MindMap Gallery Communication Studies Chapter 12 Addiction_Spiral (1)
Mind map of Chapter 12 "Addiction_Spiral" in Communication Studies. This theory describes a phenomenon of silence when people express their opinions in a specific social environment.
Edited at 2024-03-13 15:10:23This is a mind map about bacteria, and its main contents include: overview, morphology, types, structure, reproduction, distribution, application, and expansion. The summary is comprehensive and meticulous, suitable as review materials.
This is a mind map about plant asexual reproduction, and its main contents include: concept, spore reproduction, vegetative reproduction, tissue culture, and buds. The summary is comprehensive and meticulous, suitable as review materials.
This is a mind map about the reproductive development of animals, and its main contents include: insects, frogs, birds, sexual reproduction, and asexual reproduction. The summary is comprehensive and meticulous, suitable as review materials.
This is a mind map about bacteria, and its main contents include: overview, morphology, types, structure, reproduction, distribution, application, and expansion. The summary is comprehensive and meticulous, suitable as review materials.
This is a mind map about plant asexual reproduction, and its main contents include: concept, spore reproduction, vegetative reproduction, tissue culture, and buds. The summary is comprehensive and meticulous, suitable as review materials.
This is a mind map about the reproductive development of animals, and its main contents include: insects, frogs, birds, sexual reproduction, and asexual reproduction. The summary is comprehensive and meticulous, suitable as review materials.
spiral of silence
1. Overview of theory
1⃣️, concept:
First seen in: Neumann's 1974 "Journal of Communication" ⬆️ paper
Comprehensive elaboration: 1980 "The Spiral of Silence: Public Opinion—The Skin of Our Society"
2⃣️, content:
1. Personal opinion shows that it is a social psychological process
As social animals, humans strive to seek support from the surrounding environment and avoid isolation - this is human's "social nature"
In order to prevent isolation and sanctions, individuals will observe their surroundings before expressing their opinions👀
Belong to the "majority" or "dominant" opinions and express them actively and loudly
"Minority" or "disadvantaged" opinions succumb to environmental pressure and turn to "silence" or "adherence"
2. “Opinion expression” and “diffusion of silence” are spiral social communication processes
3. Mass communication affects and restricts public opinion by creating an "opinion environment climate"
🌟The influencing factors of media on people’s “environmental awareness” activities include:
Most media reports are highly similar in content
Produce a "resonance" effect
Continuity and repetition of similar information communication activities in time
"cumulative effect"
The reach of the media is unprecedentedly broad”
"Ubiquitous Effect"
3⃣️Features:
1. Public opinion view
"1⃣️, the spiral of silence" emphasizes the "social control function"
Public opinion is our "social skin". It is the skin through which individuals perceive changes in the "opinion climate" and adjust their behavior.
and important in maintaining “social integration”‼ ️Function, like the skin of a "container", prevents excessive division of opinions from causing social disintegration
2⃣️. Grasp the phenomenon of public opinion from the perspective of "social psychology"
Public opinion is a "public opinion" that is "shared by the majority" and "can be expressed in public", which will form a "coercive force"
Singing "contrary" publicly will result in isolation and "social sanctions"
To avoid sanctions, people can only avoid conflict in their public words and deeds
2. Effect view
Emphasis on the powerful social effects of mass communication
It is not limited to the "cognition stage", but includes the whole process of "cognition-attitude-action"
Hypothesis holds that communication media has a powerful power to create social reality
4⃣️, significance and limitations:
❤️Meaning
1. Emphasize the role of “social psychological mechanism”:
Lead the investigation of "public opinion formation process" from "phenomenological" description to "social psychological analysis"
2. Emphasize the strong influence of "mass communication" on "public opinion"
Correctly pointed out that the influence comes from the "opinion climate" created by the mass media
These analyzes have important enlightening significance for re-evaluating the "influence" and "effect" of mass communication:
Analysis of the “status-conferring” function of media
The openness and universality of mass communication
Similarity of report content
💔Limitations:
1. The hypothesis "fear of social isolation😱" - should not be an absolute constant, but a variable subject to conditional constraints
2. "Pressure of the majority opinion" and "resistance to it" - the degree varies depending on the type and nature of the issue
3. The strength of the social pressure of "majority opinion" - subject to
social tradition
Cultural and social development stage constraints
4. The influence of “middle molecules”
Can change and create new consensus
The Internet has led to anonymity and equality on the Internet, calling into question the applicability of "silence" in the new era.
