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The two-step flow model posits that the media does not have a direct effect on the whole of the media audience, but is mediated through opinion leaders, who absorb the information and pass it on to their immediate social group.The two-step hypothesis suggests that opinion leaders are the crucial conduit for political information.
The two-step flow model posits that the media does not have a direct effect on the whole of the media audience, but is mediated through opinion leaders, who absorb the information and pass it on to their immediate social group.
The two-step hypothesis suggests that opinion leaders are the crucial conduit for political information.
Key Takeaways
Origins of the Theory
Their bookThe People’s Choice, revealed the results of their analyses of the decision-making processes of voters during the 1940 election for President of the United States.
The authors held that content on mass media first reaches highly active media users (also known as opinion leaders) who accumulate, interpret and convey the meaning of such content to less-active consumers of mass media.
Gaudet, Berelson and Lazarsfeld had discovered that a majority of voters in the election had procured information concerning the presidential candidates not from the media directly, but from others who had read in the newspapers about the campaign.
Paradigm Shift in Mass Communication Theory
Factors such as communication with one’s family, friends, and colleagues seemed more capable of predicting one’s voting patterns than one’s exposure to media.
Lazarsfeld, later collaborating with Elihu Katz, managed to further develop the two-step flow theory especially in their bookPersonal Influence.
Katz and Lazarsfeld (1955) contended in their work that mass communication researchers cannot treat the public as a homogenous audience that uniformly reacts to media messages.
This, they argued, was the case because an individual’s membership in various social groups exerts more influence on his/her conduct and decision-making processes (than does direct messages from mass media).
The term ‘personal influence’ moreover, could be understood as the intervening process between mass media messaging and audience reaction.
Furthermore, the opinion followers share much in common with opinion leaders in terms of interests, personality, and demographics.
Examples of the Model
Public speaker, best-selling author and talk show host Ben Shapiro is another opinion leader who has had an enormous impact upon the political landscape of the United States.While his legal education at Harvard University has equipped him to directly engage political issues portrayed in the media, his communication skills have enabled him to significantly shape what many Americans think on issues ranging from gun ownership to foreign policy.
Public speaker, best-selling author and talk show host Ben Shapiro is another opinion leader who has had an enormous impact upon the political landscape of the United States.
While his legal education at Harvard University has equipped him to directly engage political issues portrayed in the media, his communication skills have enabled him to significantly shape what many Americans think on issues ranging from gun ownership to foreign policy.
Critical Evaluation
Danielson and Deutschmann (1960) have contended, based upon substantial evidence showing mass media messages flowing directly to the public, that the two-flow model should be applied with caution.
Everett Rogers (1962) cited in his bookDiffusion of Innovations, a study wherein more than 60% of the respondents attributed to mass media (rather than interpersonal interactions) their awareness of what had been transpiring.
The aforementioned imply a greater prevalence of occurrences consistent with the hypodermic needle theory.Troldahl (1966) has noted that direct media exposure introduces discussion, and subsequently, opinion leaders assume their roles.
Finally, the greater access to media content people today enjoy reflects a substantial change in the underlying conditions from the time when the two-flow model was developed.
Empirical research into social media for instance, has discovered that the present digital landscape simultaneously facilitates one-, two- and multi-step flow theories of communication (Hilbert, Vásquez, Halpern, Valenzuela & Arriagada, 2017).
Further Information
References
Deutschmann, Paul J.; Danielson, Wayne A. (1 September 1960). “Diffusion of Knowledge of the Major News Story”.Journalism Quarterly, 37(3): 345–355.
Hilbert, Martin; Vásquez, Javier; Halpern, Daniel; Valenzuela, Sebastián; Arriagada, Eduardo (August 2017). “One Step, Two Step, Network Step? Complementary Perspectives on Communication Flows in Twittered Citizen Protests”.Social Science Computer Review. 35 (4): 444–461.
Lazarsfeld, P. F., Berelson, B., & Gaudet, H. (1944).The people”s choice.Duell, Sloan & Pearce.
Lionberger, Herbert F (1960). Adoption of new ideas and practices a summary of the research dealing with the acceptance of technological change in agriculture, with implications for action in facilitating such change. Iowa State University Press.
Nisbet, Matthew (2018). “Ambassadors for Science: Harnessing the Power of Opinion-Leaders across Communities”.Skeptical Inquirer. Amherst, New York: Center for Inquiry. 42 (2): 30–31.
Rogers, Everett M (1962).Diffusion of innovations. Free Press of Glencoe.
Troldahl, Verling C. (1966). “A Field Test of a Modified “Two-Step Flow of Communication” Model”.The Public Opinion Quarterly. 30(4): 609–623.
Saul McLeod, PhD
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester
Saul McLeod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.
Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc
BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education
Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.
Ayesh PereraResearcherB.A, MTS, Harvard UniversityAyesh Perera, a Harvard graduate, has worked as a researcher in psychology and neuroscience under Dr. Kevin Majeres at Harvard Medical School.
Ayesh PereraResearcherB.A, MTS, Harvard University
Ayesh Perera
Researcher
B.A, MTS, Harvard University
Ayesh Perera, a Harvard graduate, has worked as a researcher in psychology and neuroscience under Dr. Kevin Majeres at Harvard Medical School.
