Attitudes Of Readers Research Articles

Surveys of Reader Attitudes toward Newspaper Combinations

Although audiences differ, the views held by readers about local newspaper combinations in four cities show marked similarities. The author, a former research associate and assistant professor of journalism at Emory University, now heads his own research organization in Atlanta.

The Relationship between the Reader's Attitude and Certain Types of Reading Response. Teachers College Studies in Education. Anne Selley McKillop

<i>The Relationship between the Reader's Attitude and Certain Types of Reading Response. Teachers College Studies in Education</i>. Anne Selley McKillop

A Study of Reader Attitudes toward the Negro Press

A Study of Reader Attitudes toward the Negro Press

The Effect of Attitudes upon Reading Interpretation

Under any conditions and in any times studies dealing with the affect of the reader's attitudes upon his interpretation of printed materials would have valuable implications for test constructors, educational psychologists, educational sociologists, developmental and remedial reading teachers and specialists, and subject-matter teachers. Yet a scrutiny of Gray's annual bibliographies1 and Traxler's Ten Years of Research in Reading2 will reveal that there have been no investigations in this field. Related studies8 do exist, but these are concerned primarily with the function of reading in modifying, changing, and engendering attitudes. Semanticists4 have also devoted atten tion to the role of attitudes in reading interpretation; however, their dis cussions have been predominantly theoretical and such evidence as they have offered has not been quantitative. The present study represents an attempt to demonstrate that the reader's attitudes do, or do not, affect his interpreta tion of printed matter. It differs from related studies in that the affect of attitudes on reading interpretation is the subject, not the affect of reading on attitudes, and it differs from the semanticists' approach in that it is quantitative and statistical. THE NATURE OF THE STUDY

The Content of Radio Programs, 1915-1935

D URING the past two decades there has been a developing emphasis in American social theory on the description of and processes of social change. From the mass of material already accumulated a picture of related changing elements is emerging, the details of which are in many respects quite different from popular conceptions. If nothing more had been accomplished than to show this discrepancy, the effort expended on these descriptive studies of change would have been justified. But from this interest there has also come a significant accretion to the methods of social studies. Preoccupation with trends and sequences has often proved no bad discipline for training in a sharper definition of the problem and of the units, where measurement was involved. Latterly, methods for recording some of the more subtle aspects of culture change have been tentatively put forward. Early studies of content of the newspaper, books, periodicals, motion pictures, and radio were not conceived in terms of trends of content but were concerned with problems of sampling, of classification, of units of measurement. Yet it is in showing changes by titne sequences that these studies may be most meaningful. For example, one may question whether column-inch records provide the most significant unit of measurement of newspaper content, maintaining that position in the paper, quality of writing, the appeal of special features, etc., may be more important than space, and yet be quite willing to grant that from a series of such column-inch measurements significant changes may be noted. Before turning to a study of a series, based on the time given to different types of radio programs from I9`5 tO I935, we may review briefly the development of various types of studies of content. Of the many organized but non-quantitative studies of the content of media of communication there are the various services summarizing news; resumes of particular sections of the newspaper; historical studies of the newspaper for a special content, such as Irene C. Willis' England's Holy War; the content of different classifications of books such as reviews of family folkways and mores as portrayed in contemporary novels; or surveys of content of textbooks as in the work of Bessie L. Pierce, Donald R. Taft or Prof. C. J. H. Hayes' volume on France;' the study of the language forms of sections of the newspaper or the radio; and many other types of analysis. But we may limit our interest here to the quantitative studies of content. (i) The most extensive list of such studies deals with the subject matter of the newspapers. The larger question is, of course, the influence of the newspaper content on the readers and the way in which known reader attitudes affect the presentation of news. However, until very recently there had been no, experimental attempt to measure such influences. Some of the problems of a program of research in this field have recently been indicated by J. L. Woodward.2 On the other hand, con-

Reader Attitudes toward Questions of Newspaper Policy and Practice

Reader Attitudes toward Questions of Newspaper Policy and Practice

How America Became Belligerent: A Quantitative Study of War News, 1914-17

The process by which a modern state passes from neutrality to belligerency is illustrated in the case of the United States during the World War and as reflected in the press. In the five stages of neutrality attention is increasingly in the direction of war. News originating with the neutral nation undergoes a great increase in volume. It is always favorable to the nation supplying the greater amount of news. The focus of attention narrows to news concerning one of the belligerents and its relations to the neutral self. The national government as the collective symbol becomes the object of concern, with corresponding disregard of consequences for individuals. Items carrying appeals capable of affecting reader attitudes increase. These tendencious items are motivated by the usual idealism, and by appeals of specific application to the injured self. In this respect the malignant crisis is distinguished from the benignant. The latter is marked by conciliatory items which are unable to overcome the inertia of peace. Definitely belligerent items supplant conciliatory items in the malignant crisis.