Uses and Gratifications Theory

The theory of Uses and Gratifications was created in 1974 when Blulmer and Katz brought up the subject on how the use of media caused gratification of the social or psychological needs of an individual. The 4 main areas in which the media does this are Personal Identity, Social Interaction, Diversion and Information.

There are many different ways that the public use the media for personal identity. Characters on TV shows or people in magazines act as models for behaviour therefore supporting the personal ethics and behaviour of an individual. For example, people who read a pop music magazine will begin to dress like and, to some amount, act like the people featured in the magazine. The media is also said to give people an understanding into themselves, this could be by reading an article about a family member passing away and learning how you are expected to react if this same incident occurs in your life.

The public can also use the media for social interaction. Television shows often have exaggerated versions of events likely to happen in real life, which can gains insight into the lives of other people giving the viewer a sense of social empathy with the characters. All forms of media stem questions and topics of debate; this means that they create informal topics for social interaction giving people something in common to talk about. Also, characters in long running television shows and bands and artists featured frequently in magazine interviews give the reader/watcher a feeling that they know them well and become almost ‘friends’.

Magazines and Television provide a change from daily routine. For most people they are a form of relaxation acting as a diversion from real life issues and problems that an individual faces. They show case the issues of other people so for a while you can forget about your own. They also provide emotional release such as crying or laughter, which some people don’t do enough of in daily life that can help to reduce their stress levels.

Lastly, the media can be used to provide information. The news tells people what is going on in the world from day to day and Magazines provide information about upcoming gigs, album reviews and artists, classic and contemporary. This makes the audience feel involved and up to date with what is happening.