The subjective meaning of shared representations: Television characters and self.
Item
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Title
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The subjective meaning of shared representations: Television characters and self.
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Identifier
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AAI9315482
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identifier
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9315482
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Creator
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Kritt, David William.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Joseph Glick
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Date
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1993
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Psychology, Developmental | Psychology, Social | Anthropology, Cultural | Mass Communications
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Abstract
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An interactive stance toward representational systems is taken in this investigation of the relation between individuals and television characters. A homogeneous sample of boys at the transition to adolescence nominated characters they liked and disliked; because each subject subsequently focused on characters they nominated, liking, rather than particular characters, served as the independent variable. Subjects made semantic differential ratings of two liked and two disliked characters and themselves. Correlations of multidimensional scaling dimensions indicated less similarity between ratings of self and character than would be expected if strong processes of appropriation or projection were operating. Subject interviews about characters and themselves provided complementary data. Descriptive comparisons of self descriptions to character descriptions revealed that qualities ascribed to both liked and disliked characters embodied themes which emerged in talk about oneself. Furthermore, themes frequently spanned self and characters, but were not reflected in all characters, or even necessarily both liked characters. This suggests that each character is a symbolic vehicle embodying certain aspects of self. Discussion focuses on how cultural symbols both serve as representations through which individuals understand their own experience and are also transformed by individuals expressing meanings through them.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
