TELEVISION PROGRAM PREFERENCES OF LISTENERS IN UTAH COUNTY, UTAH DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By JIM HAND LUDLOW, B. S., M. A. The Ohio State University 1957 Approved-^y: Adviser Department of Speech ACKNOWLEDGMENT To Dr. Harrison B. Summers of Th.o Ohio State University for the numerous hours and careful consideration that he has given the writer while he has been worlcing on this dissertation; to my wife for her kind forbearance and wise counsel; and to the students for helping with the survey. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION TO THE PROBLEM .................... 1 Need for Audience Research ............. ..... 4 Statement of the Problem .......................... 8 II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE .......................... 10 Studies Conducted by Program Rating Services . 11 Cooperative Analysis of Broadcasting ........... 12 C. E. Hooper, I n c o r p o r a t e d ................ 12 The Recommendations of Frank N. S t a n t o n ... 13 A. C. Nielsen Company ...................... 15 The Pulse, Incorporated ........................ 16 V i d e o d e x ................................... 17 T r e n d e x ................... * ..................... 18 American Research Bureau ..... ............. 18 Conlon Surveys .................................. 19 Schwerin Research Corporation ................... 19 Forest L. Whan Surveys ...................... 21 The North Texas Radio Audience of 1955 22 The Topeka Television Area Audience Survey . 25 Iowa Radio—Television Audience Survey ........... 27 The Boston Area Radio—Television Audience in 1952 . 30 Dimensions of the Television Audience ....... 32 When TV Moves In .......................... 32 Television's Daytime Profile . ............... 33 iii iv CHAPTER PAGE Videotown .................................. 36 Attention Levels of Women Television Viewers . 38 Advertising Effectiveness of Television ........... 41 Television Today, Its Impact on People and Products .................................. 41 Why Sales Come in C u r v e s ................. 43 How Television Changes Strangers into C u s t o m e r s ...........•>................... 44 Motivational Forces in Radio Broadcasts ........... 46 The Invasion from M a r s .......................... 46 Mass Persuasion.................................. 48 Radio and Television Program Preferences ......... 49 Radio Program Preferences of Listeners in Philadelphia in 1930 .............. 50 Radio Program Preferences in 1 9 4 1 ............... 52 Radio Program Preferences in the United States in 1945 and 1947 ........................ 54 Radio Program Preferences in Two Central Illinois Counties in 1946 ..................... 57 Radio Program Preferences of the Louisiana Farm Audience in 1948 ............... 60 Radio Program Preferences of Residents of Champaign County, Illinois, in 1949 .... 62 Radio Program Preferences of Children in School During 1949-1950 ..................... • 65 V CHAPTER PAGE Television Program Preferences of Children in School Between 1949 and 1952 ................ 67 Television Program Preferences of People in Franklin County, Ohio, in 1954 ............. 69 Conclusions............ » . 71 III. METHOD OF THE STUDY ..................... 74 The Sampling P l a n ........................... 74 Size of S a m p l e .................................. 74 Distribution of the Sample Throughout the County. 75 Selection of the S a m p l e ................. 76 Construction of the Questionnaire . ............. 77 Identifying Information .......................... 78 Types of Questions .............................. 78 Sequence of Questions ............................ 79 Pre-testing the Questionnaire ................... 79 Physical Form of the Q u e s t i o n n a i r e ............. 80 The Field W o r k .................................. 80 Selection of Interviewers ........................ 81 Training of Interviewers ........................ 81 The I n t e r v i e w i n g ..................... 83 Tabulation of the D a t a ............................ 84 Evaluation of the M e t h o d ....................... 85 Evaluation of the Sampling P l a n ............ 85 Evaluation of the Questionnaire ................. 90 Evaluation of the Field W o r k ............... 92 vi CHAPTER PAGE Evaluation of the Tabulating Procedures ......... 93 IV. CHARACTERISTICS OF UTAH COUNTY, U T A H ............... 95 General Population Characteristics ............... 95 Place of Residence .............................. 96 S e x ............................................... 96 A g e ............................................... 96 Education.......... 97 Family Income ....... 93 Labor Force ...................................... 98 Radio and Television Characteristics ............. 