Author ORCID Identifier
Date of Graduation
2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Type
PhD
College
Eberly College of Arts and Sciences
Department
Communication Studies
Committee Chair
Elizabeth Cohen
Committee Co-Chair
Christine Kunkle
Committee Member
Christine Kunkle
Committee Member
Daniel Totzkay
Committee Member
Kasi Jackson
Abstract
Building on the foundations of intergroup contact theory (Allport, 1954), the parasocial contact hypothesis (Schiappa et al., 2005), and Harwood’s Contact Space (2010), this dissertation advances the existing literature on how intergenerational contact with media characters can improve young adults’ willingness to engage with older adults. Specifically, this study examines the effects of intergroup contact quality on the parasocial contact process. Episodes of the TV sitcom about older adult women, Grace and Frankie, were edited to create both a high contact quality condition and a low contact quality condition. The high contact quality condition was a montage that showed viewers more scenes or “relational data points” (30) about the main characters, Grace and Frankie, across a full season. The low contact quality condition was a pilot episode consisting of fewer relational data points about the characters (12). Though they varied in terms of the depth of information they provided about the characters, the episodes were equal in length. Participants were randomly assigned to watch one of the two episodes in a theater-like setting, and then complete a survey. The manipulation was successful; the montage condition resulted in greater perceptions of meaningfulness and contact quality than the pilot episode, even though time was held constant. However, contact quality did not initiate the parasocial contact process for both characters. The montage episode also increased parasocial relationship strength with Grace, but not for Frankie, and only parasocial relationships with Grace increased viewers’ willingness to engage with older adults more generally. Specifically, parasocial relationship strength with Grace and self-disclosure serially mediated the relationship between contact quality and willingness to engage with older adults. Likewise, PSR strength with Grace and intergroup dissonance serially mediated the effect of contact quality on willingness to engage with older adults. The different patterns of effects for the two characters may be explained by differences in how typical of older adults the young audience viewed them as being. By demonstrating that contact quality and parasocial relationships can be manipulated with montage editing, this research makes an important contribution to research efforts on character involvement. Theoretically, this study also demonstrates that relational quality is more important than relational length, or time, for prejudice reduction through mediated contact. Implications for media producers and future routes for intergenerational parasocial contact research are discussed.
Recommended Citation
Baker, Alysse C., "Short Episodes but Fast Friends: Examining the Effects of Parasocial Relationship Quality on Mediated Intergenerational Contact in Grace and Frankie" (2024). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 12513.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/12513