This volume addresses the content of television -- both programs and advertisements -- and the psychological effects of the content on the audience. The author not only reports new research, but explains its practical applications without jargon. Issues are discussed and described in terms of psychological mechanisms and causal routes of influence. While primarily referring to the American television industry and American governmental regulations, the psychological principles discussed are applicable to television viewers world wide.

Taking the soap opera as a case study, this book explores the 'parasocial interaction' people engage in with television programmes. It looks at the nature of the 'active viewer' and the role of the text in social psychology. It also investigates the existing theoretical models offered by social psychology and other discourses. This second edition takes into account recent research work and theoretical developments in fields such as narrative psychology, social representation theory and ethnographic work on audiences, and look forward to the developing role of audience research. It will be an essential study for students and lecturers in social psychology and media studies.

This volume addresses the content of television -- both programs and advertisements -- and the psychological effects of the content on the audience. The author not only reports new research, but explains its practical applications without jargon. Issues are discussed and described in terms of psychological mechanisms and causal routes of influence. While primarily referring to the American television industry and American governmental regulations, the psychological principles discussed are applicable to television viewers world wide.

Background and overview; Television and reading skills; Television and cognivite development; Television and other leisure activities; Television-viewing patterns and use of other media; Television and sex-role attitudes; Television and children's aggressive behavior; Television and adults: thinking, personality, and attitudes; Summary. conclusions, and implications.

As entertainment becomes a trillion-dollar-a-year industry worldwide, as our modern era increasingly lives up to its label of the "entertainment age," and as economists begin to recognize that entertainment has become the driving force of the new world economy, it is safe to say that scholars are beginning to take entertainment seriously. The scholarly spin on entertainment has been manifested in traditional ways, as well as innovative ones. Representing the current state of theory and research, Psychology of Entertainment promises to be the most comprehensive and up-to-date volume on entertainment. It serves to define the new area of study and provides a theoretical spin for future work in the area. Divided into three basic parts, this book: *addresses the fundamental mechanisms and processes involved in orienting to and selecting entertainment fare, as well as receiving and processing it; *explores the mechanisms and processes by which we are entertained by the media messages we select and receive; and *provides an opportunity for the application of well-established as well as emerging psychological and psychobiological theories to be applied to the study of entertainment in ways that seldom have been utilized previously. Psychology of Entertainment will appeal to scholars, researchers, and graduate students in media studies and mass communication, psychology, marketing, and other areas contributing to the entertainment studies area.

This fascinating work provides an up-to-date examination of shifts in the nature and impact of TV and video watching that have largely been driven by non-linear TV and video services online. The book reviews research evidence from around the world about the physical and behavioural shift of viewing away from linear and towards non-linear TV and video services. It studies the psychological factors that underpin and drive this shift and the impact of binge-watching behaviour on people’s physical and psychological health and social relationships. Along the way, it differentiates between "binge-watching" and "heavy-viewing" and considers binge-watching as a distinctive form of TV/video use that has its own reasons of occurrence and impacts. The Psychology of Binge Watching TV is aimed principally at students and academics interested in psychology, media, mental health and other related disciplines. It will also interest any readers looking to understand more about the psychology behind binge-watching and the potentially positive and negative effects on audiences.

First Published in 2012. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.