Selective Exposure

Abstract

Selective exposure refers to any pattern of differential media use, where an individual's motivations lead them to choose media messages that diverge in content from the larger set of available messages. Partisan selective exposure is well documented and remains widely studied in political communication. Proattitudinal messages are selected and consumed at a higher rate than other messages, although avoidance of counterattitudinal messages is not as persistent. Within media psychology, selective exposure is understood as a more comprehensive phenomenon, where attitude‐consistency is not the only way in which media users might exhibit differential choices of messages, channels, or media. Mood management and related perspectives have been used to explain how entertainment audiences engage in selective exposure. More recently, the self‐concept and social identity have been proposed as fundamental to nearly all forms of selective exposure, and dynamic, reciprocal models of media selection and effects have been advanced and tested. Operationalization poses unique challenges in studying selective exposure. Message selection is a discrete act, but exposure is a continuous and ongoing experience that unfolds over time. Behavioral measures are often necessary to get around problems with detail and error that are introduced by self‐reports of media use. Pressing issues in selective exposure research include the role of interactivity, algorithmic recommendations, and constantly moving newsfeeds that facilitate altered forms of browsing. Theoretical and methodological innovation can further improve researchers' ability to explain and predict how individuals choose their own media repertoires.