Television and Authoritarianism: Exploring the Concept of Mainstreaming

This article examines the relationship between television viewing and authoritarianism from the perspective of cultivation research. Earlier analyses of these data (Shanahan, 1995) showed "mainstreaming" patterns: Television viewing was associated with authoritarian attitudes. In this article, I explore the mainstreaming explanation more extensively, including questions about causality. The data presented below indicate that adolescents authoritarian leanings diminish as light television viewers grow older while heavy viewers maintain a high degree of authoritarianism. Heavy television viewing apparently retards political development.

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