The Media's Influence on Health

 The mass media (including everything from television and music to popular novels and fan cultures), creates an endless and accessible flow of information. "What we know about the world beyond out immediate surroundings comes to us via the media (Yates 1999)." The technology of electronic media and the art of advertising have combined to create very powerful tools of influence. These tools are capable of shaping the attitudes, values and behaviors of large numbers of people (Walsh.) By identifying and examining the various forms of health information contained in the media, problems arise because the media does not present it's messages in a neutral and straightforward way. Because the media distorts reality, the public must become more conscious and critical of various medias in order to protect their mental and physical heath.

Emotion focuses attention, determines what is remembered, shapes attitudes, motivates, and moves one to act. Considering this, its no surprise that the emotional centers of the brain are the primary target for marketers and advertisers. "The art of advertising is difficult to master and it takes a great deal of skill and creativity to achieve proficiency (Walsh 1999.) However, the underlying psychological principles are quite simple. Once the desired emotional state is achieved in the viewer, the product or message becomes mentally linked to the state. For example, viewers seeing a television ad for the first time may not know what the product is until the very last seconds of the ad. The first 28 seconds of the 30-second ad are used to create the mood. Once the mood is set, then the product is introduced and the emotional association is made. The most effective ads are not informational, but emotional. In some cases, the feelings evoked by the ad may have no logical connection to the product whatsoever. As long as the desired emotion is linked with the product, the mission has been accomplished (Walsh.)

The media creates emotion using messaging techniques. Certain filming techniques are used to gear viewers towards the desired emotions, including the use of camera angles, selective editing, framing, reaction shots, sound effects, quick cuts, lighting tricks, computer graphics and music. These techniques focus attention, and create mental shortcuts on an unconscious level. Message qualities are further expressed using a combination of symbols, exaggeration, fear, humor, testimonials, repetition, flattery, sex appeal, visual imagery, bandwagon, plain folks, nostalgia, warm and fuzzy, beautiful people, and bribery.

Theories and models of health behavior can be used to explain behavior and clarify the effects of external influences on individuals. Health promotion educators use many different models for understanding behavior change and designing successful interventions. Some common models are used to describe and predict behavior. Skinner and Pavlov introduced a behavioral and operant conditioning theory that stated humans are biological machines and behavior is a product of conditioning, Freud argued humans are driven by subconscious instinct in his Psychoanalytic theory, and Rogers started a wellness movement in his humanist and client-centered view. Behavior theories exist on many levels including individual, familial, and societal.

On an individual level, the Health Belief Model states that changes in behavior depend on an individuals belief that a health problem is serious (perceived severity), that one may be susceptible to the problem (threat), that changing one's behavior will reduce the threat (benefit), ones perception of the obstacles necessary to change the behavior (barriers), and the belief that one has the ability to change one's behavior (self- efficacy.)

On a familial and/or societal level, the Theory of Reasoned Action, Transtheoretical theory, and Social Cognitive theory are used. The Theory of Reasoned Action focuses on ones intentions and motivations to change. The Transtheoretical theory can be used to predict and understand healthy and unhealthy behavior by providing a framework for explaining how behavior change occurs. The stages include pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation or decision, action and maintenance. The model views behavior change as a process in which individuals are at various stages of readiness to change. The Stages of Change Model is not linear, and individuals can enter and exit at any point and may repeat a stage several times. This acknowledges that not everyone is ready to change behavior.

The Social Cognitive Theory proposes that behavior change is influenced by the environment, personal factors, and aspects of the behavior itself. The theory explains ways individuals gain and maintain attention, specifically addressing the processes of attention, retention, reproduction and motivation. Individuals experience an education process consisting of reinforcement, self-efficacy, behavioral capacity (learning what to do and how), expectations, and outcome expectancy. Social Cognitive theory helps a health educator understand the complex relationships between the individual and his or her environment, how actions and conditions reinforce or discourage change, and the importance of believing in and knowing how to change (Health Behavior Models, 1998.)

Many would agree that the media are the biggest educators in today's society. "By age 18 a young person will have seen 350,000 commercials and spent more time being entertained by the media than any other activity except sleeping (Walsh.)" A society with such immense media-saturation is cause for concern, especially in regards to health. The impact of the media on adolescents in terms of nutrition, sexual information, alcohol and tobacco, violence, and stress has been greatly evaluated. By examining these areas, we can begin to address and examine how media literacy can be used to reduce the negative influences mass media are believed to have on young people's health-related attitudes and behaviors (Yates.)

Proper nutrition is especially important for adolescents. Early dietary decisions can have lifelong health implications such as obesity, poor nutrition, inadequate female reproductive development (Childhood Obesity, Kaiser Family Foundation.) The media often perpetuates poor diet decisions. "One study estimated that early adolescents between two and 12 contributed $82.4 billion in food and beverage purchases in 1990 (Walsh.)" Even more alarming is the issue of body image. Young adolescents are led to believe that the media-created image of the ideal body is how their bodies should look. In an attempt to have the perfect body, females often end up adopting fad diets that may lead to more serious eating disorders. Boys are susceptible to media body images because they want to build muscles like many actors and sports