Content analysis of mental health topics in high-circulation consumer magazines /
This content-analytic study explored the mental health content of the 105 highest-circulation, general consumer magazines in the United States in March or April 1993. Its purpose was to identify the topics or statements about mental health that appeared in these magazines and to develop a prelimina...
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| Format: | Thesis Book |
| Language: | English |
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[Place of publication not identified] :
[publisher not identified] ;
1996.
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://proxy.library.tamu.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=739363141&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=2945&RQT=309&VName=PQD |
| Summary: | This content-analytic study explored the mental health content of the 105 highest-circulation, general consumer magazines in the United States in March or April 1993. Its purpose was to identify the topics or statements about mental health that appeared in these magazines and to develop a preliminary picture of mental health as it is portrayed to the magazines' combined 242 million subscribers and 1.2 billion readers. The research focused on content categories that addressed public policy topics, business and professional topics, client and therapy topics, figurative language topics and generic psychology topics. These content variables were suggested by mass communication theory that maintains that under different circumstances media content variables were suggested by mass communication theory that maintains that under different circumstances media content may create, organize, or mirror public knowledge, attitudes, or opinions. Seven research questions guided the study. A single researcher identified and coded 7,171 mental health topics in the magazines. Each topic was assigned to a content category that reflected an aspect of the mental health field. The results were: client-therapy, 5,859 (81.7%); figurative language, 540 (7.5%); generic psychology, 433 (6.0%); public policy, 170 (2.4%) and business-professional 169 (2.4%). Further results showed that most of the mental health information appeared in women's magazines and was concerned with social or behavioral problems encountered in life and often discussed in therapy. Most of the mental health information was communicated in a negative or problematic context and most of it was written by journalists and others who were not mental health professionals. About 90% of the mental health topics appeared in human interest, feature stories that targeted people's emotions and emphasized the entertainment function of the mass media. It was concluded that the magazines in this sample provided the public with a false image of mental health services. The magazine content on mental health created unrealistic public expectations of psychology, used mental health content primarily as entertainment, and failed to deliver serious information on the business or public policy aspects of mental health services. |
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| Item Description: | Vita. "Major Subject: Counseling Psychology". |
| Physical Description: | x, 208 leaves : illustrations ; 28 cm. Issued also on microfiche from University Microfilms Inc. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references: pages 168-182. |