Critical and Cultural Studies Commons^™

Theorizing Development Of Parasocial Engagement, Riva Tukachinsky, Gayle S. Stever

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

The article proposes a theoretical model of the development of parasocial relationships (PSRs) building on Knapp’s model of relationship development. Through synthesis of research across disciplines, the model conceptualizes the relational goals and parasocial interactions (PSIs) specific to the PSR. The model identifies variables that predict engagement at that level, describes the stage’s outcomes/effects, and considers the utility of existing measures to assess these stages. The conceptualization of PSRs as a dynamic process rather than intensity of a monolithic experience offers new directions worthy of empirical examination.

Social Media For Good? A Survey On Millennials’ Inspirational Social Media Use, Sophie Janicke-Bowles, Ava Nayaran, Anja Seng

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

There is no doubt about the extensive use of social media by the millennial generation, but the study of the effects of such use is only in its infancy. Though most studies so far focus on the negative effects of overall time spent on social media, the current study investigated the relationship between exposure to a specific type of content on social media and well-being outcomes: namely, inspirational content. Results of an online survey with a total of 146 students revealed that inspiring social media and online video use, but not overall time spent on social media was related to …

Parasocial Romantic Relationships, Romantic Beliefs, And Relationship Outcomes In Usa Adolescents: Rehearsing Love Or Setting Oneself Up To Fail?, Riva Tukachinsky, Sybilla M. Dorros

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

The study examines the associations between adolescents’ emotional and physical aspects of parasocial romantic relationships with media figures, idealized romantic beliefs, perceptions of a current dating partner, and relationship satisfaction. A two-study design included concurrent data from 153 adolescents ages 13–17 (55.6% female), and retrospective data from 274 college students ages 18–22 (79.8% female). Across both samples, emotional involvement in a PSRR was related to more idealized romantic beliefs. The intensity of emotional involvement with the media figure during adolescence was associated with lower relationship satisfaction and less favorable perceptions of a current romantic partner in college students. However, there …

Trends Of Parent-Adolescent Drug Talk Styles In Early Adolescence, Youngju Shin, Jonathan Pettigrew, Michelle Miller-Day, Michael L. Hecht, Janice L. Krieger

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

The present study seeks to understand how parents as prevention agents approach substance use prevention messages during the period of early adolescence. Students (N = 410) in a drug prevention trial completed surveys from 7th to 9th grade. Using longitudinal data, a series of latent transition analyses was conducted to identify major trends of parent–adolescent drug talk styles (i.e., never talked, situated direct, ongoing direct, situated indirect, and ongoing indirect) in control and treatment conditions. Findings demonstrate a developmental trend in drug talk styles toward a situated style of talk as youth transitioned from 7th grade to 9th grade. …

Differential Effects Of Parental “Drug Talk” Styles And Family Communication Environments On Adolescent Substance Use, Youngju Shin, Michelle Miller-Day, Michael L. Hecht

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

The current study examines the relationships among adolescent reports of parent–adolescent drug talk styles, family communication environments (e.g., expressiveness, structural traditionalism, and conflict avoidance), and adolescent substance use. ANCOVAs revealed that the 9th grade adolescents (N = 718) engaged in four styles of “drug talks” with parents (e.g., situated direct, ongoing direct, situated indirect, and ongoing indirect style) and these styles differed in their effect on adolescent substance use. Multiple regression analyses showed that expressiveness and structural traditionalism were negatively related to adolescent substance use, whereas conflict avoidance was positively associated with substance use. When controlling for family communication …

The Psychology Of Marathon Television Viewing: Antecedents And Viewer Involvement, Riva Tukachinsky, Keren Eyal

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

This study focuses on the expanding trend of marathon (“binge”) television viewing. It examines the personality antecedents of such media consumption (attachment style, depression, and self-regulation deficiency) as well as the psychological experiences of marathon viewers relative to the narrative (transportation, enjoyment) and its characters (parasocial relationship, identification). In a two-study design, theoretical models of media use and involvement, on one hand, and models of media addiction, on the other hand, are applied to predict the extent of marathon viewing and to compare it with “traditional” viewing. Results advance understanding of enjoyment and involvement theory and support cognitive theories of …

Spiritual Media Experiences, Trait Transcendence, And Enjoyment Of Popular Films, Sophie Janicke, Srividya Ramasubramanian

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

Recent scholarship on media psychology acknowledges that media entertainment offers not only purely hedonistic enjoyment but also meaningful experiences. This study expands our understanding of media enjoyment by exploring the role of media entertainment in evoking spiritual emotions and beliefs, such as those related to connectedness, blessedness, and transcendence. Results from an online survey (N=220) indicate that media entertainment elicits meaningful as well as spiritual emotions and increases the saliency of spiritual beliefs as related to self-actualization and spiritual experiences in everyday life. Furthermore, trait transcendence and eudaimonic media motivations add to the explanation of audiences’ mediated spiritual experiences. Open-ended …

Narrative Persuasion 2.0: Transportation In Participatory Websites, Yuhua (Jake) Liang, Riva Tukachinsky

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

This research applies narrative persuasion theory to participatory websites. Specifically, the study examines the joint effect of online review structure (narrative/nonnarrative) and source attributes (expert/nonexpert) on attitude strength (attitude certainty and intensity). Results demonstrate that source attributes moderate the relationship between transportation and attitude intensity but not attitude certainty. These findings advance transportation theory by illuminating that readers glean source attributes on participatory websites, and these attributes modify transportation effects. The findings offer implications for participatory websites and design features that may facilitate or hinder readers in their quest to make decisions based on the reviews they read.

