Understanding Media Psychology is an authoritative introductory textbook to the growing field of media psychology. Providing an overview of topics in the field, it summarizes key concepts and theories as well as considering the importance of media psychology in today’s society.
The second edition of this bestselling textbook has been fully updated to reflect the changing landscape of media psychology. The new edition features a brand-new chapter on news and political media, as well as increased focus on AI and new forms of social media. It covers core areas such as positive media psychology, audience research, the effects of gaming, violence, advertising, and pornography, critically engaging with contemporary discussions around propaganda, fake news, deepfakes, and how media and health psychology interacted during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Written by a team of expert authors, this book will help readers to understand the structures, influences, and theories around media psychology. Particular care is also given to addressing the interaction between issues of social justice and the media, as well as the effects media has on both the members of marginalized groups and the way those groups are perceived. A student website and instructor resources provide further ways to engage with the content and support teaching and learning.
Containing a range of pedagogical features throughout to aid teaching and student learning, including vocabulary and key terms, discussion questions, and boxed examples, this is an essential resource for media psychology courses at the undergraduate and introductory master’s level globally.
Understanding Media Psychology is an authoritative introductory textbook to the growing field of media psychology. Providing an overview of topics in the field, it summarizes key concepts and theories as well as considering the importance of media psychology in today’s society.
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgements
1. Media and Media Psychology
Gayle S. Stever
2. Key Theories and Concepts from Media Psychology
Gayle S. Stever
3. Research Methods
Gayle S. Stever, David C. Giles, J. David Cohen
4. Positive Psychology, Moral Reasoning, and Prosocial Behavior
Gayle S. Stever
5. Social Justice and the Media: Gender, Age, Size, and Disability
Gayle S. Stever
6. Social Justice and the Media: Race, Ethnicity, and Socioeconomic Status
Gayle S. Stever
7. Aliens Eating Reeses: Media Influence and Advertising
J. David Cohen
8. Propaganda, Fake News, and Deep Fakes
Mary E. Myers
9. Processes of Audience Involvement
Gayle S. Stever
J. David Cohen
10. Dark Media: Violence, Pornography, and Addiction
J. David Cohen
11. Join the Adventure: The Psychology of Gaming
J. David Cohen
12. The Social Nature of Media
Gayle S. Stever
13. Media Psychology and Public Health
J. David Cohen
Gayle S. Stever
14. Artificial Intelligence
Mary E. Myers
15. The Psychology of News and Political Communication
David C. Giles
16. The Future of Media Psychology
David C. Giles
Index
Gayle S. Stever is Professor of Psychology at Empire State University of New York, USA. She works in the areas of developmental psychology, media psychology, and fan studies. Her writing has centered around celebrityaudience relationships, the nature of attachment both within and outside of a media context, evolutionary psychology as it relates to media, and mixed-methods research.
David C. Giles is Reader in Media Psychology at the University of Winchester, UK. He explores the impact of media on human behavior with a particular interest in celebrityaudience relationships, the dynamics of online interaction, qualitative research methods, and psychological issues around artistic and cultural activities.
J. David Cohen is a faculty member at Empire State University of New York, USA. His research focuses on rewatching media, parasocial experiences, and how media affects human development. Other specific topics of interest for J. David Cohen are narrative psychology, advertising, new media, and social psychology.
Mary E. Myers is an assistant professor in the School of Communication & the Arts at Regent University, VA, USA. She built and currently leads the Doctor of Strategic Communication doctoral program the nations first technical doctorate in strategic communication. Her work also explores parasocial and place attachment, artificial intelligence, and crisis communication.
