The basic assumption in the study of selective exposure is that people expose themselves to external stimuli in a selective way. When referred to the area of mass communication, this means that people choose certain types of media content and avoid other types.
Although this fact may sound rather trivial, it is important in understanding the effects of mass communication because it is our common understanding that people can only be influenced by media messages to which they actually expose themselves. Therefore, the selective exposure concept emphasizes the active role of the individual in the selection of media content.
Research into this phenomenon is undertaken in the fields of both psychology and communication studies. Basically, there are two major trends in this research. Most studies focus on factors that lead to selective exposure or that mediate this process, whereas other studies deal with the consequences of selective exposure to information processing.
The selection processes have also been examined in different contexts, such as in political or online communication.
http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/vie ... 1-0023.xml
Selective Exposure Theory
Selective Exposure Theory
Re: Selective Exposure Theory
3Qs: Trapped in social media ‘echo chambers’
Social scientists have long been interested in the interplay between the media and public debate. With social media, in particular, there is some concern that people are becoming balkanized into “echo chambers” where they are only exposed to arguments and ideas they already agree with.
This could have the effect of reifying or even exaggerating ideological differences on topics of public debate such as gun control, racial justice, or foreign policy. Indeed, there is some recent empirical evidence that social media use is associated with increases in ideological segregation. But, the effects are modest for at least two reasons.
First, people have always clustered into groups of like-minded friends and acquaintances. In the study of social networks, we call this phenomenon homophily. It predicts that people tend to form relationships with others who share similar values, beliefs, and demographics. If you think about the friends you choose to spend your time with, chances are they are not so dissimilar to you. So, the idea that social media uniquely produces echo chambers is somewhat overblown—we naturally cluster with like-minded others, and this behavior also accounts for some of the “bubble” effects we see.
Second, there are very few people that only get their news and information from social media. Although recent reports suggest that many people get news from social media at least some of the time, there are very few people who exclusively use social media for news. People are still going to the homepages of their favorite news sources, watching television news, and reading news magazines. Of course, the media people choose to consume tends to be consistent with their ideological views more often than not. In communication studies, we call this selective exposure. Among the range of possible media sources and stories, we often choose to engage with the sources and stories that are most consistent with what we already believe.
That is not to say that we should not be critical of the social algorithms that sort and compile news based on our past preferences and interactions—there is always some risk that these algorithms could exacerbate ideological divides. But, we should also be mindful of the role that our own relationship and media consumption choices contribute to and complicate algorithmic filtering.
http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/0 ... -chambers/
Social scientists have long been interested in the interplay between the media and public debate. With social media, in particular, there is some concern that people are becoming balkanized into “echo chambers” where they are only exposed to arguments and ideas they already agree with.
This could have the effect of reifying or even exaggerating ideological differences on topics of public debate such as gun control, racial justice, or foreign policy. Indeed, there is some recent empirical evidence that social media use is associated with increases in ideological segregation. But, the effects are modest for at least two reasons.
First, people have always clustered into groups of like-minded friends and acquaintances. In the study of social networks, we call this phenomenon homophily. It predicts that people tend to form relationships with others who share similar values, beliefs, and demographics. If you think about the friends you choose to spend your time with, chances are they are not so dissimilar to you. So, the idea that social media uniquely produces echo chambers is somewhat overblown—we naturally cluster with like-minded others, and this behavior also accounts for some of the “bubble” effects we see.
Second, there are very few people that only get their news and information from social media. Although recent reports suggest that many people get news from social media at least some of the time, there are very few people who exclusively use social media for news. People are still going to the homepages of their favorite news sources, watching television news, and reading news magazines. Of course, the media people choose to consume tends to be consistent with their ideological views more often than not. In communication studies, we call this selective exposure. Among the range of possible media sources and stories, we often choose to engage with the sources and stories that are most consistent with what we already believe.
That is not to say that we should not be critical of the social algorithms that sort and compile news based on our past preferences and interactions—there is always some risk that these algorithms could exacerbate ideological divides. But, we should also be mindful of the role that our own relationship and media consumption choices contribute to and complicate algorithmic filtering.
http://www.northeastern.edu/news/2016/0 ... -chambers/
Re: Selective Exposure Theory
Forums are a good example of this theory where those who don't agree are attacked and basically run off.