Questions???Questions???

• Have you ever used • Google?• Facebook?• YouTube?

Yes!Active audience!

USES USES & &

GRATIFICATION GRATIFICATION THEORYTHEORY

Phạm Lê Diệu Trang – s3311626

Đặng Thanh Thảo – s3298804

ContentsContents

• Definition

• Historical Background

• 4 Key Reasons of Media Use

• U & G Theory in the 21st century

• Conclusion

• There are three stages on how media influence the audience:• Strong

• Supported by: Agenda-setting theory, Magic Bullet theory, Propaganda.

-> audience is passive• Medium

• Supported by: Two-flow step theory.

• Weak• Supported by: Uses and gratification theory.

-> audience is active

DefinitionDefinition

• U&G theory states what people do with media NOT what media does with people.

• (Blumler & Katz 1974)

-> audience plays an active role in choosing and using media in their daily lives.

DefinitionDefinition

DefinitionDefinition

U&G Theory

Figure 1. Reproduced from: Project Management Course 2009

• Early in the 1920s: is known as the Limited Effects Theory which is against the Mass Society theory.

• 1940s: officially started with the name U&G Theory.

• 1960s – 1990s: the development of U&G theory with supports from theorists.

Historical BackgroundHistorical Background

• Information:• Finding for relevant events.

• Seeking advice to solve the matters and make decisions.

• Satisfying curiosity and general interest.

• Self-education.

• Gaining a sense of security through knowledge.

4 Key Reasons of Media Use4 Key Reasons of Media Use

• Personal Identity:• Finding reinforcement for personal values.

• Finding models of behavior.

• Identifying with valued other (in the media).

• Gaining insight into one’s self.

4 Key Reasons of Media Use4 Key Reasons of Media Use

• Integration & Social Interaction

• Social empathy.

• Gaining a sense of belonging.

• Finding a basis for conversation & social interaction.

• Clarifying social roles.

• Enabling connection with family, friends and society.

4 Key Reasons of Media Use4 Key Reasons of Media Use

• Entertainment• Free tension.

• Getting aesthetic enjoyment.

• Filling time.

• Emotional release.

• Sexual arousal.

4 Key Reasons of Media Use4 Key Reasons of Media Use

• The development of newer media:

The Internet

More convenient for audience to satisfy their gratification

U & G Theory in 21st centuryU & G Theory in 21st century

Other concepts• Interactivity: multidimensional concepts: amount

of choice provided to users, amount of effort users must access to access information, etc

• Demassification: the control of the individual over the medium

• Asynchroneity: the ability of individuals to send, receive, save or retrieve message at their convenience.

U & G Theory in 21st centuryU & G Theory in 21st century

Current U & G Models

+ these other concepts

+ new media

+ evolving psychological, sociological, cultural context

= A HIGHLY SERVICEABLE theory for the 21st century

U & G Theory in 21st centuryU & G Theory in 21st century

ConclusionConclusion

Blumler, J.G. & Katz, E 1974, The uses of mass communications: Current perspectives on gratifications research, Beverly Hills, CA.

Ruggiero T 2000, ‘Uses and Gratifications Theory in the 21st century’, Mass communication & Society , pp.3-37.

Project Management Course 2009, ‘Maslow Hierarchy of Needs, image, Project Management Course, viewed 26 July 2011, <http://www.abraham-maslow.com/m_motivation/Hierarchy_of_Needs.asp>

ReferencesReferences