Chinese Communication Studies: Three Paths Converging, Wenshan Jia

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

This contribution presents the possibilities for anthropological and neo-Marxist media within the hugely expanding sector of Chinese communication studies. China has sourced mostly from the American positivist tradition but is increasingly ­taking on board European critical thinking but it also needs to absorb some of the depth and diversity of indigenous scholarship existing in Chinese.

Jia, Lu, and Heisey (2002) presented an influential meta-analysis of every ­example of communication studies in China at that time. The book chapter which talks about the rise of the discipline and scholarship of Chinese communication as an academic discipline (Jia et al., 2014) summarises …

User-Generated Opinion: How Reader Reactions And Source Reputation Influence The Effects Of Online News, Stephan Winter, Nicole C. Krämer, Yuhua (Jake) Liang

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

On contemporary online news sites, readers are simultaneously exposed to journalistic articles and social reactions toward these messages. Two online experiments (N = 252) addressed whether negative user reactions can attenuate the persuasive influence of the main article, and whether these effects depend on the reputation of the original source. Results showed a selective consideration of user-generated content: Readers took into account comments with high argument quality and ratings of a credible website but did not follow others’ opinions if the comments merely contained subjective evaluations. On less reputable websites, user reactions were less influential. Findings are discussed with regard …

2nd Place Contest Entry: From A Chat In The Parlor To Viral Music Videos: An Analysis Of Music As A Social Occasion, Emma F. Plotnik

Kevin and Tam Ross Undergraduate Research Prize

This is Emma Plotnik's submission for the 2016 Kevin and Tam Ross Undergraduate Research Prize, which won second place. She wrote about the impact of salons on the musical world in past centuries, and created a modern virtual salon of her own.

Emma is a senior at Chapman University, majoring in Music with a minor in Law, Justice, and Social Control. Her faculty mentor is Dr. Jessica Sternfeld.

Exploring The Role Of Identification And Moral Disengagement In The Enjoyment Of An Antihero Television Series, Sophie Janicke, Arthur A. Raney

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

Affective disposition theory explains well the process of enjoying hero narratives but not the appeal of narratives featuring antiheroes. Recent antihero studies suggest that character identification and moral disengagement might be important factors in the enjoyment of such fare. The current study builds on this work. A sample of 101 self-identified fans and nonfans of the television series 24 viewed a condensed version of Season 1, providing evaluation of various protagonist perceptions, moral judgments, and emotional responses to the narrative, as well as overall enjoyment. As expected, fans reported greater liking of the protagonist and greater enjoyment. But more importantly, …

Negative Campaigns And Their Influence On Voter Attitudes, Estefan Colindres

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

There is a legitimate debate over negative campaigning and whether it either mobilizes voter participation or suppresses it. Previous studies suggest that the relevant political information brought by negative campaigns play a significant role in mobilizing the electorate (Finkel and Geer, 1998). On the other hand, some studies explain that negative campaigns challenge the legitimacy of the electoral process and consequently drain the electorate (Krupnikov, 2011).

As such, my research question asks of the effect of negative campaigning on voter participation - are people turned off and to what extent? What kind of impact does negative campaigning have on voters …

Where We Have Been And Where We Can Go From Here: Looking To The Future In Research On Media, Race And Ethnicity, Riva Tukachinsky

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

This special issue illuminates the ways in which media portrayals and practices, together, create barriers to inclusion for diverse groups and normalize existing patterns of relegation on and off the screen. Media representations of race and ethnicity have critical consequences for intergroup relationships and for marginalized group members’ self-concept. A synthesis of the research included in this volume demonstrates the significance of these questions across media outlets, their relevancy despite the rise of new technologies, and their application to social contexts outside the U.S.. Finally, this concluding article suggests directions for future research and offers implications for policies that can …

Faith, Works, And Praxis: Emergent Post-Colonialism And The Catholic Church In North America, Alexander Odicino

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The personal papers of American Jesuit priest, Wilfrid Parsons, evince an international information war concerned with the praxis of "facts" pertaining to Mexico’s Church and state conflicts of 1925 to 1939. While editor-in-chief of the Jesuit weekly magazine, "America", (1925-1936) Parsons transformed the publication into the pre-eminent Catholic source of information about the "Mexican situation", consequently enabling him to coordinate the publication of "facts" with several other New York based Catholic publications. However, rather than speaking to strictly Catholic interests in the Mexican conflict, research has shown that, when analyzed as a focal point of information processing, the sources in …

Narrative Reflection In The Family Medicine Clerkship-Cultural Competence In The Third Year Required Clerkships, Donna Elliott, Pamela Schaff, Theresa Woehrle, Anne Walsh, Janet Trial

Physician Assistant Studies Faculty Articles and Research

This resource cultivates effective cross-cultural communication skills, which requires an understanding of culture that includes both the physician's and the patient's perspectives. Building on a foundation of cultural awareness, knowledge, and skills students have acquired during the preclinical curriculum, this exercise provides an opportunity for students to continue to refine their narrative reflection skills as they interact with patients in the clinical setting. During the family medicine clerkship, students participate in learning activities that provide the opportunity to explore the rich opportunities of thoughtful reflection and narrative practice. Students also participate in a formative narrative reflection exercise during the clerkship …

Negotiating Cultural Identities Through Language: Academic English In Jordan, Anne-Marie Pedersen

English Faculty Articles and Research

This article discusses how a group of multilingual scholars in Jordan negotiate multiple linguistic and cultural affiliations. These writers' experiences demonstrate the varied ways English's global dominance affects individuals' lives. The scholars find both empowerment and disempowerment in English, viewing English as linked to Western hegemony in some situations and as de-nationalized and de-territorialized in others.