I have promised you a closer look at Stueart Henderson Britt’s world. And it is an extensive universe.
In this blog I call it The Henderson Britt Heritage, follow by the section headline in question. The title for this post is then The Henderson Britt Heritage: Exposing.
Stueart Henderson Britt is for communication psychology and sociology what Philip Kotler is for marketing management (yes, that is about it, imo).
The communication principles, that I will introduce to you below, and in a row of forthcoming posts, are quotes from his famous book “Psychological Principles of Marketing and Consumer Behavior”, Lexington Books, D.C. Heath and Company, Lexington, Massachusetts, 1978. See Library Thing.
Britt breaks down the area in 1) exposing, 2) attending, 3) perceiving, 4) leaning and remembering, 5) motivation and 6) persuading, and that is the structure that we are going to stick to as well.
Each area are subdivided into a) message and medium variables, and b) variables within the audience. We will even stick to that. The section below on exposing is far the smallest section of the lot. There are much, much more to come.
The numbering of the principles are mine, and so are the brackets that refer to the page numbers in his book. I will not comment on these principles at present. The idea, however, is to use the principles as anchors for specific discussions later on.
Britt’s work will constitute the main source for the resource area called naturalistic human science (or social science). Please go here for further information.
You may argue that Britt specifically talks about advertising, and not more broadly on communication. Well, here is how I see it: Britt’s primary objective is marketing and consumer behavior, but the the validity of his principles go beyond that and into communication in general.
For important issues on copyright, please read this post.
1. Exposing
Message and Medium Variables
1.1 (48-49) Compatibility with Possible Current Beliefs and Activities
The members of an audience are more likely to be exposed to a message or medium that is compatible with their beliefs, activities, and lifestyle, than to a message or medium that is incompatible with such beliefs or activities.
1.2 (49-50) Freedom from Distractions
Members of an audience are more likely to be exposed to a message or medium if conflicting activities are minimized than if the audience members are distracted from the message or medium.
Variables within the Audience.
1.3 (51-52) Lifestyle
The more compatible a medium is with audience members’ lifestyle or their desired lifestyles, the greater is the probability that they will be exposed to the medium and subsequently to the message, as contrasted with a medium less compatible with their lifestyles.
1.4 (52-53) Cultural Framework.
The members of an audience are more likely to be exposed to messages and media that are in agreement with the norms of their cultural framework than to those messages and media which are not.
1.5 (53-54) Expected Benefits of the Medium.
The more valuable a medium is in satisfying audience members’ needs and wants, the more likely they will be exposed to that medium.
1.6. (54-55) Repeated Exposure to the medium.
The more often that audience members are exposed to a medium, the more likely that they will develop positive attitudes towards that medium.
1.7 (55-56) Repeated Exposing and Attending and Perceiving Behaviour.
The more often a message is exposed to audience members, the more likely they will attend to and perceive the product or service advertised.
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Next section will be on attending.
Steuart Henderson Britt’s papers are at Northwestern University, Evanston, USA.
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