2nd Edition
Understanding Media Psychology
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgements
1. Media and Media Psychology
Gayle S. Stever
2. Key Theories and Concepts from Media Psychology
Gayle S. Stever
3. Research Methods
Gayle S. Stever, David C. Giles, J. David Cohen
4. Positive Psychology, Moral Reasoning, and Prosocial Behavior
Gayle S. Stever
5. Social Justice and the Media: Gender, Age, Size, and Disability
Gayle S. Stever
6. Social Justice and the Media: Race, Ethnicity, and Socioeconomic Status
Gayle S. Stever
7. Aliens Eating Reese’s: Media Influence and Advertising
J. David Cohen
8. Propaganda, Fake News, and Deep Fakes
Mary E. Myers
9. Processes of Audience Involvement
Gayle S. Stever
J. David Cohen
10. Dark Media: Violence, Pornography, and Addiction
J. David Cohen
11. Join the Adventure: The Psychology of Gaming
J. David Cohen
12. The Social Nature of Media
Gayle S. Stever
13. Media Psychology and Public Health
J. David Cohen
Gayle S. Stever
14. Artificial Intelligence
Mary E. Myers
15. The Psychology of News and Political Communication
David C. Giles
16. The Future of Media Psychology
David C. Giles
Index
Biography
Gayle S. Stever is Professor of Psychology at Empire State University of New York, USA. She works in the areas of developmental psychology, media psychology, and fan studies. Her writing has centered around celebrity–audience relationships, the nature of attachment both within and outside of a media context, evolutionary psychology as it relates to media, and mixed-methods research.
David C. Giles is Reader in Media Psychology at the University of Winchester, UK. He explores the impact of media on human behavior with a particular interest in celebrity–audience relationships, the dynamics of online interaction, qualitative research methods, and psychological issues around artistic and cultural activities.
J. David Cohen is a faculty member at Empire State University of New York, USA. His research focuses on rewatching media, parasocial experiences, and how media affects human development. Other specific topics of interest for J. David Cohen are narrative psychology, advertising, new media, and social psychology.
Mary E. Myers is an assistant professor in the School of Communication & the Arts at Regent University, VA, USA. She built and currently leads the Doctor of Strategic Communication doctoral program – the nation’s first technical doctorate in strategic communication. Her work also explores parasocial and place attachment, artificial intelligence, and crisis communication.
“Understanding Media Psychology is an approachable text that introduces students to the field of media psychology. Laced with examples ranging from classics to contemporary, it offers an engaging and clear overview of key theories, concepts, and issues in this area of research from an interdisciplinary perspective. The new edition keeps the text relevant and even features a chapter dedicated to AI.”
Rebecca (Riva) Tukachinsky Forster, Chapman University, USA
“This is the book I have been doing without for years and wanting desperately. Media Psychology has needed a text like this that explains and contextualizes the field, and that does so in a way that works for a variety of audiences. Like an Olympic gymnast who makes her moves look easy, the authors' clear and engaging style deftly delivers a tour-de-force in scholarship.”
Karen Dill-Shackleford, Fielding Graduate University, USA
“This book is an all-inclusive scholarly bible of Media Psychology. The chapters, written by prominent celebrity scholar, Gayle Stever, and her talented team of media psychology authors, include the history of media psychology, research methods, positive psychology, social justice issues, advertising, media literacy, the audience, dark media, gaming, social media, health psychology, artificial intelligence, and the future of media. This is all explained with familiar and practical pop culture examples that readers will certainly appreciate. Each chapter concludes with comprehensive questions that invite readers to evaluate the content and make it personally meaningful by connecting it to their attitudes, behaviors, and previous knowledge base. Consider this book as a staple in the library of everyone who needs a smart read on media psychology.”
Joanne Broder, Media Psychologist and Former President, Society for Media Psychology and Technology
“It is an authentic pleasure to welcome the second edition of this much-needed book to the landscape of Media Psychology. Kudos to Stever, Giles, Cohen, and Myers for producing a desperately needed textbook, Understanding Media Psychology! This book is sensibly organized and covers the main content areas that most media psychologists would agree merit full chapter coverage. This book demonstrates the future of media psychology is bright indeed!”
Grant Rich, 2024 President of APA’s Society for Media Psychology and Technology
