Landmark of empirical communication study I Lazarsfeld and Katz: The people’s Choice (1948) 2. Method: Big sample, representative Interview - re-interview - any changes? Control groups - avoid contamination by interviews 3. Findings: a. Activate 14%, convert 8% b. selective attention - high socio-economic status, the already decided c. source of influence - face-to-face-ties Propaganda - minimal effect 1. Question Propaganda voting decision? Applying the scientific methods
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Landmark of empirical communication study I
Lazarsfeld and Katz: The people’s Choice (1948)
2. Method:
Big sample, representative
Interview - re-interview - any changes?
Control groups - avoid contamination by interviews
3. Findings:
a. Activate 14%, convert 8%
b. selective attention - high socio-economic status, the already decided
c. source of influence - face-to-face-ties
Propaganda - minimal effect
1. Question
Propaganda voting decision?
Applying the scientific methods
Magic bullet theory Two step flow theory
wrong confirmed
Landmark of empirical communication study II
Lazarsfeld and Katz Personal Influence (1955)
1. Question: media and personal decision - 4 areas
fashion, buying, movie choice, public affairs
Media powerful?
Single source of influence?
2. Method: Smaller sample. Personal interview
3. Findings: two step flow model of influence
local level Opinion leaders influence choice
non-overlapping opinion leaders
4. Political evaluation:
Main source of influence not from central power - media or government
Instead from local sources of diffuse influence
NO concentration of power - plural centres of influence -
Pluralism alive and well in America
Two Step Flow Model
• Paul Lazarsfeld & Elihu Katz
• Mass media information is channeled to the "masses" through opinion leadership. The people with most access to media, and having a more literate understanding of media content, explain and diffuse the content to others.
• They pass on their opinions and interpretations.
TWO-STEP-FLOW -Lazarsfeld
Opinion LeadersOpinion Leaders
DecisionsDecisionsPersonsPersons
MediaMedia1 Step1 Step
2 Step2 Step
ConsumptioConsumptionn
VotingVoting
ActingActingBuyinBuyingg
Pay attention to
Seek out
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The two step flow theory
• The two step flow theory was first introduced by Paul Lazarsfeld, Bernard Berelson and Hazel Gaudet in the People’s Choice,
• a 1948 study focused on the process of decision-making during Presidential election campaign
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The two step flow theory
• This theory argued that • Ideas often flow from the mass media to the
opinion leaders and from them to the less active sections of the population
From the Two-Step Flow Model to Limited Effects Theory
Paul Lazarsfeld
and
the Two-Step Flow Model of Communication
The Two-Step Flow of The Two-Step Flow of CommunicationCommunication
Lecture Outline• background;• Erie County voting study;• the two-step flow model;• the decision-making process;• key factors;• limited effects model;• contingency theory.