To what extent does the framing used by news media influence victim-blaming attitudes within the general population?

Clark, Jessica (2021) To what extent does the framing used by news media influence victim-blaming attitudes within the general population? Masters thesis, University of Worcester.

Text Dissertation - DSVM4005 - 190116011.pdf - Submitted Version Restricted to Repository staff only Download (893kB)

Abstract

News media institutions in the United Kingdom (UK) are in a unique position to influence attitudes and beliefs around public health issues and can encourage support for various policies and initiatives. However, existing literature has criticised the news media for their portrayal of domestic abuse (DA), stating that current reporting styles offer simplistic and individualistic versions of the issue which actively misinform the public. Existing literature predominantly focuses on content analyses and literature reviews, therefore this study sought to generate primary data investigating the news media framing of DA and how this can impact on victim-blaming attitudes. After receiving confirmation from two gatekeepers in the form of course leaders, an anonymous online survey was sent out electronically to a participant sample that consisted of university students. The survey was comprised of a vignette in the style of a fictitious news story, paired with a survey measuring victim-blame, victim empathy, perpetrator responsibility, and how well-informed participants felt. Both quantitative and qualitative data was collected in the form of Likert scales and open-ended questions. Results identified five themes which have been labelled as Victim Empathy, Victim-Blame, Perpetrator Empathy, Perpetrator Responsibility and Article Framing. This study adds to the growing body of literature on UK media representations of DA and provides primary data that resonates with existing research.

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