WHY STUDY AUDIENCES?Some approachesMAC201

Robert Jewitt

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AUDIENCE CONSUMPTION

Perhaps ‘the’ most important part of the process for media producers

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AUDIENCE CONSUMPTION

Perhaps ‘the’ most important part of the process for media producers Tailor products to audience preferences Identify suitable advertising space Technological improvements and usability Impression management Explore social trends for future policy

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AUDIENCE CONSUMPTION

Perhaps ‘the’ most important part of the process for media producers Tailor products to audience preferences Identify suitable advertising space Technological improvements and usability Impression management Explore social trends for future policy

Lots of myths exist regarding audience relationships with the media

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AUDIENCE RESEARCH2 APPROACHES

Quantitative data Based on volume i.e., amount of people participated.

Qualitative data Based on level of detail i.e., amount of data from individuals

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AUDIENCE RESEARCH2 APPROACHES

Quantitative data Based on volume i.e., amount of people participated

Qualitative data Based on level of detail i.e., amount of data from individuals

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AUDIENCE RESEARCH2 APPROACHES

Quantitative data Based on volume i.e., amount of people participated

Qualitative data Based on level of detail i.e., amount of data from individuals

Ethnography – starts with people first rather than a hypothesis

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ETHNOGRAPHIC AUDIENCE RESEARCH

A way of conducting research into what is occurring in the wider social worldObservationListeningQuestioning

Describes intimate human-social phenomena

Draws from cultural anthropology

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AUDIENCE TEST SCREENING

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Invented in 1919 by Harry Lloyd in order to change a film before the final release to better suit a mass audience

Questionnaire based

AUDIENCE TEST SCREENING

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Invented in 1919 by Harry Lloyd in order to change a film before the final release to better suit a mass audience

Questionnaire based

AUDIENCE TEST SCREENING

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Invented in 1919 by Harry Lloyd in order to change a film before the final release to better suit a mass audience

Questionnaire based

Darker ending removed http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ch2vPwOlEX4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jx49d_GwskU

ETHNOGRAPHY AS ‘HANGING OUT?’

Machin (2002: p1): The role of the ethnographer is to be

‘finely tuned to the patterns and processes that make up the social world’

Key figures in anthropology: Bronisław Malinowski (1884-1942) Clifford Geertz (1926-2006) Claude Lévi-Strauss (1908-?) 13

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=pPY7EaSN9pA

AUDIENCE RESEARCH: ETHNOGRAPHY

‘At the heart of ethnography is the act of observing and listening to people as they go about their everyday lives in order that we can understand the way they behave or think on their own terms’ (Machin, 2002: 1)

Apply ethos of the paradigm to media use

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AUDIENCE RESEARCH: ETHNOGRAPHY

‘This can be contrasted with the process of either theorising about the reasons for a particular behaviour or composing a questionnaire, and therefore asking the subjects of our research to respond to a set of assumptions that we have already made about why they behave in a particular way’ (Machin, 2002: 1)

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HSBC ‘LOCAL BANK’ ADS

Important to know the local context of the brand, or how it is being understood

Launch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JK_NinOmFW

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Pets: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bVCj9Ayxc8

Eels: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_WAmt3cMd

k

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EVERYDAY LIFE IS ARBITRARY

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Islamic prayer

Amsterdam

La Tomatina

Bigg Market

EXPLAIN BEHAVIOUR

Everyday life appears natural Governed by socially constructed rules Majority of people abide by them Different (sub) cultures may function

differently

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DIFFERENT TYPE OF RESEARCH

Questionnaire survey Excellent for gathering socio-economic data Limited scope; ‘closed’ questions

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FRAMING THE QUESTIONS

Responses to questions are often contextual How questions are framed can determine

answer How responses are measured can also shape

results

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PROBLEMATIC FRAMING

A set of assumptions that we’ve already made?

Typical questions asked can skew the results: Eg:

“Do you support the attempt by the USA & UK to bring freedom and democracy to other places in the world?”

Or

“Do you support the unprovoked military action by the USA?”

