A short review is given of the Nuffield Council's report on behavioural genetics. This review is used as an entry point to a discussion of the factors that influence the presentation of behavioural genetics in the media and in the popular scientific press. It is argued that our interest in formulating narrative explanations of our individual lives puts pressure on publishers and editors to pres...

An increased consumption of energy-dense, nutrient-poor food and beverages as a result of a changing obesogenic environment contributes substantially to the increasing prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity. This paper reviews the nature and extent of food industry influences which expose children to commercial influences and thus might affect unhealthy dietary behaviour and finally con...

The article offers an overview of the main approaches to the media and introduces the reader to the most influential media theories. It deals with the historical development of the relationship of media, culture, society, and the public. It traces the development of different notions of culture, their impacts on the media, and their relationships to various conceptions of “the public”. It draws...

Introduction There are many issues impacting the history of media collections in academic libraries. Facets of this history are intertwined with the profession of media librarianship and the fields adjacent to it such as instructional technology and audiovisual production. Additionally, popular culture and the demand from library users impact our collection development decisions. Topics such as...

The present study investigated relationships between media influence (exposure, selfcomparison to media ideals and internalization of media messages, societal pressure to have the perfect body, using media as a source of information about how to achieve a certain body ideal) and drive for thinness and drive for muscularity in 311 male and female undergraduates at a university in the Rocky Mount...

2135 Social influences are a primary factor in the adoption of health behaviors. Compliance with diet and nutrition programs, adherence to preventive screening recommendations, and maintenance of exercise routines all can depend on having contact with friends and family who also engage in these behaviors. In addition to a great deal of literature on peer effects, recent studies of large network...

This paper is an update to a 1996 discussion paper on child maltreatment and family structure published by the former National Child Protection Clearinghouse. Although 15 years have passed since the publication of the original paper, the extent to which family structure influences the wellbeing and outcomes for children is still a hotly debated topic, particularly in the mainstream media and fo...

Despite continual consumer demand for richer broadcast media, there have been few examinations of senses other than vision and hearing in this domain. This demonstration paper considers the role that touch may be able to play in future broadcast systems. We have begun to explore the addition of haptic cues to children’s cartoons, and through this process unearthed a number of practical design i...

For marketing to function in a globalized world it must respect a diverse set of local cultures. With marketing efforts extending to social media platforms, the crossing of cultural boundaries can happen in an instant. In this paper we examine how culture influences the popularity of marketing messages in social media platforms. Text mining, automated translation and sentiment analysis contribu...