The Cultural Studies Approach Perspective on Audience and The Effects Model

Preferred Reading (DOMINANT)

The audience accept the messages and values that the text is presenting. To them, the text is seen as correct and normal. 

Negotiated Reading 
The audience accept the values and messages that the text presents in a general form, but they alter the text's values and messages to fit in with their own ideas and views which have formed from their own experiences, etc.


OPPOSITIONAL READING
The audience can understand and realise where the messages and values of the text is coming from, but does not accept them, and disagrees with what is being presented.


For example:

The preferred reading for this Dolce and Gabbana advert, which represents a sexually objectified woman under the dominance of men, would have a preferred reading by male and female models, someone who wears Dolce and Gabbanna, Prada, Gucci, etc... However, a negotiated reading of this advert might be seen by graphic designers, fashion designers, photographers and make-up artists, because of the way the advert is put together by a huge label in a professional way. However, they would still be concerned about the messages and values it shows, as the woman is being sexually objectified, and is being shown to be under the power of men (as there is only one woman and four men, who are surrounding and looking down at her). An oppositional reading of this advert, would most likely be produced by a feminist, someone who disagrees with women being sexually objectified, or someone who does not agree with expensive fashion labels.


The Effects Model

The Hypodermic Needle Effect
According to a study done by psychologists, we, as an audience are claimed to be passive, and can instantly change our views, opinions, behaviour, interests and likes or dislikes from an 'injection' that the media give us. This is called the Hypodermic Needle Effect.


The Bobo Doll Experiment 
There was an experiment done by behavioural psychologists, named the Bobo Doll Experiment. This was where psychologists showed a group of children a video of an adult hitting a bobo doll in an isolated room. After the showing of this video, they sent the children individually into the same room and told them to play with the bobo doll. The reasoning for this experiment was to show how children can easily copy what the media shows them, and the huge behavioural effect it can cast. However, this was not a successfully demonstrative experiment, as there were many faults. They children were isolated in a lab of which they were not familiar with, there was nothing but the bobo doll to play with - so of course they would start to get frustrated and attack it, and there were cameras cast on them, which would alter the way in which they behaved.

This was how the children attacked the Bobo Doll, and the conditions of the room they were in.

(Screen shots from the footage)