99 Ownership of Radio S e t s .......................... 100 Location of Radio Sets in the H o m e ............. 103 Ownership of Television S e t s ................... 103 Audience Availability ........................... 106 Time Devoted to Broadcast Media ................. 108 S u m m a r y ............................................. 110 V. FINDINGS OF THE STUDY OF TELEVISION LISTENERS .... IN UTAH C O U N T Y ....................................... 112 Preferences of Specific Groups of Respondents . 113 Top TV Preferences in Utah County .......... 113 Top TV Preferences of Each Sex Group...... 114 Top Program Preferences of Each Age Group .... 117 Program Types Preferred by Listeners in Each Educational Classification ............... 119 Preferences for Particular Program Types ......... 123 vii CHAPTER PAGE Musical Program Types ....................... 123 Dramatic Program Types ................. 127 Variety Program Types ............... 133 Quiz and Audience Participation Program Types . 134 Sports Program T y p e s ................. 138 Informative Program Types ....................... 142 VI. CONCLUSIONS....................................... 146 Relationship Between Place of Residence of Respondents and Their Program Preferences . 146 Relationship Between Sex of Respondents and Their Program Preferences ................... 150 Relationship Between Age of Respondents and Their Program Preferences . ............. 152 Relationship Between the Level of Education of Respondents and Their Program Preferences.... 154 Final Conclusions.............................. 156 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................... 158 AUTOBIOGRAPHY........................................... 165 APPENDIX ................. Back Cover LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE 1. Number of Respondents in Each Subgroup ............ 86 2. Comparison of Percentages of Total Population in Utah County, Utah, with Those Included in Sample by Sex and Age Groups . ................. 89 3. Percentage of the Population of Utah County over Ten Years of Age, in Each Age G r o u p ........... 97 4. Years of School Completed by Adults over Twenty-Five Years of Age in Utah County ...... 97 5. Percentage of Families by Income Levels in Utah County .............................. 98 6. Percentage of Respondents in TV and Non—TV Homes in Utah County in Relation to the Number of Radio Sets in the H o m e ...................... 101 7. Percentage of Respondents in Low, Median, and High Income Families in Utah County in Relation to the Number of Radio Sets in the H o m e ............. 102 8. Percentage of all Respondents Who Have Radios Located in Various Rooms of Their Homes in Utah C o u n t y ......................................... 104 9. Percentage of Respondents in Each Subgroup Who Live in TV Homes in Utah C o u n t y ..................105 viii ix TABLE PAGE 10. Percentage of Males and Females Over Ten Years of Age Who Were Available at Hourly Intervals Throughout the Day in Utah County .... ......... 107 11. Average Number of Hours per Day During which Listeners were Available and Devoted to Radio and Television Listening in Utah County in Relation to Sex of Listeners ........... 109 12. Percentage of Respondents Who Checked a Particular Program Type As One of Six Best Liked Types in Television Homes in Utah C o u n t y .................................. .. 115 13. Comparison of Percentage of Males and Females Who Checked a Particular Program Type as One of Six Favorites in Television Homes in Utah County . 116 14. Television Program Preferences of Respondents in Relation to Their Age in Television Homes in Utah C o u n t y .............................. 120 15. Television Program Preferences of Adults over Twenty Years of Age in Relation to Their Education in Television Homes in Utah County . • 122 16. Preference for Musical Type Television Programs of Respondents by Sex, Age, and Education in Television Homes in Utah County ................... 125 X TABLE PAGE 17. Preference for Dramatic Type Television Programs of Respondents by Sex, Age, and Education in Television Homes in Utah County ................. 128 18. Preference for Variety Type Television Programs of Respondents by Sex, Age, and Education in Television Homes in Utah County ................. 135 19. Preference for Quiz and Audience Participation Type Television Programs of Respondents by Sex, Age, and Education in Television Homes in Utah C o u n t y .................................... 137 20. Preference for Sports Type Television Programs of Respondents by Sex, Age, and Education in Television Homes in Utah C o u n t y ............... 141 21. Preference for Informative Type Television Programs of Respondents