ECREA16-Abstract

Thursday, November 10

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ARS12

Health, Science and Society: Transforming Audiences

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It Is Evident! Effects of Evidence Frames of the Scientific Communication on Beliefs of Recipients

S.H. Kessler

Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, Institute of Communication Research, Jena, Germany

The aim of this study is to investigate how the beliefs of recipients may are influenced by the way how evident scientific issues are framed in science TV pro‑

grams. In a previously conducted representative content analysis of science TV programs about scientific medical issues (n=321), three evidence patterns

were identified via cluster analysis. The evidence patterns differed significantly in their degree of representing belief, doubt, and uncertainty and can be de‑

scribed as formal-abstract frames. Certain aspects, in this case of evidence, are selectively stressed while others remain in the background. Formal-abstract

frames focus on the structure of a media message (Matthes, 2014; Scheufele, 2010). Such frames can change the importance of recipients’ beliefs and/or

introduce new beliefs (Lecheler & de Vreese, 2012). This investigation examines whether frame-prototypical science TV program clips influence the beliefs

of recipients (FF). Analogous hypotheses are include: (H1) A prototypical science TV program clip of the frame scientific certain evidence representing high

belief leads recipients to increased belief, (H2) a prototypical clip of the frame conflicting evidence representing high doubt leads recipients to increased

doubt, and (H3) a prototypical clip of the frame uncertain evidence representing high uncertainty leads recipients to increased uncertainty more than a clip

of the other frames. The belief measure is defined as the degree of which the recipient beliefs the content of a message and the doubt measure is defined

as the degree of which the recipient doubts the content of a message. The uncertainty measure is the degree of which the recipient is uncertain if he/

she believes or doubts. In this experiment, 686 students (84% freshmen) received a standardized survey before and after stimuli presentation. For every

formal-abstract frame, two pretested real science TV program clips were tested. Thus, there are six experimental groups (n per group > 70) and two control

groups. Confounding variables were controlled: attributed credibility, preference of intuition or deliberation, involvement, motivation, cognitive processing,

viewing habits, and sociodemographics of the recipients. In this comparison, the clips that used the frame conflicting evidence led to the greatest doubt

and uncertainty and the least belief that recipients attributed to the content in the clip. Surprisingly, recipients exposed to the clips that used the frame

uncertain evidence attributed the greatest belief and the least doubt and uncertainty. An analysis of variance showed significant attribution differences

between the frames. A repeatedmeasures analysis of variance indicated that the attributions differed significantly.To detect the effect of preexisting beliefs,

ordinary least square regressions were performed. Recipients without preexisting beliefs seem doubtful; recipients with preexisting beliefs directed their

beliefs obviously according to the presented frames. The overall results showed significant framing effects of the evidence frames of science TV program

clips about scientific medical issues on the beliefs of recipients. H1 and H3 cannot be verified universally, however if recipients with preexisting beliefs are

considered exclusively, H1 can be verified. The clips that used the frame uncertain evidence received a surprisingly high persuasiveness. The recipients may

avoid cognitive uncertainty.

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Rational Decision Making, the Anti-Vaccination Movement and Counter Reactions on Social Media

R.N. Radu

University of Bucharest, Faculty of Journalism and Communication Studies, Bucuresti, Romania

The anti-vaccination movement, part of a larger approach to health issues, that includes raw-vegan eating, alternative medicine and holistic healing,

is affecting the health and well-being of more and more children and of their families, in developing and developed countries around the globe. Social

media is one vehicle used to spread theories and to attract new followers to the movement, but also to repel the ideas central to the anti-vaccination

discourse. The author is proposing a rational decision making approach to both type of discourse on social media (pro and anti-vaccines), using the cu‑

mulative prospect theory (CPT) of Kahneman and Tversky (Kahneman, 2011). A development of the framing theory, CPT uses reference points, framing

future developments as gains or losses and nonlinear preferences to account for different decisions under risk or uncertainty. The texts analysed are posts

and comments from the Facebook pages Olivia Steer (a leader of the anti-vaccination movement in Romania) and Stop Olivia Steer (a page supported by

medical students). They are posted one month ahead and one month after 29 September 2015, when the Romanian Ministry of Health launched the public

debate on a project of a law for a compulsory vaccination scheme for children. The National Institute of Public Health data from February 2015 showed that

almost 32% of the Romanian children where not vaccinated accordingly to their age, as a result of parents' refusal. Based on the analyses findings, the au‑

thor is explaining why rational arguments, Internet literacy related discourses and mockery have apparently no effect on a public with medium and above

revenues and medium and above general training, but also with strong anti-vaccination opinions. Kahneman, D., 2011. Thinking, fast and slow. Macmillan.

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Loss of Social Cohesion Through Online Use? Comparing Online Contents and Use with Traditional Media

M. Mahrt

Heinrich Heine University, Department of Social Sciences, Duesseldorf, Germany

While mass media are often assumed to contribute to social cohesion, online platforms are suspected to lead to, among others,“echo chambers”(Sunstein,

2007) or“filter bubbles”(Pariser, 2011). Empirical studies on such detrimental effects, however, have so far not produced clear-cut evidence (e.g., Messing &

Westwood, 2014; Tewksbury & Rittenberg, 2012; Webster & Ksiazek, 2012). The paper approaches the topic by using awareness of media contents to com‑

pare the integrative potential of online and mass media. If online use leads to echo chambers or filter bubbles, awareness of contents should differ depend‑

ing on howmuch media users rely on online vs. traditional outlets for information and entertainment. Of particular interest in this regard is the role of social

network sites (SNS): On the one hand, they make sharing contents with others much easier and contain vast amounts of material from traditional media

and online sources. On the other hand, users customize which professional outlets and private accounts they want to follow and thus could only become

aware of what they or their surroundings are interested in. Awareness of contents is examined for three types of items: (front page) news for their agen‑