Effects of a prosocial television soap opera in promoting women's status.

Abstract

The effects of exposure to "Hum Log," India's first long-running television soap opera, on viewers' beliefs about women's status, freedom of choice, and family planning were assessed in a survey of 1170 respondents from three geographic areas. The soap opera is intended to promote prosocial beliefs about the role of women in India. A structural equation model was developed to measure the impact of awareness, involvement, and television dependency on personal beliefs. Viewers who were most exposed to "Hum Log" were more involved with its characters and more dependent on Indian television for education and entertainment, but were no more aware than their less exposed counterparts of the prosocial beliefs promoted by the soap opera. There was no significant association between viewers' involvement with the characters and their beliefs about women's equality, freedom of choice, or family planning. Moreover, viewers who were more dependent on television did not exhibit significantly stronger beliefs about these issues. There was a significant association between awareness of the prosocial messages promoted in "Hum Log" and viewer beliefs in freedom of choice and family planning. Overall, it appears that, while "Hum Log" enjoys a large and dedicated audience, its messages regarding women's equality are not being assimilated on a large scale. An analysis of the female characters in the soap opera reveals that, in many cases, the self-sufficient, career-oriented women experienced negative social consequences, while characters who pursued more traditional female roles were rewarded. Thus, while there is no evidence that "Hum Log" is making a significant contribution toward changing the way women are viewed in India, its popularity paves the way for future prosocial programming