The Essence of the Theory
In the era of technological advancement, innovations play a crucial role in society, with shifts in behaviors and perceptions being explained through various theories. The media becomes an invaluable provider of information during turbulent and unpredictable times, often serving as the sole source of news (Rosenberry & Vicker, 2022). Ball-Rokeach and DeFleur created the Media Systems Dependency Theory (MSDT) in 1976 with this as its foundation. Since it looks at the interactions and effects that exist between audiences, media platforms, and social structures, it is known as a systems theory (Rosenberry & Vicker, 2022).
In order to comprehend the consequences of media, media systems dependency theory, however, is mainly focused on the individual and how reliant they are on the media (Rosenberry & Vicker, 2022). However, the essential element to comprehending the concept is to recognize that a medium will grow more important in people’s lives as more reliant they become on it (Rosenberry & Vicker, 2022). Therefore, MSDT is a crucial tool when it comes to observing the correlation between dependability on social media and crisis situations.
MSDT Applied to Social Media
When applying MSDT to social media, one can see a significant connection, especially during COVID-19. Greater recognized media relevance in a person’s life and, consequently larger impact of media on one’s views and actions are directly correlated with increased reliance on media to meet one’s own requirements (Sheldon et al., 2021). The findings in the study by Sheldon et al. (2021) showed that during the COVID-19 pandemic, country culture had a significant impact on media consumption and usage (Sheldon et al., 2021).
The framework can be applied to a TV show, Game of Thrones, to explain the dependability of the audience. The dependence effect can be seen in reliance on information, entertainment, and social bonds. The viewers watched the show to learn more about the storyline and plot twists and stay connected with the fan base.
References
Rosenberry, J., & Vicker, L. A. (2022). Applied mass communication theory: A guide for media practitioners (3rd ed). Taylor & Francis.
Sheldon, P., Antony, M. G., Charoensap-Kelly, P., Morgan, S., & Weldon, L. (2021). Media and interpersonal channels uses and preferences during the COVID-19 pandemic: The case of the United States, Thailand, and Croatia. Heliyon, 7(7), 1-10. Web.
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