Question

Review the sample student paper (the one bellow) about television affects peoples' perception of society. Was her hypothesis supported? Were the findings of her study similar to or different than previous research studies on her topic? Did she explain why? What were the limitations that she identified in her study? Explain why these are considered limitations in her study.
Student Paper sample(some parts)
There has been a lot of research done on the different effects that television can have on its viewers. According to research done by Bryant and Miron, cultivation and social learning theory are two of the most popular theories in mass communication (Bryant and Miron 673). Cultivation theory states that, the more television someone watches, the more they will experience its affects. "The most familiar version of the cultivation hypothesis is that those who spend more time watching television are more likely to perceive the real world in ways that reflect the most common and recurrent messages of the world of fictional television" (Morgan and Shanahan 337). The main idea behind cultivation theory is that the more television one watches, the more likely they will perceive the real world to be like they see on television. Social learning theory states that people learn by example. "People’s behaviors are learned through observation and modeling" (Jeffres et al. 104). People learn by watching and then they emulate what they see. Cultivation theory and social learning theory are two main theories used to explain the effects of television.
In 2003, the CSI Effect was introduced to demonstrate the effect that shows like CSI can have on jurors. "The CSI Effect is the notion that crime show viewing influences jurors to have unrealistic expectations of forensic evidence, which then affects their trial decisions" (Hayes and Levett 216). Viewing television shows that revolve around criminal investigation could lead the jurors to expect things that are just not realistic. For example, they may always want forensic evidence, which is not always possible (Hayes and Levett 216-17). When no forensic evidence is available, doubts in the prosecution may arise in the minds of jurors.
As these examples show, television plays a major part in a lot of people's lives and it is important to understand what the effects television viewing can have. The theories of cultivation and social learning introduce reasons for why television can have such an impact on someone. People watch a good amount of television everyday and they get a lot of information about areas that they would not otherwise be familiar. The information gained from watching television can cause people to develop an unrealistic perception of themselves, others, or even a potential career. The effects that television can have should not be taken lightly and they are important to understand in order to limit the negative effects that they could potentially have on someone's life.
The purpose of this study is to determine how cultivation and social learning theory affect people's perception of society. Other research has studied how television viewing can influence certain things such as body image and stereotypes. However, not a lot of research has been done on whether or not those who watch more television are likely to believe what they see on television, causing them to be more affected by its content. Those who watch more television have a higher exposure to the images and messages presented on television, which should result in them believing these portrayals to be accurate. They will also have more opportunities to learn from the examples set forth by these shows. Based on research, the hypothesis for this study is that those who watch more television will be more likely to accept what is shown on television as the truth and be more susceptible to the affects of television.
With all of the television people consume it is important to understand how what is shown on television affects peoples’ lives and how they perceive the world. The purpose of this study was to determine if those who watched the most television were more susceptible to its effects. This study analyzed the amount of television the participants watched and how frequently they viewed certain genres: crime dramas, medical dramas, and reality and how it affected their perceptions. The study focused on how television affected peoples' views on body image, stereotypes and job glorification. Despite the research the findings of this study did not fully support the hypothesis that the more television one watches the more they will be affected by it.
This study only included people between the ages of eighteen and forty-nine. However, a study of younger people may have resulted television having a greater influence. "It is generally assumed that younger children are more susceptible to media effects because they are less able to evaluate content critically"(Cohen and Weiman 112). Younger people are more susceptible to what they see on television, which is ultimately what leads to influence.

Answer 1

1. The hypothesis was not supported by the data, student had collected. The data was not sufficient enough to conclude something solid out of the study because it varied on some level and did not focus on one particular age group.
2. SInce there is less literature available for the study because of less research in the area and also due to no solid outcome from the study it is difficult to determine how relevant it is with other studies.
3. The student did well in the area of writing about topic, literature and other parts presented in the question.
4. The limitations have not been expained clearly in the question.