Discusses results of a Wisconsin panel study supporting the hypothesis that public confidence in governmental institutions would increase during the campaign period and associates this increase with heavier exposure to the campaign and the Ford-Carter debates. Improved evaluations of candidates are associated with interpersonal discussion rather…

The usefulness of presidential debates to the electorate and to the total political system is evaluated in this paper. The paper first reports the results of opinion polls concerning the value of the 1976 debates and cites studies showing the types of information that people obtained from watching the debates. It then considers whether voters'…

Examines the effects of various mass media on political learning during the 1992 presidential campaign. Analyzes two voter surveys conducted in different states. Compares three indicators of political knowledge. Shows how campaign media added significantly to political knowledge among voters. (HB)

Noting that attention, or increased mental effort, has long been recognized as an important variable in the processing of mass communication messages, this paper examines both methodological and theoretical issues associated with the measurement of attention, particularly to the news and public affairs content in the news media. After a brief…

A study tested the cumulative acquisition model proposed by S. H. Chaffee and A. R. Tims to explain the development of adolescent patterns of news media use. The Guttman scale procedure was used to analyze patterns of news media use across a three-wave panel survey of 366 parent-child pairs over a 2-year period. In each wave, interviewers talked…

As part of a larger study of political socialization in adolescence, 782 adolescents and 718 parents were surveyed to test hypotheses about political information as a function of the early phase of a presidential campaign and the news exposure level of the respondent. Despite shortcomings in the sample design and in the precision of interview…

To explore the interrelationships among family communication patterns (FCP) and children's cognitive development and political socialization, 718 parent-child pairs were interviewed by telephone on the extent to which children were encouraged to and did discuss politics with people of different views. In addition, subjects were asked questions…

A study examined the effects on political socialization of students in grades 5-6, based on teachers' use of local newspapers in classrooms throughout Argentina (except in Buenos Aires) during the 1995 school year. The newspaper program was sponsored by the Association of Dailies of the Interior Region of Argentina. Data were collected by…