Skip to Main Content
 

Global Search Box

 
 
 
 

ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

Media Preference and Risk Assessment: Mortality Salience and Mediating Effects of Worldview

Richey, Gregory Boyd

Abstract Details

2011, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, Communication.

This study examined the effects of mortality salience on the opinions and preferences of people with different religious or philosophical worldviews. Specifically, participants completed a religious fundamentalist scale, a post-materialist index, and a cultural creativity index. Each participant was then randomly asked to think about the concept of death or a control topic. Finally, participants were asked to provide their opinions on a number of topics regarding prayer efficacy, media preference, and risk assessment.

This study found supporting evidence that reminders of one’s mortality tend to exaggerate any distrust of modern medicine held by religious fundamentalists, even if those reminders are not related to the medical issue at hand. It also provided some evidence that similar concerns held by post-materialists may be generally exaggerated under similar conditions.

In addition, it was hypothesized that participants would consider potentially risky driving behaviors to be less dangerous when mortality was salient. This study found supporting evidence that religious fundamentalists were less concerned about the risks of driving with multiple passengers when mortality was salient. If assessments of other, riskier behaviors (such as texting while driving) mirror these results, mortality salience and religious perspective must be considered when attempting to discourage such behavior.

It was also hypothesized that participants in the mortality salient group would prefer to get their news from sources that shared their point of view. However, no evidence was found to support this hypothesis. In fact, politically liberal participants were less likely to prefer liberal news sources when mortality was made salient. Since so many news stories and television shows deal with issues of mortality, media selection may depend in part on a combination of philosophical perspectives and the content of the news.

Gerald Kosicki, PhD (Advisor)
Michael McCluskey, PhD (Committee Member)
56 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Richey, G. B. (2011). Media Preference and Risk Assessment: Mortality Salience and Mediating Effects of Worldview [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1301062941

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Richey, Gregory. Media Preference and Risk Assessment: Mortality Salience and Mediating Effects of Worldview. 2011. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1301062941.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Richey, Gregory. "Media Preference and Risk Assessment: Mortality Salience and Mediating Effects of Worldview." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2011. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1301062941

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)