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The Psychology of Entertainment Media

Blurring the Lines Between Entertainment and Persuasion

• Edited by L.J. Shrum

• Price: $99.95
• Binding: Hardback
• Pages: 312
• Published by: Psychology Press
• Publication Date: 1st September 2003
• ISBN: 978-0-8058-4641-6

About the Book

The Psychology of Entertainment Media provides a cutting-edge look at how entertainment media affects its viewers, both in intended and unintended ways, and the psychological processes that underlie these effects. The collection represents an international, multidisciplinary investigation of an age-old process--persuasion--in a relatively new guise, which includes product placements, brand films, television programs, and sponsorships.

The collection covers three broad areas:

• the potential effects of embedding promotions within entertainment media content;
• the persuasive power of the entertainment media content itself; and
• individual differences in the interplay between media usage and media effects.

Contributions focus on a variety of topics, including product placement, subliminal perception, narrative impact, cultivation effects on consumers, and individual differences in media use. Virtually all the chapters speak to the issue of how entertainment media are processed, with the conclusion that media consumers do tend to process entertainment and promotional information differently.

Providing a broad perspective on how entertainment media may have an effect that goes largely unnoticed or unattended by consumers, this volume makes a substantial contribution toward creating a more knowledgeable field, as well as a more knowledgeable consumer. With its origins in the 21st Annual Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference, the volume represents scholarship from prominent and emerging scholars in psychology, marketing, and communications. It is appropriate for advanced students and scholars in marketing, advertising, psychology, and mass communication; for research-focused practitioners working in marketing, advertising, and public policy; and for individuals interested in entertainment studies, consumer behavior, attitudes, persuasion, media studies, and consumer psychology.

Table of Contents

Contents: Preface. L.J. Shrum, What's So Special About Entertainment Media and Why Do We Need a Psychology for It?: An Introduction to the Psychology of Entertainment Media. Part I: Embedding Promotions Within Programs: Subliminal Embeds and Product Placements. M.H. Erdelyi, D.M. Zizak, Beyond Gizmo Subliminality. J.A. McCarty, Product Placement: The Nature of the Practice and Potential Avenues of Inquiry. S. Law, K.A. Braun-Latour, Product Placements: How to Measure Their Impact. M. Yang, B. Roskos-Ewoldsen, D.R. Roskos-Ewoldsen, Mental Models for Brand Placement. N. Bhatnagar, L. Aksoy, S.A. Malkoc, Embedding Brands Within Media Content: The Impact of Message, Media, and Consumer Characteristics on Placement Efficacy. S. Auty, C. Lewis, The "Delicious Paradox": Preconscious Processing of Product Placements by Children. Part II: The Programs Between the Ads: The Persuasive Power of Entertainment Fiction and Narrative. R.S. Wyer, Jr., R. Adaval, Pictures, Words, and Media Influence: The Interactive Effects of Verbal and Nonverbal Information on Memory and Judgments. M.C. Green, J. Garst, T.C. Brock, The Power of Fiction: Determinants and Boundaries. L.J. Shrum, J.E. Burroughs, A. Rindfleisch, A Process Model of Consumer Cultivation: The Role of Television Is a Function of the Type of Judgment. G. Comstock, Paths From Television Violence to Aggression: Reinterpreting the Evidence. M. Kniazeva, Between the Ads: Effects of Nonadvertising TV Messages on Consumption Behavior. D.W. Schumann, Media Factors That Contribute to a Restriction of Exposure to Diversity. Part III: Individual Differences in Media Usage and Their Role as Mediators and Moderators of Media Effects. T.C. Brock, S.D. Livingston, The Need for Entertainment Scale. C.A. Russell, A.T. Norman, S.E. Heckler, People and "Their" Television Shows: An Overview of Television Connectedness. D.N. Greenwood, P.R. Pietromonaco, The Interplay Among Attachment Orientation, Idealized Media Images of Women, and Body Dissatisfaction: A Social Psychological Analysis. S. Jones, C. Bee, R. Burton, L.R. Kahle, Marketing Through Sports Entertainment: A Functional Approach. S.R. McDaniel, Sensation Seeking and the Consumption of Televised Sports.