Teleauditooriumi jagunemine vaatajahuvide, elulaadi ja väärtuste alusel
Date
2010
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Tartu Ülikool
Abstract
Description
Thesis „Television Audience Segmentation Based on Viewers' Interests, Lifestyles
and Values“ sets out to explore Estonian television audiences' preferences regarding
the programming typically offered by Estonian television channels, and to find
preference patterns which could be used as a basis of creating an audience typology.
The method of audience typology is a means of analyzing the audience, during which
people with similar viewer behaviour are converged into groups, which can be
described using a number of characteristics or distinctive groups. Regarding the
theoretical approach to audiences, viewing based typology is one ways to treat the
audience in the framework of a structure and an agent – on the one hand, the thesis
explores how people describe their preferences regarding how they watch television
programs; on the other hand, we take a closer look on the viewers themselves, their
characteristics, lifestyles and attitudes. Programs and audiences mutually influence
and shape each other, and a certain logic to viewers' behaviour can be seen in this
process, something that could be understood better via studying the viewer types.
In this thesis the audience is regarded as an entity that makes active choices, that acts,
but I have abstained from considering the choices as absolute. The theoretical models
of program choice show that even though people might make choices based on their
long-term preferences, these are not the sole determinants. Television watching is a
situation-based activity, influenced by specific circumstances and mood, highly
dependent on the program options currently available, and the decision to stay with
the selected program, made in the environment of multiple choice of channels, may
no be made consciously. This decision is, however, influenced by viewing habit,
general attitude towards the channel and the viewer's own taste preferences
concerning the content. All this is assumed to be reflected in the decisions made
regarding the relevant typical programs, and this is the object of research of this
thesis.
The empirical material has been collected via questionnaire titled “Meediateemaline
arvamusuuring 2010” (“Media related opinion survey of 2010”); carried out in March
2010. Survey was ordered by ERR research centre and executed by Turu-uuringute
AS, interviewing 1011 Estonians. The analysis was carried out using the quantitative
data analysis methods.
As a result, 8 viewer types are described, which differ from one another based on the
general orientation of the program choice (rationally vs emotionally oriented),
viewing frequency and the general pattern of program preferences. The types are
profiled as social-demographic groups, also which have been analysed in relation to
groups' preferences of other media use (printed media, radio, Internet) and within the
dimension of their interests, hobbies and values. Based on this survey, following
viewer types can be found among the Estonians:
1) entertainment oriented, home-centered heavy user (12,1%)
2) domestic drama oriented, provincial traditionalist (15,4%)
3) public sphere oriented, senior citizen (10,8%)
4) experience oriented, foreign program viewer (9,7%)
5) solid observer (15,8%)
6) social life oriented, thrill seeker (13,3%)
7) an intellectual inclined towards the new media (12,7%)
8) random visitor from the Internet (10,2%)
These viewer types expose interesting differences in their attitudes towards specific
programs, types of programs and channels.
The viewer types are a kind of target group for producers and media institutions,
whose peculiarities have to be considered in concept creating and presenting a show
in a program. Audience researchers can find tools for even more thorough assessment
of the preferences of the viewer types, explaining their expectations on channels,
shows, and also on different broadcasting types, especially on public broadcasting.
This knowledge would make the assessment of real program offering, based on the
expectations of different groups, more adequate, and the development of suitable offer
more justified.
Keywords
magistritööd