Arthur A. Raney - Introduction to Positive Media Psychology

Introduction to Positive Media Psychology made me want to go to college again. To learn about all the ways in which media can be used for good, to inspire and connect us as humans, is what I greatly missed back then. This textbook lays out a positive, hope-inspiring media landscape that is firmly grounded in scientific research. It squares the circle of presenting the state of the art of an exciting new research field in plain language with instructive examples. For students and scholars alike, it will serve as the leading authoritative source on the topic.

Anne Bartsch, University of Leipzig, Germany

Probably no other perspective has stimulated media effects and media entertainment research as strongly over the past decade as the advent of positive media psychology. The present textbook provides a dearly needed integration of this fast-developing field. The authors are among the leading scholars who have crucially defined this research area and possess a unique expertise. The volume provides an excellent introduction to media psychology both to advanced undergraduate and graduate students and a well-structured overview to more senior scholars. I am confident that it will leave a lasting footprint and provide fertile ground for future scholarship in this field.

Leonard Reinecke, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany

Introduction to Positive Media Psychology summarizes and synthesizes the key concepts, theories, and empirical findings on the positive emotional, cognitive, and behavioral effects of media use. In doing so, the book offers the first systematic overview of the emerging field of positive media psychology.

The authors draw on a growing body of scholarship that explores the positive sides of media use, including fostering ones own well-being; creating greater connectedness with others; cultivating compassion for those who may be oppressed or stigmatized; and motivating altruism and other prosocial actions. The authors explore these issues across the entire media landscape, examining the ways that varying content (e.g., entertainment, news) delivered through traditional (e.g., film, television) and more recent media technologies (e.g., social media, digital games, virtual reality) can enhance well-being and promote other positive outcomes in viewers and users.

This book serves as a benchmark of theory and research for current and future generations of advanced undergraduate students, graduate students, and scholars in communication, psychology, education, and social work.

Arthur A. Raney is James E. Kirk Professor of Communication in the School of Communication at Florida State University, USA.

Sophie H. Janicke-Bowles is Assistant Professor in the School of Communication at Chapman University, USA.

Mary Beth Oliver is Distinguished Professor and co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory at Pennsylvania State University, USA.

Katherine R. Dale is Assistant Professor in the School of Communication at Florida State University, USA.

First published 2021

by Routledge

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The right of Arthur A. Raney, Sophie H. Janicke-Bowles, Mary Beth Oliver, and Katherine R. Dale to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Raney, Arthur A., author.

Title: Introduction to positive media psychology / Arthur A. Raney, Sophie H. Janicke-Bowles, Mary Beth Oliver, Katherine R. Dale.

Description: New York, NY : Routledge, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2020032999 (print) | LCCN 2020033000 (ebook) | ISBN 9780367373917 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367373900 (paperback) | ISBN 9780429353482 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Mass media--Psychological aspects. | Mass media--Social aspects. | Well-being.

Classification: LCC P96.P75 R36 2021 (print) | LCC P96.P75 (ebook) | DDC 302.23--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020032999

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020033000

ISBN: 978-0-367-37391-7 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-367-37390-0 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-0-429-35348-2 (ebk)

Typeset in Bembo

by Taylor & Francis Books

For Laura, Austin, Reed, Mom, and in loving memory of Pop.

Art

For my sister Romy, Mom, and in gratitude for my better half Rodney.

Sophie

To John, who is, and always will be, the love of my life.

Mary Beth

For Mom, Dad, Ryan, Kaitlyn, and Sage, my biggest supporters.

Katie

Collectively, we also dedicate this book to Dr. Jennings Bryant who left this world much too soon. To Art and Mary Beth, Jennings was a mentor, collaborator, and dear friend. To Sophie, Katie, and countless others, he was a pioneering scholar whose research and writings serve as a foundation for most of media and entertainment psychology. He will be dearly missed, but his brilliance, generosity, and kindness will continue to inspire.

For nearly a century, the scientific study of media use has primarily focused on the potential negative consequences on individuals and society: aggression, stereotyping, political divisiveness, knowledge gaps, misinformation, materialism and egocentrism, body dissatisfaction, sleep deprivation, obesity and other health problems, just to name a few. This researchoften referred to as media psychologyhas been, and continues to be, incredibly important, informative, and socially influential, as it has shined a light on potentially problematic outcomes of media use and in so doing empowered parents, educators, politicians, and consumers to work toward minimizing them. However, over the past decade, a growing body of scholarship has emerged that uses similar approaches and methods to explore the positive sides of media use, including creating greater connectedness with others, cultivating compassion for those who may be oppressed or stigmatized, and motivating altruism and other prosocial actions. It has examined how media can be used to foster ones own psychological well-being: enhancing feelings of purpose and meaningfulness, helping to cope with challenges and fears, promoting mindfulness and spirituality, and developing character and empathy. This work joins a few intellectually rich lines of existing media researchentertainment theory, educational and prosocial childrens television, narrative persuasion, and entertainment-education initiativesin examining how media entertainment can be used as a force for social and personal good.

From our perspective, these similar lines of inquiry constitute a growing area in communication, media, and psychology studies: positive media psychology. The purpose of this book is to pull together those lines of inquiry, with the goal of offering a framework for and current overview of this emerging field. For us, positive media psychology is the study of beneficial media use in a broad sense: for pleasure, meaning, transcendence, inspiration, need satisfaction, education, training, physical and mental health, recovery, productivity, information exchange, and coping; such use leads to well-being, social connectedness, contentment, mindfulness, spiritual fulfillment, hope and striving, resilience, tolerance, self-actualization, moral clarity, healthy relationships, civic engagement, community building, longevity, human flourishing, and more. As media psychologists, we do not deny the negative effects of media that have been the focus of our collective work for so long; further, we reject simplistic notions about some media use or content being good and other bad. We embrace the complex roles that media technologies and content play in our lives. Our aim is to unpack those complexities, highlighting beneficial experiences and outcomes in particular.