In the 1930s, one of the earliest social science research efforts to study the relations between media and social problems was the Payne Fund Studies. Briefly explain the purpose of the study, and how it affected media and social problems.

What will be an ideal response?


The conclusions of the Payne Fund Studies emphasized the complexity of the relationship between movies and children. The authors noted that children learn from movies, and that the emotional responses movies evoke constitute a key component of their power. At the same time, they recognized movies' differing influence on individual children, suggesting that social context and children's experiences were a key part of the picture.
The Payne Fund authors paid particular attention to whether heavy movie attendance led children to engage in crime or other troublesome behavior. The results were decidedly mixed. In his historical review of 20th-century media effects research, McDonald (2004, p. 186) notes that the Payne Fund data point to a "reciprocal relationship--movies do have an effect on children, but those children who are most attracted to the worst movies tend to be those with the most problems to begin with. "

Sociology

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