The Mean World Effects of Reality Television
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Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2007 The Mean World Effects of Reality Television: Perceptions of Antisocial Behaviors Resulting from Exposure to Competition-Based Reality Programming Kristin Michael Barton Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATION THE MEAN WORLD EFFECTS OF REALITY TELEVISION: PERCEPTIONS OF ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIORS RESULTING FROM EXPOSURE TO COMPETITION-BASED REALITY PROGRAMMING By KRISTIN MICHAEL BARTON A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Communication In partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Spring Semester, 2007 The members of the Committee approve the Dissertation of Kristin M. Barton defended on March 19, 2007. ____________________________________ Arthur A. Raney Professor Directing Dissertation ____________________________________ Susan C. Losh Outside Committee Member ____________________________________ Laura M. Arpan Committee Member ____________________________________ Jay D. Rayburn Committee Member Approved: _________________________________________________ Stephen D. McDowell, Chair, Department of Communication _________________________________________________ John K. Mayo, Dean, College of Communication The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii For my parents, Sam and Mary Barton. I know it isn’t one of Dad’s train books, but hopefully this still finds a home on the coffee table. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS If the process of writing this dissertation has taught me anything, it is that research is never done alone. And in that sense, I owe much thanks to the people who worked with me to make all of this a reality. First, I need to thank Dr. Art Raney for shepherding me along to this point. You somehow always knew exactly when I needed encouragement and exactly when I needed to be kicked into gear. In your dissertation, you wrote that you hoped to one day be the kind of mentor that Jennings Bryant was to you. Unquestionably, you have succeeded. Dr. Laura Arpan, has served on every committee I’ve had and been my methodological guide the entire way. You kept me in grad school when I though of quitting, and I owe you more for that than you will ever know. To Dr. Jay Rayburn, I can only say that you never let me settle for less than my best, and you made me a better researcher because of it. Finally, I must give credit to Dr. Susan Losh for helping me with the core of my literature review. To my fellow graduate students who helped me with recruiting subjects or administering surveys, I owe you big time. And while listing everyone who helped me over the course of the past five years would take the better part of a dozen pages, there have been some whose help deserves special recognition. Firat Tuzunkan, Jolayne Sikes, Dr. Jason Smith, Krystal Williamson, Will Kinnally, Dr. Xiao Wang, and Megan Fitzgerald, thank you all for the lunches and support. To all my friends who put up with me while I was a struggling student and thought I’d never actually graduate, I guess I showed you. Chris and Loni Curley, Bob and Linda Lavache, Phil and Heather Gilcreast, and Brett and Jillian Bosarge, thank you for all your love and understanding. I know I promised to come visit everyone more often, and now I really will. I also need to thank Megan Klein, who has been there for me in every way possible since we first met. Without you, this whole thing would have been unbearable. And so you know, I’m Bill Pardy. iv To Dr. Chuck McClure, Dr. John Bertot, and everyone at the Information Institute, thank you for all your patience. I know it wasn’t easy trying to get things done when I was gone for weeks at a time job hunting, but your understanding and encouragement made everything run smoothly. The Institute has been the best work experience I’ve ever had, and I will miss you all. To all the faculty in the department of communication, thank you. In particular, Dr. Donna Nudd, Dr. Misha Laurents, Dr. Marilyn Young, and especially Dr. Steve McDowell, who always found funding for me even when I was well past my limit. Finally, I need to thank all the staff in the department of communication, both past and present, who have helped with all the red tape involved with completing a dissertation. To Natashia Hinson-Turner, Mary Ealey, Tanla Bilir, and Sharon Lamb, I give my most sincere thanks, for never turning me away when I needed help. v TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables .............................................................................................................viii Abstract......................................................................................................................xi CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION...............................................................................1 CHAPTER II: WHAT IS REALITY TELEVISION?...............................................7 Defining Reality-Based Programming...........................................................8 Reality Entertainment and the Electronic Mass Media..................................16 CHAPTER III: LITERATIRE REVIEW...................................................................22 Overview....................................................................................................................22 Early Cultivation........................................................................................................23 The Three Arms of Cultural Indicators......................................................................24 Assumptions of Cultivation Analysis ........................................................................27 Assumption 1 .............................................................................................................28 Assumption 2 .............................................................................................................29 Assumption 3 .............................................................................................................31 Assumption 4 .............................................................................................................34 Assumption 5 .............................................................................................................38 Assumption 6 .............................................................................................................40 Assumption 7 .............................................................................................................43 Assumption 8 .............................................................................................................45 Assumption 9 .............................................................................................................47 Expanding Cultivation Research................................................................................50 Mainstreaming ...........................................................................................................51 Resonance ..................................................................................................................53 Violence Studies ........................................................................................................54 Cultivation Effects of Reality Television ..................................................................58 Study I Research ........................................................................................................61 Study II Research.......................................................................................................63 CHAPTER IV: STUDY I ..........................................................................................65 Methodology..............................................................................................................65 Results........................................................................................................................69 Discussion..................................................................................................................82 vi CHAPTER V: STUDY II ..........................................................................................84 Methodology..............................................................................................................84 Results........................................................................................................................88 Discussion..................................................................................................................104 CHAPTER VI: DISCUSSION ..................................................................................106 APPENDIX A: IRB APPROVAL LETTER AND CONSENT FORM....................112 APPENDIX B: STUDY I SURVEY .........................................................................115 APPENDIX C: STUDY II SURVEY........................................................................120 REFERENCES ..........................................................................................................127 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .....................................................................................139 vii LIST OF TABLES 1. Reality-Based Programs Inspired by Scripted Programming ................................21 2. General Mean World Cultivation Test...................................................................70