5⃣️. Theoretical points:
1. The formation of public opinion is the result of interaction
mass media
interpersonal communication
People's cognitive psychology of opinion environment
2. Opinions prompted by mass media
Due to its openness and broadness, it is easy to be recognized as the "majority" or "dominant" opinion.
3. The pressure or “security” brought by this environment
Will cause interpersonal contact disadvantage opinions "silence"
‘Advantage Opinion’ Speaks Out About the Spiral Expansion Process
Leading to the "overwhelming dominance of opinions" in social life - the birth of "public opinion"🉐️
2. Relevant theoretical research🧐
1⃣️, "Anti-Spiral of Silence"
1. Meaning:
Internet "virtual community", netizens express their opinions freely, dare to express their opinions, do not remain silent and converge
The "minority" views are also recognized, even surpassing the "majority", and the spiral of silence is "reversed"
2. Reasons for occurrence:
Internet anonymity and openness
The monopoly of mass media has been broken
In the absence of “gatekeepers”, the audience’s initiative has increased👍
The important ❗️ role of “backbone elements”
3. Question:
cyber violence
The online public opinion environment is polluted (excessive remarks, attention grabbing”
2⃣️, "Double Helix of Silence"
understand
1. Proposed: Chinese scholar “Gao Xianchun”
2. Basic assumptions:
"Social opinion formation" and "individual perception" are two spiral "interaction" processes of opinions.
🌟Specific process: (after a specific event occurs)
1⃣️, ❤️ (mass media) from top ⬆️ to bottom ⬇️ — (information dissemination)
Mass media creates a spiral of silence through news reports
2⃣️, ❤️ (individual community) ⬇️ to the top⬆️ — (information diffusion)
Form another branch through the "new media" technology platform
🌟Respective functions:
💖Mass media:
With rich experience in public opinion guidance and content production
Promote mainstream values and accept mainstream voices
💖New media:
Actively express opinions and find channels for interests and appeals
Change individuals’ reliance on mass communication
Both care ❤️
independent and interdependent
3⃣️, "Spiral of Silence" formation mechanism‼ ️
Local advantage opinion formation
‼ ️"Chengdu 49th Middle School" student falling incident - 🥸🥺denounce the school
Local advantageous opinions spread in the network
‼ ️"Nanfengchuang" and "Caixin.com" condemned "Bao Yuming"
The overall opinion climate of the network is formed
3. In the new media environment
1⃣️, transmutation
1. Decentralization of voice:
Diversified spiral formation methods
(Newspapers, radio, TV – mobile, social media)
2. The era of instant effects: the spiral formation process is accelerated
(🌟"Weibo hot search" updates the list in seconds and "big V forwards"
3. Post-truth era: irrational expressions of participants
(emotional, irrational expression)
4. “Anti-Spiral of Silence”: Anonymity encourages “inferior opinions”
5. "Double Helix": "official public opinion field" and "private public opinion field" work together
2⃣️Applicability:
Applicable❤️
1. The illusion of “equal speech rights”: great disparity in communication power
"Recentralization",‼ ️"Weibo Big V" and "Ordinary Internet Users"
2. "Fear of being isolated😱": "Group pressure" still exists
"Following the herd", "anonymity in the front desk", "real name in the background", "human flesh search on the Internet"
3. Enhancement of “advantageous opinions”: Mass media creates an “opinion climate”
"Three-dimensional communication", combined matrix of old and new media
"cumulative ubiquity"
4. "Information Explosion💥Era": From "Silence" to "Sinking" of Sound
3⃣️. Regulatory actions:
1. Build a “Papyrus Society” and convey the “mainstream voice”
‼ ️"People's Daily" opens public account and Douyin account
2. Unite “opinion leaders” and strengthen the power of “backbone elements”
"The first lesson of school"‼ ️
3. Amplify 🔍 “positive opinions” and create a “positive climate”
"People's Daily" proposed the "ripple theory" - "three-dimensional multi-level communication pattern"
Short answer questions❤️:
💖How to understand the view that "public opinion is our social skin"? (After-class exercises❤️)
"Public opinion is our social skin." This view regards public opinion as a mechanism of social control. It believes that public opinion may not be the actual "majority" opinion, but at least it is the "majority" or "advantage" on the surface or in people's perception. Opinion, which restricts individual behavior through people's herd mentality, thus plays a role in social control. Public opinion is "our social skin" in a double sense:
(1) It is the “skin” through which individuals perceive changes in the social “opinion climate” and adjust their own behavior to adapt to the environment. When individuals perceive that their opinions are in a dominant position, they may be more inclined to express their attitudes. When their opinions are in a weak position in public opinion, they are more likely to choose silence or change their attitudes, making it easier to integrate into the group. , these behaviors show the role of public opinion in adjusting individuals to adapt to the environment.
