Contributions of Reality TV Consumption to College Women’s Endorsement of the Heterosexual Script and Acceptance of Sexualized Aggression

2021 ◽  
pp. 036168432110446
Author(s):  
Leanna J. Papp ◽  
L. Monique Ward ◽  
Riley A. Marshall

A prominent feature of mainstream television, especially reality programming, is a heterosexual script that outlines women’s and men’s traditional courtship roles. Although frequent media use is believed to produce greater acceptance of this script, existing analyses have not fully delineated contributions of scripted versus reality programming or tested these notions using a holistic heterosexual script scale. We addressed these limitations in two studies. In Study 1, 466 undergraduate women indicated their support of the heterosexual script and their consumption of popular reality programs, sitcoms, and dramas. Heavier viewing of reality programming predicted greater support for the heterosexual script, and heavier viewing of sitcoms predicted weaker support. In Study 2, we used longitudinal data to explore relations between viewing reality television, acceptance of the heterosexual script, and acceptance of sexualized aggression during undergraduate women’s first 2 years in college ( N = 244). We found that reality television consumption was not a direct predictor of acceptance of sexualized aggression but was a significant, indirect predictor through endorsement of the heterosexual script. These studies contribute to our understanding of unique media contributions to endorsement of the heterosexual script and illuminate one process by which women may come to normalize sexual mistreatment. Campus educational programming on sexuality, sexual assault, and healthy relationships may be able to intervene in this normalization through critique of the heterosexual script and media portrayals of dating and relationships.

2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 302-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher P. Krebs ◽  
Christine H. Lindquist ◽  
Tara D. Warner ◽  
Bonnie S. Fisher ◽  
Sandra L. Martin

The Campus Sexual Assault Study examined whether undergraduate women’s victimization experiences prior to college and lifestyle activities during college were differentially associated with the type of sexual assault they experienced: physically forced sexual assault and incapacitated sexual assault. Self-reported data collected using a Web-based survey administered to more than 5,000 undergraduate women at two large public universities indicated that victimization experiences before college were differentially associated with the risk of experiencing these two types of sexual assault during college. Women who experienced forced sexual assault before college were at very high risk of experiencing forced sexual assault during college (odds ratio [OR] = 6.6). Women who experienced incapacitated sexual assault before college were also at very high risk of experiencing incapacitated sexual assault during college (OR = 3.7). Moreover, women’s substance use behaviors during college, including getting drunk and using marijuana, were strongly associated with experiencing incapacitated sexual assault but were not associated with experiencing forced sexual assault. Implications for education and prevention programs, as well as future research directions, are discussed.


2009 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek Foster

Abstract: This article focuses on the public debate surrounding the CBC as it began to program reality TV. It highlights the tension between a public broadcaster’s popular programming and the expectations of a cultural nationalist public that seeks to hold the institution accountable. It argues for the existence of a “CBC effect” and questions whether the transnational format of reality television on Canada’s national broadcaster augurs changes in Canadian public culture.Résumé : Cet article porte sur le débat public entourant le CBC quand ce dernier a commencé à diffuser de la téléréalité. Il souligne la tension qu’engendre la programmation populiste d’un radiodiffuseur public à l’égard d’un public nationaliste qui s’attend à ce que celui-ci fasse des choix plus cultivés. L’article postule l’existence d’un « effet CBC » et se demande si le format transnational de la téléréalité telle qu’elle passe au radiodiffuseur national du Canada annonce des changements à venier dans la culture publique canadienne.


2020 ◽  
pp. 42-56
Author(s):  
Melissa Ames

Chapter Two turns to reality television, exploring three theories of emotion that explain the rise of this televisual genre in the wake of 9/11. A study of the 2000-2010 programming schedule reveals the cultural anxieties with which producers and viewers of these shows (dis)engage. Although often considered superficial, lowbrow entertainment products meant primarily for escapist purposes, this essay argues that reality television programs grapple with important societal concerns: surveillance culture and privacy rights; the pressure of identity performance in the social media era; and shifting social, domestic, and familial expectations for men and women.


2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 352-367
Author(s):  
Mark Stewart

This article argues that the live tweeting of reality television allows the creation of an imagined community, bounded by national borders. In an era of audience fragmentation and time-shifting of television engagement, live reality television encourages audiences to watch at time of broadcast; this is amplified by the move of some audience members to live-tweet the broadcast, communicating amongst themselves within a dispersed backchannel. A crucial result of the digital conversation is to reinstate the importance of the nation as a space for the reading and reception of culture. The article utilizes a discursive analysis of the concurrent Twitter conversation around the second season of The X Factor NZ in New Zealand in order to highlight the ongoing role that is played by the nation as a cultural formation in such discussions, as well as the ways that it makes understandings of national cultural identity visible.


2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Monique Ward ◽  
Rita C. Seabrook ◽  
Petal Grower ◽  
Soraya Giaccardi ◽  
Julia R. Lippman

2015 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth C. Neilson ◽  
Amanda K. Gilmore ◽  
Hanna T. Pinsky ◽  
Molly E. Shepard ◽  
Melissa A. Lewis ◽  
...  

Despite consistent high rates of campus sexual assault, little research has examined effective strategies to decrease sexual assault victimization. Sexual assault and drinking protective behavioral strategies (PBS) may be important means of reducing sexual assault victimization risk on college campuses but need further examination. The current study examined the relationship among sexual assault in childhood, before college, and since college to evaluate the mitigating roles of both sexual assault PBS and drinking PBS on sexual assault victimization. Participants ( n = 620) were undergraduate women, 18 to 20 years old. The current study was a cross-sectional online survey assessing participants’ sexual assault PBS and sexual assault history. Sexual assault history was positively associated with future sexual assault experiences. Pre-college sexual assault was associated with increased since-college sexual assault and increased drinks per week. Since-college adolescent/adult sexual assault was associated with less use of sexual assault PBS. These findings suggest that PBS may have an important role in sexual assault victimization and future research should examine their usefulness in risk reduction programs for college women.


2009 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Doris Baltruschat

Abstract: This paper discusses narrative development and audience interactivity in reality television, with a particular focus on the “format franchising processes” involving Canadian Idol. The staging of media events, recruitment of semi-professional performers, and immersive online environments emphasize the complexities of reality format adaptation, which involves the localization of global media texts.Résumé : Cet article traite de développement narratif et d’interactivité avec le public à la télévision réalité tout en mettant un accent particulier sur les « processus de franchisage de formats » entourant Canadian Idol. La mise en scène d’événements médiatiques, le recrutement de chanteurs semi-professionnels et les environnements immersifs en ligne mettent en relief les complexités requises pour adapter un texte médiatique mondial aux particularités locales de la région où on le diffuse.


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