Notes in Communication -- CultivationTheory
Cultivation theory examines the long-term effects of television. "The primary proposition of cultivation theory states that the more time people spend 'living' in the television world, the more likely they are to believe social reality aligns with reality portrayed on television." The images and ideological messages transmitted through popular television media heavily influence perceptions of the real world.
Cultivation theory was founded by George Gerbner and is positivistic, meaning it assumes the existence of objective reality and value-neutral research. A study conducted by Jennings Bryant and Dorina Miron in 2004, which surveyed almost 2,000 articles published in three top mass-communication journals since 1956, found that Cultivation Theory was the third-most frequently utilized theory, showing that it continues to be one of the most popular theories in mass-communication research.
In cultivation theory, the story telling will lead to two consequences: resonance and mainstreaming. They are the key terms in cultivation theory.
1 Resonance
Resonance occurs when things viewed on television are congruent with the actual lived realities of viewers. Gerbner writes that this provides a double dose of messages that resonate and amplify cultivation. Additionally, Gerbner defines resonance as the similarity between everyday reality and television narratives. Furthermore, Gerbner said, "The congruence of the television world and real-life circumstances may 'resonate' and lead to markedly amplified cultivation patterns."
The example they give is of minority groups whose fictional television character is stereotypically more frequently victimized on television, creating an exaggerated perception of violence for individuals who watch more television.
This cultivation could have a large effect on our society if these viewers insist on receiving more security from the government, their work place, family, friends, etc. Resonance seeks to explain why heavy TV viewers often have an amplified vigilance about the world due to the former example of minority groups. TV viewers don't trust anyone since on TV anyone can be a source of violence.
2 Mainstreaming
"Mainstreaming is the blurring, blending, and bending process by which heavy TV viewers from disparate groups develop a common outlook on the world through constant exposure to the same images and labels on TV."
Mainstreaming through television plays a central role in society. There are many people that do not have access to television, but the reach of television is so expansive that it has become the primary channel responsible for shaping what is mainstream in our culture.
The mainstream is more than the sum of all cross-currents and sub-currents; it represents the broadest range of shared meanings and assumptions in the most general, functional and stable way. Heavy television viewing may override individual differences and perspectives, creating more of an American (and increasingly global) "melting pot" of social, cultural and political ideologies.
中文：传播学学习笔记——涵化理论
涵化理论，又被翻译成教养理论、培养理论（英语：Cultivation theory）。涵化理论主要研究的是电视对于受众的长期影响。“这个理论最基本的主张是，人们看电视的时间越长，也容易把电视中展示的场景当做真的社会现实。”通过大众电视传媒表达出来的图像还有理想化的信息，严重影响了对真实世界的感知。
涵化理论是乔治·格伯纳提出的，而且是很正面的。假定客观现实的存在和价值中性的研究。在2004年由Jennings Bryant和Dorina Miron发起的研究，调查了从1956年起将近2000篇发布在三大权威的大众传播学期刊的文章，发现涵化理论是第三高频被使用的理论，展示了它在大众传播学研究中持续的活力。
涵化理论中，电视的叙事性产生两种现象：共鸣和主流化。这也是涵化理论的关键术语。
1共鸣
共鸣指的是，观众感觉电视上出现的事物与生活中的事物一致。格伯纳把这种现象描述成提供了双倍剂量的信息，起到共鸣和放大教化的作用。格伯纳就把共鸣定义为电视叙事和现实的相似之处。另外，格伯纳说，“电视世界和真实世界的一致性可能是可以共鸣的，并且会导致有标志的、放大涵化的模式。”
举一个例子，有一些少数裔群体，他们在电视上出现的时候总是以很刻板化很脸谱化的暴力形象出现，这让电视伤害了他们，因为看电视的大多数人会误以为这些个群体的个人都充满了暴力。
如果观看电视的人坚持要从政府、工作单位、家庭、朋友等等那里获得更高的安全感，这种涵化的功能对社会有很大的影响。上述共鸣的例子给我们提供了解释，为什么重度电视依赖者会对社会有更严重的警觉。因为他们对谁逗不放心，觉得谁都是暴力源，电视上就是这么演的。
2 主流化
主流化是一种模糊的、混合的、弯曲的过程。来自不同族群的重度电视观看者他们通过持续的看电视，接受同样的图像和符号，发展出了共同的期望，——这样实现了主流化的过程。
电视的主流化在社会中扮演了一个中心角色。尽管还是有很多人是没有渠道看电视的，但是电视可以触及到的范围是非常广泛的，它相当于是一个基础的通道，可以来负责塑造我们的文化主流。
主流不只是所有的逆流和直流的总和，它代表了用最大众的、有效的、稳定的方式去最广泛地分享出去的含义和设想。
重度的电视观看习惯可能会磨灭了人与人之间的区别和视野，更多地创造美国式甚至是全世界融合的“大熔炉”风格，包容了社会的、文化的、政治上的更多的观念。