Exploring the effects of television viewing on perceived life quality: A combined perspective of material value and upward social comparison

Hyeseung Yang, Mary Beth Oliver

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

24 Scopus citations

Abstract

American television programs have been criticized for being filled with images endorsing capitalist consumerism and for being weighted toward the upper middle classes. This study proposed that heavy viewing of these distorted representations may culminate in decreases in viewers' life satisfaction. A path model investigated this supposition, based on material value and social comparison perspectives. Surveys were administered to 225 adults in a northeastern town in the United States, and the data were subjected to path analysis. The findings of this study suggest that heavy television viewing may be associated with material value, estimates of other people's affluence, and perceived gaps between the self and others in material affluence. Of importance, the findings also suggest that the perceived gaps between the self and others may be associated both with dissatisfaction with personal life and dissatisfaction with current social equality, whereas material value may be associated only with dissatisfaction with personal life.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)118-138
Number of pages21
JournalMass Communication and Society
Volume13
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2010

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Communication

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