Abstract
Abstract. The increased popularity of reality shows has been followed by criticism that they rely on viewers’ enjoyment of the humiliation and degradation of participants. This study included 163 Israelis who reported on their own willingness to participate in reality shows and how they would react if family members were to participate. Positive correlations between these responses and reported viewing enjoyment dispel the myth that viewers’ enjoyment comes primarily from watching others suffer and being humiliated.
References
(2004). Reality TV: The work of being watched. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
(2006). Talking alone: Reality TV, emotions and authenticity. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 9(2), 167–184. doi: 10.1177/1367549406063162
. (2007). Reality television review Vol. 1, Retrieved from http://www.acma.gov.au/webwr/_assets/main/lib310007/acma_realitytvreview_finalreport_vol1_30mar07.pdf
(1925). Measuring social distance. Journal of Applied Sociology, 9(2), 299–308.
(2008). Who’s afraid of reality shows? Exploring the effects of perceived influence of reality shows and the concern over their social effects, on willingness to censor. Communication Research, 35(3), 382–397. doi: 10.1177/0093650208315964
(2010). Does reality backbite? Physical, verbal, and relational aggression in reality television programs. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 54(2), 282–298. doi: 10.1080/08838151003737931
(2011). Surveillance on reality TV and Facebook: From authenticity to flowing data. Communication Theory, 21(2), 111–129. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2885.2011.01378.x
(2006). Viewers’ perceptions of reality program. Communication Quarterly, 54(2), 191–211. doi: 10.1080/01463370600650902
(2011). Thinking, fast and slow. London, UK: Penguin.
(2008). Simply irresistible: Reality TV consumption patterns. Communication Quarterly, 56(2), 208–225. doi: 10.1080/01463370802026828
(1983). Openers: Individuals who elicit intimate self-disclosure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44(6), 1234–1244. doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.44.6.1234
(2007). Determining dimensions of reality: A cognitive mapping of reality TV programs. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 51, 371–389. doi: 10.1080/08838150701307111
(2003). Reality-based television programming and the psychology of its appeal. Media Psychology, 5, 303–330. doi: 10.1207/S1532785XMEP0504_01
(2007). An exploratory study of reality appeal: Uses and gratifications of reality TV shows. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 51(2), 355–370. doi: 10.1080/08838150701307152
(2004). Why people watch reality TV? Media Psychology, 6, 363–378. doi: 10.1207/s1532785xmep0604_3
(1997). On humiliation. Social Research, 64(1), 131–147.
(2012). Disclosing information about the self is intrinsically rewarding. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109(21), 8038–8043. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1202129109
(1990). Self-disclosure of personal constructs. Family Process, 29, 399–413. doi: 10.1111/j.1545-5300.1990.00399.x
(2009). A star is degraded: An examination of the relationship between degradation in reality shows and viewers’ enjoyment of these shows. Media Frames: Israeli Journal of Communication, 3, 1–26.
