2. USES AND GRATIFICATIONS
Elihu Katz, Dennis McQuails & Michael Gurevitch
introduced term ‘Uses and gratification’
Earlier, all the theories were explained about ‘media had
the effects on people’
But, ‘Uses and Gratification theory’ explains of how
people use media for their need and gratification
3. USES AND GRATIFICATIONS
It talks about ‘what people do with media’ rather than
‘what media does to people’
It is contradictory to the ‘magic bullet theory’ which states
audience is passive
4. USES AND GRATIFICATIONS
Its user/audience centric approach theory
They gain more knowledge by using media for reference
5. GRATIFICATIONS
There are several needs and gratification for people
Categorized into five categories.
Cognitive needs
Affective needs
Personal Integrative needs
Social Integrative needs
Tension free needs
6. COGNITIVE NEEDS
People use media for acquiring knowledge
Some of them have intellectual needs
It is not common to all
Only certain people have their own needs
Each person have a different need for E.g.: quiz programs, KBC
7. AFFECTIVE NEEDS
It includes all kinds of emotions, pleasure and other
moods of the people
People use media to satisfy their emotional needs
People watch serials and react accordingly to the emotions
carried in the programmes
( E.g.:Satamanambhavati Anthyakshari scene)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9K4ZlGpRIZA
8. PERSONAL INTEGRATIVE NEEDS
This is the self-esteem need
People use media to get confidence, gain credibility and
stabilize
People watch TV and assure that they have a status
Ex: People get to improve their status by watching media
advertisements buy products
People change their life style and media helps them to do so.
9. SOCIAL INTEGRATIVE NEEDS
It encompasses the need to socialize
Presently, People do not seems to have social gathering
Having social interaction using digital media to satisfy
their need.
10. TENSION FREE NEEDS
People use the media as a means of escapism and to
relieve from tension
The needs are individual in nature, and how u satisfies the
need is individualistic
Taking TV today, most people watch reality shows
11. TENSION FREE NEEDS
Because, It is more realistic, For entertainment, Interesting
New concepts/ innovative
In a way you can participate, Controversy, people crying
Sensationalism
12. GOALS OF MEDIA
To be informed or educated & entertained
To develop social interaction
To feel connected with the situations and characters
emotionally
To escape from real life situations
Other goals are nature, psychological comfort, fashion,
status, access to information, cognitive needs, etc.
13. CRITICISM
This theory does not consider the power of media
More audience-centered
The theory ignores the use of media in social structures
Audience might not always be active
The theory does not show media as important
Positively, it focuses attention on individuals in the mass
communication process