The Impact of Mass Media Consumption on Body Management: A Case Study of Youths Living in Urmia

Document Type : علمی - پژوهشی

Authors

• Saeed Faramarziani ¹
• Davoud Ghaffari Azar ²

¹ Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran

² Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tabriz

https://doi.org/10.22067/jss.v14i2.37114

Abstract

Extended Abstract
1. Introduction
Body management is a social and cultural issue, which has received significant intensity and development with the expansion of the modern communication and information channels, as a means of hardware for cultural globalization (Anderson, 2004). Rise of global communication and access to the novel communication and information channels has caused a great variety of cultural variations in numerous groups and layers of societies, particularly, between the young people. By exposing young people to various visions and patterns, their development in various socioeconomic fields, and especially, in scientific centers has become more influenced by this process. Similar to other processes, this process has a dialectical relationship with the youth and they react to it variously. One impact of today communication technologies on the young is the variation in the production and reproduction processes by which the young people define themselves and their body.
Easy access to satellite and other communication technologies have provided young people in the society with new ways and lifestyles What has made the current situation significant is the contrast between the new life styles and the cultural, religious and indigenous texture of this region. Such changes have made the investigation of body management, its scientific knowledge and factors influencing its changes very important. Therefore, considering the new conditions and events, these questions arise as to whether there is any significant relationship between the use of mass media among young people in Urmia and body management, which indicates a new type of consumption and lifestyle.


2. Theoretical Framework
Mass media have transmitted and directed a wide range of symbols, norms, values, beliefs, messages and thoughts within communities, as some scholars believe that mass media transforms the entire cultural and social life (Thomson, 1995). With regard to the relationship between mass media and the attitudes of individuals, one can use social theory of cultivation and learning. The hypothesis of both theories is that a significant amount of what people know about social life is more achieved through their mediation rather than their direct experience (Khajenoori, 2010). Research based on the theory of cultivation has shown that watching television more often brings up an attitude that is consistent with television rather than the truth. Television has long-term effects on the viewer's vision, which is indirect, gradual, but small, and exponential.
According to Grebner(1999), the importance of the media is in creating common ways of selection and looking at events. He calls this process cultivating dominant ideas. In fact, the media tends to offer identical and fairly consistent narratives of social domains and to adapt its audience to "acculturation". Cultivation implies acceptance and internalization of the television and media attitudes by audiences and viewers. Therefore, from the viewpoint of this theory, it can be assumed that those who have more media consumption, compared with those who use less media, are more oriented toward life styles displayed in the television and other visual-audiovisual media (Morgan & Signorli, 2002).
3. Method
In terms of control and the content, the present study is a survey work. As per the time dimension, it is cross-sectional type, and with respect to the purpose, it is applied. In terms of the domain, it is micro-type, because the unit of analysis is an individual (young people). In this research, a researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect the data. The statistical population in the present study included 55218 young people aged 20-30 years old who were living in Urmia. Using the Cochran formula, a sample size of 383 was obtained. Finally, 390 questionnaires were completed and analyzed to increase the accuracy of sampling. In this research, multi-stage cluster sampling method was used. The Cronbach's alpha method was employed to examine the reliability of the questionnaire, which was based on the completion of a number of questionnaires completed before the final implementation in the pre-test.
4. Findings
There is a significant relationship between the use of Iranian TV channels and the management of body. That is, the less the television networks in Iran decreases, the importance of the standards of body management in individuals will increase and more people will pay attention to their bodies. The correlation coefficient between the mode of body management of individuals and the rate of use of television networks in Iran is -0.19. The correlation coefficient between body management method and the use of satellite television networks is 0.24. Furthermore, the correlation coefficient between body management style and the Internet usage rate is 0.11.
5. Discussion and Conclusion
In this research, by referring to the most theoretical perspectives and empirical sources available, and using the results of the literature review to analyze the relationship between media consumption and youth body management, the theoretical framework of the research was set. Based on this framework, major research hypotheses were prepared and tested. As the consumption of domestic media increases, body management decreases. According to empirical data, women who were more frequent target audience for television and home radios had a low tendency to manage their body.
The findings also showed a significant and positive relationship between the use of satellite television and the Internet, and body management. As a result, increasing the use of external media leads to the increase of body management. In general, foreign media, such as the Internet and the satellite put more emphasis on body management as a form of cultural guidance and control. These findings are in line with the research of Fatehi and Ekhlasi (2008), Azad Armaki and Chavoshian (2002) and Ghaderzadeh, Ghaderzadeh and Hassanpanah (2012), who state that there is a relationship between type of mass media and body management.

Keywords

• Body management
• Television
• Satellite
• The Internet
• youth
• Media consumption

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