A First Look At Communication Theory, 10e (Griffin)
Chapter 28 Uses and Gratifications
1) Instead of asking, “What do media do to people?” Katz suggested the question to ask is:
A) “how should we use media?”
B) “what do people do with media?”
C) “what effect does the media have on people?”
D) “why do people gravitate towards certain mediums?”
2) The ________ model assumes that a media message affects most consumers in the same way.
A) global effects
B) limited effects
C) personal effects
D) uniform-effects
3) Which of these conclusions reflects a “straight-line effect of media”?
A) Both Caroline and Ralph thought it was a good film, but for different reasons: Caroline
enjoyed the acting, while Ralph thought it has a good story.
B) It’s hard to find a movie that both Caroline and Ralph enjoy, but they agree that they prefer to
watch movies at home rather than in the theater.
C) Since it was a “feel good” movie, both Caroline and Ralph enjoyed it.
D) Since it was a “feel good” movie, Caroline was in a good mood but Ralph was miserable
throughout the show.
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4) In the context of assumptions that underlie uses & grats, which of the following statements is
true about media consumers’ ability to discern and report the motivations behind their media
choices?
A) Researchers vary in their opinions of whether or not consumers can be trusted to efficiently
report their reasons; the question remains debated.
B) Consumers are mostly unable to draw parallels between their media usage and the
motivations behind it.
C) Millennials and educated consumers are most capable of accurately reporting the motivations
behind their media use.
D) Consumers are overly self-serving; they are more likely to give socially desirable answers
than accurate reports.
5) Katz suggests that ________ must be uncovered to understand people’s media choices.
A) needs versus wants
B) the source of our needs
C) the structure and hierarchies of motivations
D) underlying needs
6) Emma is overwhelmed with the amount of work she has to do in the next 48 hours. When she
thinks about it, her blood pressure rises and she feels rather sick to her stomach. She finds that
even 10 minutes of the video game Angry Birds helps to diffuse the situation. What is her most
likely motivation?
A) enjoyment
B) escape
C) excitement
D) passing time
7) A ________ relationship develops when viewers become attached to media personalities and
characters.
A) gratification
B) mediated
C) paranormal
D) parasocial
8) Bradley Greenberg suggested that, in addition to the eight categories given by Rubin, people
may consume media because of ________.
A) curiosity
B) habitual usage
C) need to individualize
D) social pressure
9) If people can’t accurately report their own motives for media usage, which evaluation criteria
is in question?
A) predictability
B) simplicity
C) testability
D) utility
10) According to the chapter, which of the following illustrates the practical utility aspect of uses
& grats?
A) The conclusive findings of the theory have made most major media theories redundant, and
that has opened up a new paradigm of media studies.
B) The theory helps in raising people’s personal consciousness and realization and guides people
while they take control of their media choices depending on the positive or negative effects.
C) The large volume of qualitative data from the theory has the potential to save the field of
communication in the future.
D) With the emergence of more diverse forms of new media, the theory has ceased to have
practical application.
11) A criticism of uses and gratification theory is that it:
A) endorses the “magic-bullet” or “hypodermic-needle” model of mass communication.
B) emphasizes description rather than explanation and prediction.
C) rejects the idea of parasocial relationships as being a reason for media consumption.
D) portrays the consumers of media content as selfish, insatiable, and materialistic.
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12) Uses & grats is a new theory and, as such, is still largely untested.
13) Katz proposed that audiences are passive targets who are just waiting to be hit by a magic
bullet.
14) One of the key assumptions of uses and gratifications theory is that uses of media are
inextricably tied to the gratifications people receive from those media.
15) The uses & grats approach focuses on the competition between media messages but stops
short of considering how media competes with non-mediated activities.
16) According to Elihu Katz, the same media message doesn’t necessarily affect everyone the
same way.
17) In order to understand why people make the media choices they do, you must understand
what underlying needs motivate our behavior.
18) Reasons for media consumption should fit under only one media consumption in Rubin’s
typology.
19) According to Katz, parasocial relationships tend to be destructive and anti-social.
20) For most critics, the emphasis on prediction and explanation rather than description is the
strength of uses & grats theory.
21) Primarily an interpretative theory, uses & grats has been widely tested using qualitative
methods.
22) In order to understand what motivates media usage behavior, you need to uncover ________.
23) In Rubin’s typology, each category includes both a(n) ________ and a(n) ________.
24) A(n) ________ is a sense of friendship or emotional attachment that develops between
viewers and media personalities.
25) ________ refers to a classification scheme that attempts to sort a large number of specific
instances into a more manageable set of categories.
26) How does Elihu Katz’ media theory weave together media use and gratifications?
27) How does the uses & grats approach differ from the uniform-effects model?
28) Uses & grats relies on self-reported data. How is this both a strength and a potential
weakness?
29) Underlying needs drive individuals to different media behavior. Explain how this might lead
to different outcomes from one person to another.
30) Rubin’s typology of eight categories addresses most explanations that people give for their
media behavior. At least two other motivations were included in the chapter. Can you explain at
least one novel (unaddressed in the chapter) motive?
31) Assuming that people are capable of accurately self-reporting their own motives, but also
aware that as communicators we all engage in some face-management, what motives do you
think are minimized (and hence, under-reported) and which are exaggerated (over-reported)?
32) What are some potential reasons for the development of parasocial relationships?
33) Explain one evaluation criteria that uses & grats fulfills and one where it falls short.
34) Katz’ perspective was originally proposed when media choices were more limited (radio,
movies, newspapers, and magazines). Does this theory still apply in the age of Twitter and text
messages, Skype and social networking websites, iPods and interactive television?
35) Discuss how uses & grats fulfills the criteria of relative simplicity, testability, practical
utility, and quantitative research.
36) Berelson thought the field of communication was doomed as media was no longer a
persuasive medium. Other than Katz, what other theorists might beg to differ?
37) How do issues of power factor into uses & grats? What might either Deetz or Hall suggest
about the role of corporations in shaping our needs and perceptions of how those are fulfilled
through media?
38) Is Elihu Katz’ position compatible with Walther’s hyperpersonal perspective?
39) Social constructionists such as Mead or Pearce and Cronen assume that people create the
worlds in which they inhabit with the meanings they develop. Where do our meaning about
media and its usage come from?
40) McLuhan postulated that “the medium is the message.” Is that a straight-line effect of media
or more in line with the uses & grats perspective?
41) Explain each of the eight motivations for TV viewing proposed by Rubin. Cite real-life
examples to support your answer.
42) What is a parasocial relationship? Elaborate on how it is used in the consumer market.