.

He found very little evidence that media converted people. Instead, the converts were often people with

divided loyalties and were pressured by certain group ties. He found out that the few who were early

deciders were also the heaviest users of media. These heavy users might be the same people whose

advice was being sought by other more apathetic voters. These heavy viewers held well developed

political views and used media wisely and critically.

So rather than be converted themselves, they might actually gain information that would help them

advise others so that they would be more resistant to conversion. Thus these heavy users might act as

gate-keepers- screening information and only passing on items that would help other share their views.

They would pass along information to others in the community who looked to them for guidance.

Lazarsfeld chose the term opinion leader to refer to these individuals. He labeled those who turned to

opinion leaders for advice as opinion followers.

These (opinion followers) people were influenced primarily through interpersonal contacts rather than

by what they read in the newspapers and magazines or heard on the radio. This finding led the

establishment of a TWO-STEP FLOW MODEL OF MASS COMMUNICATION, in which effects

were perceived as being modified by interpersonal communication about those media messages.

For the attributes of opinion leaders another research conducted in 1943 on the housewives in Illinois--a

snowball sampling was done- to find out who influenced their thinking on marketing, movies, fashions

and politics- and then influential people were interviewed.

After 10 years Elihu Katz and Lazarsfeld published their work PERSONAL INFLUENCE in 1955.

They disclosed that opinion leaders existed at all levels of society and that the flow of their influence

tended to be horizontal rather than vertical. Opinion leaders influenced people like themselves rather

than those above or below them in the social order.

OPINION LEADERS differed from followers in many ways of their personal attributes:

They were more gregarious

Used media more

Were more socially active

And shared the same social status

Limited Effects Theory

Two popular labels from perspective on media that developed out of Lazarsfeld's work are:

Theories of Communication MCM 511

Indirect Effects Theory

When media do seem to have an effect, that effect is "filtered" through other parts of the society, for the

example, through friends or social groups

Limited Effects Theory

Limited Effects Theory propounds that media have minimal or limited effects because those effects are

mitigated by a variety of mediating or intervening variables.

The broad generalizations that emerged from the limited effect research work conducted between 1945

and 1960.

Media rarely directly influenced individuals. Most people are sheltered from direct manipulation by

propaganda by their family, friends, co-worker and social groups. People don't believe everything they

hear or see in the media. They turn to others for advice and critical interpretation. This assumption

contradicts mass society notion that viewed people as isolated and highly vulnerable to direct

manipulation. There is two step flow of media influence. Media will only be influential if the opinion

leaders who guide others are influenced first.

But since these opinion leaders are sophisticated, critical media users, they are not easily manipulated

by media content. They act as effective barrier to media influence.

By the time most people become adults that have strongly held group commitments such as political

party and religious affiliation that individual media messages are powerless to overcome.

These commitments cause people to reject messages even if other group members are not present to

assist them. Media use tends to be consistent with these commitments. E.g. Republican and democrats;

religious commitments etc

When media effects do occur, they will be modest and isolated. Huge number of people across the land

will not be converted. Rather small pockets of individuals might be influence-usually those who are cut

off from the influence of other people or whose long-term commitments are undermined by social

crises.

Carl Hovland and the Experimental section

The Army's information and Education Division had a Research Branch headed by a psychologist Carl

Hovland. Primary mission was "to make experimental evaluations of the effectiveness of various

programs of the Information education division"

To find out the essential elements of attitude change he designed experiments employing controlled

variation. To study the claim of mass society theory, he experimented on the soldiers with the

assumptions that since soldiers were torn form their families jobs and social groups. They are isolated

individuals, supposedly highly vulnerable to propaganda.

Hovland found that the military's propaganda wasn't as powerful as had been assumed. They

discovered that although the movies were successful in increasing knowledge, they were not as effective

in influencing attitudes and motivations (their primary functions).

But they also found out that although initially films were more effective in imparting factual

information than in changing attitudes about the British as time passed, factual knowledge decreased but

attitudes toward the British actually became more positive. So time was key variable in attitude change.

Possibly propaganda effects were not as instantaneous as mass society theory or behaviorist notions

suggested. However this group found that attitude change was a very complex issue and many variables

had affects on the attitude of an individual e.g. kind of message- one sided or two-sided; socio-economic

background, when people are predisposed to a certain attitude etc

Theories of Communication MCM 511

Since the findings on effects research were enormously varied, two interrelated empirical

generalizations emerged. These generalizations assert that the influence of mass media is rarely direct

because it is almost always mediated by:

individual differences

group membership or relationships

These two factors normally serve as effective barriers to media influence.

Individual Differences Theory

Argued that, because people vary greatly in their psychological make-up and because they have

different perceptions of things, media influence differs from person to person. More specifically, media

messages contain particular stimulus attributes that have differential interaction with personality

characteristics of members of the audience.

Social Categories Theory

This theory assumes that there are broad collective aggregates or social categories in urban-industrial

societies whose behaviour in the face of given set of stimuli is more or less uniform. People with similar

backgrounds e.g. age gender income level, religious affiliation.

Selective Process

One of the central tenet of attitude change theory that was adopted by influential mass communication

theorists, is the idea of COGNTIVE CONSISTENCEY.

As discussed earlier that people seemed to seek out media messages consistent with the values and

beliefs of those around them. This implied that people tried to preserve their existing views by avoiding

messages that challenged them. We must here again mention the theory of COGNITIVE

DISSONANCE.

He explained that the bedrock premise of dissonance theory is that information that is not consistent

with a person's already-held values and beliefs will create a psychological discomfort (dissonance) that

must be relieved.

People generally work to deep their knowledge of themselves and their knowledge of the world

somewhat consistent.

According to Festinger "If a person knows various things that are not psychologically consistent

with on another he will, I a variety of ways, try to make them more consistent."

Collectively, these ways have become known as the SELECTIVE PROCESSES. Some psychologists

consider these defense mechanisms that we routinely use to protect ourselves from information that

would threaten us. Here are the three forms of selectivity that were studied by attitude change

researcher.

These notions have since been widely criticized and should be interpreted very carefully.

Selective exposure

Selective retention

selective perception

1. Selective exposure

People's tendency to expose themselves to or attend to media messages that feel are in accord with their

already-held attitudes and interests and the parallel tendency to avoid that which might be dissonance-

creating.

Theories of Communication MCM 511

2. Selective retention

Is the process by which people tend to remember best and longest information that is consistent with

their preexisting attitudes and interests e.g. unpleasant memories?

3. Selective perception

Is the mental or psychological recasting of a message so that its meaning is in line with a person's

beliefs and attitudes?

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