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DIFFERENT TYPE OF RESEARCH

Open ended questions Interviewees expand on points Interviewees might not know reasons why they

behave

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DIFFERENT TYPE OF RESEARCH

Focus groups Group dynamic more ‘natural’ Unnatural environment; contrived discussions; little

control

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CRITICISMS OF ETHNOGRAPHY

Scientific or rigorous? Interpretive methodology (role of researcher) Natural sciences vs Social sciences Positivism via Descartes (see Ruddock, 2001) Variables identified > isolated > measured Standardized method of investigation

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25Correlation does not imply causation

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COMPARE ATTITUDES TOWARDS TV/RADIO PROGRAMME

Identify audience variables Income? Attitudes? Geography? Age?

Create questionnaire Collect responses Assess patterns

All this assumes the veneer of distance and scientific objectivity and neutrality. 27

- "Why are people going so crazy over this, it's funny as hell”- "It's boys being boys”- “How can you possibly NOT find this hilarious?”

GENERAL AUDIENCE RESEARCH ISSUES:VALIDITY

Why would people lie? Uncomfortable questions about personal life How people present themselves & reality Questionnaires = leap of faith

Emile Durkheim (1952) on low incidences of suicide in Catholic countries

Ethnography paints a broader picture

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GENERAL AUDIENCE RESEARCH ISSUES:REPRESENTATIVENESS

Depends on when it is undertaken: sampling Random sampling; Strategic random sampling Targeted sampling; Quota sampling

Size of group (is more better?) Large samples difficult to analyse (low

validity) Presumptions of researcher? Broad samples not suited to specific tasks

(eg., Star Trek fans)

Ethnography is representative of those taking part in study 29

GENERAL AUDIENCE RESEARCH ISSUES:RELIABILITY

Should the research be repeatable? Rigid methodology Methods suited to individualistic responses?

Ethnography is adaptive Ethnography as too interpretive?

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Describes the quality of phenomena

Is primarily inductive –builds theory

Uses text based data derived from observations, interviews and elicitation

Focus of study is localized Unit of analysis is usually

larger than the individual Usually uses universal or

selective sampling Emphasizes validity Uses

case-study/continuous assessment design in interventions

Measures the quantity of phenomena

Is primary deductive – tests theory

Uses numerical data based on quantification

Focus of study is local, national or international

Unit of analysis is usually the individual

Randomizes sampling procedures

Emphasizes reliability and generalizability

Uses experimental or quasi-experimental design in a controlled settings

Qualitative Research Quantitative Research

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Source: Jean J. Schensul, 2005: http://cira.med.yale.edu/events/mbseminars/mbs070705.pdf

CONCLUSION Heisenberg’s ‘Uncertainty principle’

‘What we observe is not nature itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning’

(1958, Physics and Philosophy)

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CONCLUSION

Numerous reasons for audience research No approach is 100% accurate despite claims

Quantitative (statistical) research is useful starting point

Qualitative (interpretive) research builds on this

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Ideally, triangulation is sought from multiple methods but not always obtainable.

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SOME VERY USEFUL BACKGROUND TEXTS

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Researching online

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USEFUL READING Ien Ang, 1991, Desperately Seeking the Audience. London:

Routledge. Werner Heisenberg, 1958, ‘Physics and Philosophy: The

Revolution in Modern Science’, Lectures delivered at University of St. Andrews, Scotland, Winter 1955-56, available http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/heisenb3.htm

Shaun Moores, 1993, Interpreting Audiences, London: Sage. (recommended reading: full text)

David Machin, 2002, Ethnographic Research for Media Studies, London: Arnold (one chapter on WebCT)

Virginia Nightingale & Karen Ross, 2004, Media and Audiences: New Perspectives. Buckingham: Open University Press (chapter 2).

Andy Ruddock, 2001, Understanding Audiences: Theory & Method, London: Sage

Sue Stoessl, 1998, “Audience feedback: administrative research of audiences”, in A. Briggs and P. Cobley (eds.) The Media: An Introduction. London: Longman.

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