(2) It also plays an important role in maintaining social integration, just like the skin as a "container", preventing social disintegration due to excessive division. Once an opinion has the characteristics of public opinion, it will have a coercive force. If you openly oppose it, you will be trapped in a state of isolation, and you will be in danger of being sanctioned by society. In order to avoid such sanctions, people can only avoid conflicts with them in public words and deeds. This can maintain the overall coordination of society to a certain extent and avoid overly drastic behavior that may tear society apart.
Essay question: ❤️
Combining examples, we demonstrate the formation mechanism of the "spiral of silence" in the network, and talk about how to avoid the formation of a spiral of polarized opinions.
Beginning💖:
Explained in "The Spiral of Silence: Public Opinion—The Skin of Our Society" published in 1980, it describes the phenomenon of people maintaining conformity with the surrounding opinion environment because of fear of isolation, leading to the echoing phenomenon of superior opinions being loudly spoken and inferior opinions being silent. Compared with the communication environment dominated by mass media, the specific formation mechanism of the Spiral of Silence Theory in the Internet has evolved, and with the help of new media technology, it can easily lead to negative effects such as the polarization of public opinions.
Below, I will analyze the formation mechanism of the “spiral of silence” in the online environment and avoid the spiral diffusion of polarized opinions.
1. Formation mechanism💖:
1. The formation of local advantageous opinions:
Chinese scholar Gao Xianchun proposed the "double helix of silence". One is dominated by mass media through agenda setting, top-down; the other is formed through "interpersonal or group communication", bottom-up.
For example, in the incident of "Chongqing Starbucks expels the police", netizens formed a bottom-up boycott of Starbucks, and local dominant opinions fermented on the Internet.
2. Diffusion of local advantageous opinions:
After the formation of dominant opinions, they will have greater influence through diffusion, and even some dominant opinions will derive direct actions during the dissemination.
For example, "Hongxing Erke low-key donation", after the news was fermented, it caused "wild consumption" among netizens. For a time, the brand Hongxing Erke received widespread attention. The media and netizens have paid close attention to the relevant incidents, making them the focus of public opinion.
3. The formation of the overall opinion of the network:
If there is more than one local dominant opinion, several result interactions will occur during the diffusion process:
First, if several opinions have the same value orientation, they will gradually merge during the diffusion process;
Second, if there is inconsistency, one voice may prevail over other voices and become dominant;
Third, if the dominant opinions are equally matched, most people will stick to their original opinions, and a "spiral of silence" may not necessarily occur.
2. Measures to avoid polarized opinions under new media:
1. Media: Present a diverse and comprehensive “opinion climate” and increase opportunities for “information encounters”:
Based on the "fear of being isolated😱" mentality, people will refer to the surrounding opinion climate before expressing their opinions. Therefore, media reports need to be as comprehensive and balanced as possible to create a comprehensive and diverse climate of opinions for the public. This avoids the appearance of a single, polarized sound.
At the same time, it is also necessary to improve algorithm technology, increase opportunities for information encounters, and push diverse viewpoints as much as possible so that the audience can feel the richness of the opinion climate.
2. Opinion leaders: shoulder the burden of “hardcore elements” and reverse the cycle of silence
Opinion leaders have strong appeal. Public opinion guidance requires opinion leaders to shoulder the heavy responsibility and have the courage to speak out to correct the wrong direction of public opinion and return the voice of opinion to rationality.
During the epidemic, the "Lilac Doctor Official Account" actively refuted rumors and popularized anti-epidemic knowledge, effectively combating various rumors in the public opinion field and playing an important role in resisting the formation of "extreme spirals."
3. Audience: Expand “quasi-sensory statistics” channels and improve media literacy:
An important prerequisite for the spiral of silence to occur is that people's "quasi-sensory statistics" are biased and they mistakenly believe that they are at a disadvantage. Therefore, the audience needs to broaden information channels and accept multiple interactive information. At the same time, we must also strengthen our media literacy, maintain rational and calm thinking, and avoid going to "extremes"
Ending❤️:
As Professor Shi Anbin of Tsinghua University said: "To avoid falling into a "grey situation", any classical theory must maintain constant dialogue and thinking with practice." "
The spiral of silence still exists in cyberspace, and dominant opinions may still dominate the online public opinion field.
Therefore, we should avoid polarizing voices by improving individual media literacy, opinion leaders exerting the power of "backbone elements", and the mass media presenting a diverse climate.