ON THE ‘NEED FOR STIMULATION’ AS A MOTIVATING FACTOR OF MASS MEDIA EXPOSURE
1978 Volume 17 Issue 2 Pages 77-87
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1978 Volume 17 Issue 2 Pages 77-87
Why do people watch TV, listen to the radio, read newspapers, and so on? Although a lot of investigstors have tried to explain it, there is as yet no definite explanation. However, there is some evidence which suggests that exposure to mass media is motivated by an elementary, unconcious drive, i. e. ‘need for stimulation’.
If it is true, it is expected that there is a positive correlation between the level of the need for stimulation and the frequency of exposure to mass media. The present paper reports research which attempts to demonstrate it.
Children from 8 to 11 years old were used as subjects. The level of need for stimulation is measured by the kinesthetic aftereffects task which was at first developed dy Kohler and his colleague. The results show that frequency of TV-watching, radio-listening, and book-reading are positively correlated with the level of stimulation need. As for comic-reading, there is no correlation.
The level of the need for stimulation is also correlated with the frequency of many other activities. This shows that this need motivates a variety of human behavior. It is also demonstrated that we are unconcious of the existence of this need. These results seem to support our expectations.
