Primary Task Response: Within the Discussion Board area, write 600–700 words + MINIMUM OF 2 REFERENCES AND CITATIONSthat respond to the following questions with your thoughts, ideas, and comments. This will be the foundation for future discussions by your classmates. Be substantive and clear, and use examples to reinforce your ideas:
How effective is mass media in campaigns that are aimed at the public good (such as those against drunk driving, encouraging no texting while driving, advocating getting regular health checkups, or preventing forest fires)?
Have you changed your own behaviors because of these campaigns? If so, explain how.
Assignment Objectives:
Examine the ways that individuals perceive, interpret, use, and respond to information and images in mass media.
Explore the interactions between psychology and the many forms of media available.
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Similarly, mass media is effective in campaigns aimed at the public good through indirect pathways. This can occur when a message is passed through the media, such as television, which might increase the time, depth, and frequency of discussing the behavior. This might reinforce positive health behaviors. Since mass media messages reach a large audience at a given time, the indirect pathway might reinforce positive health behaviors by influencing a person’s decision without direct exposure to the campaign. For example, a support group can be introduced after an anti-smoking campaign, where a person can join the group and change his/her smoking behavior. Finally, indirect routes influence of mass media can occur when a policy is developed to stop unhealthy behaviors. For example, an anti-smoking campaign due to the passive effects on non-smokers might influence policy development prohibiting smoking in particular areas. This might prompt individuals to quit their behavior. Thus, mass media is useful in campaigns aimed at population good through its direct and indirect routes.
