Glenn G. Sparks

The difference between fear of victimization and the probability of being victimized: Implications for cultivation

One issue in cultivation studies is the extent to which heavy television viewers come to “fear” criminal victimization. Fear of victimization, however, is seldom measured directly. Instead, respondents typically provide estimates of the likelihood of being involved in a crime or of how safe they feel in their neighborhoods. We argue that a conceptual distinction between fear of victimization and probability estimates of victimization is necessary. Support for the argument emerged from results of a random sample survey. Measures of the two concepts were not highly correlated, and television viewing was related to fear of violence, but not to crime probability estimates. Implications for media cultivation studies are discussed.

Friends Forever: A Longitudinal Exploration of Intimacy in Same-Sex Friends and Platonic Pairs:

In this paper, we report on the results of a 4-year longitudinal study that explored predictors of future closeness in nonromantic friendship pairs. Subjects were forty-five pairs representing male-male, female-female, and male-female (platonic) friendships. The first phase of data collection took place in 1983; the follow-up study took place in 1987 and included 93 percent of the original subjects. The results revealed no significant predictors for closeness among female-female or platonic pairs. Several significant predictors emerged for male-male friendships, including status similarity, proficiency at Password, prior room mate status, the number of areas that partners avoided in normal conversation and geographical distance. The results support the notion of overall partner similarity as an important predictor of continued friendship.

The relationship between exposure to televised messages about paranormal phenomena and paranormal beliefs

This paper seeks to continue exploration begun by Sparks, Hansen, and Shah (1994) into the possible relationship between exposure to media messages and paranormal beliefs. It reports the results of a random‐sample survey that revealed that exposure to particular programs that regularly depict paranormal activity is associated with an increased tendency to endorse paranormal beliefs. The fact that this association is found only for individuals who report no prior experience with paranormal phenomena may hold implications for cultivation theorys resonance hypothesis. Suggestions for future study in this area are recommended.

Calming children's television fears: Mr. Rogers vs. The incredible hulk

An experiment examined the effectiveness of two intervention strategies to reduce childrens fear of the television series The Incredible Hulk, in which a mild‐mannered character (David) transforms into the monstrous Hulk. The Identity tape emphasized the similar positive motivations of David and the Hulk. The Visual Cues tape showed an actor being made‐up to look like the Hulk. Both tapes reduced fear (relative to a control condition) during the post‐transformation segment that featured the Hulk. Additional measures (ratings of the characters, explanations of the transformation) were used to evaluate several possible reasons for the success of the interventions.

Investigating the Relationship Between Exposure to Television Programs that Depict Paranormal Phenomena and Beliefs in the Paranormal

This paper seeks to continue a program of research that explores the possible relationship between exposure to media messages and paranormal beliefs. Following the work of Sparks, Nelson and Campbell (1997), who reported the results of a random sample survey taken in 1994, this study reports the findings of a second random sample survey taken in the same geographic area several years later. The results of the survey show that paranormal beliefs are prevalent in the population and that they are related to reports of television exposure to programs that regularly depict paranormal phenomena. Like the findings reported by Sparks, Nelson and Campbell (1997), this study found that the relationship between TV viewing and paranormal beliefs was contingent upon prior personal experience with a paranormal event. However, the form of this contingent relationship was directly opposite from that observed in the earlier survey. In this study, the relationship between TV exposure and paranormal beliefs emerged only for respondents who reported personal experience with the paranormal. Plausible reasons for the conflicting findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Understanding Emotional Reactions to a Suspenseful Movie: The Interaction between Forewarning and Preferred Coping Style.

An experiment is reported that tested the notion that the effects of forewarning to a suspenseful film are dependent upon ones preferred way of coping with stressful events. Preferred coping style was assessed with the MBSS (Miller Behavioral Style Scale) that classifies individuals as either high monitors/low blunters or high blunters/low monitors. Research participants of each type were exposed to a suspenseful film clip from the movie When A Stranger Calls, after receiving either a low or high amount of information about the events in the film. The hypothesis was that high monitors/low blunters would prefer the high forewarning to the low forewarning and would react more negatively in the low forewarning condition. High blunters/low monitors were expected to prefer the low forewarning to the high forewarning and were expected to react more negatively in the high forewarning condition. Emotional responses were measured with self‐reports, skin conductivity, and thought listings. Support for the hypothes...

Individual differences in arousability: Implications for understanding immediate and lingering emotional reactions to frightening mass media

Many recent studies in mass communication have investigated emotional responses to frightening movies and television programs. However, little research has been directed toward documenting and explaining the occurrence of enduring fright reactions that linger on, in one form or another, long after exposure to the media stimulus. The present study investigated the relationship between individual differences in “arousability”; (as measured by the Stimulus Screening Questionnaire) and the tendency to report enduring negative reactions from exposure to frightening media. In addition, participants in the study were exposed to a segment from a frightening film and self‐report indicators of emotional response were collected and related to arousability. Skin temperature and skin conductance were also monitored during the film segment and related to arousability. The results indicated that arousability was related to both enduring and immediate fright reactions. The physiological indicators were associated with ar...

Media Impact on Fright Reactions and Belief in UFOs The Potential Role of Mental Imagery

Given the fact that the content of television and movies can be described as a rapidly changing stream of audio and visual information, it is puzzling that little research in mass communication has focused upon the cognitive processes relating to mental imagery. In this study, the potential role of mental imagery for media effects in two different areas is explored: (a) emotional responses to frightening mass media, and (b) the effects of the media on beliefs in UFOs. The results of the study indicate that individual differences in vividness of mental imagery may play a crucial role in moderating both types of media impact. Implications and suggestions for future research are outlined.

The Appeal of Media Violence in a Full‐length Motion Picture: An Experimental Investigation

This paper reports the results of an experiment that examined the appeal of violence in a full‐length motion picture. College students (N = 134) were randomly assigned to view one of two different versions of The Fugitive. One version was the original theatrical release and the other version was identical except for the fact that nearly all of the scenes of violence were deleted. Deleting the violence did not affect enjoyment or perceptions of the quality of the movie. The popular assumption that violence is an enjoyable film commodity is suspect based on these results.

The effect of news stories about UFOs on readers' UFO beliefs: The role of confirming or disconfirming testimony from a scientist

An experiment was designed to determine the impact of different versions of a news story on UFO beliefs. Of particular interest was the impact of story information that would either cast doubt upon the reality of UFOs or lend credence to their existence. The effect of including a scientific authority in the story was also examined. Results revealed that participants were more likely to express belief in UFOs when the story included a scientific authority who spoke in favor of UFOs’ existence. A scientific authority who discredited the existence of UFOs did not produce lower levels of UFO beliefs.