感知的议程设置效果:媒介对美国人涉华认知的影响研究

Perceived Agenda-setting Effects:A Study of Media’s Influence on Americans’ perception toward China

本文基于2016年4月对美国18岁以上成年人的在线问卷调查(样本量为848份),主要从个体层面研究受众感知的媒介议程设置效果。本文发现,受众感知到的媒体第一层议程设置效果比第二层议程设置效果更普遍,即相对于告诉受众'怎么想',媒体在告诉受众'想什么'方面更有效。美国人对中国的直接经验和间接知识对第一层(议题)议程设置效果没有影响,但对第二层(属性)议程设置效果有一定的正向影响。

The traditional agenda setting studies mainly compare media’s agenda and audience’s agenda basing on aggregate data.The current paper proposed a related but different concept of agenda-setting:perceived agenda setting.Using media’s impact on Americans’perception toward China,the current study examines both perceived issue agenda-setting(first-level)and attribute agendasetting(second-level)effects through a structured online survey(N=848)on adult Americans in April 2016.The study found that topic(content)interest positively predicted the strength of media’s impact on Americans’impression on five topics,but neither prior knowledge about China nor direct experience of traveling to China had significant effect on Americans’impression on China.On the other hand,those Americans who have ever traveled to China,or know a lot about China are more positively influenced by media on the attitudes toward China.The study confirmed that the issue agenda-setting is more pervasive than attribute agendasetting,indicating media are efficient to tell people what to think,but not very efficient on how to think.