Media Psychology

Are you interested and fascinated by how media affects our daily lives in increasing and varying ways, both on individual, and societal level? Then our contemporary, interesting, and yet challenging minor Media Psychology which consists of six hands-on modules is for you!  This minor offers a scientific and practical insight into human behavior, thoughts, and feelings experienced in the context of both media creation and use. It will furthermore offer you a solid foundation in media psychology and is a perfect fit for all study programs.  

Admission

For this minor there are no entry requirements. The minor is taught in English; therefore, you should be competent in reading and writing English texts.  

The Examination Board determines which minors do not have a higher professional education level and/or have an unacceptable overlap with the compulsory curriculum of your own study programme. Check at the page Not allowed minor courses under your institute which minors are not allowed. 

Content

Media psychology draws heavily from fields such as Psychology and Communication, however, it also incorporates research from fields such as sociology, media studies, anthropology, and fan studies. In Media Psychology you will learn how the media and our ever-increasing use of technology affects how we perceive, interpret, respond, and interact with the world around us, locally and globally. There is a solid theoretical basis, and you will work with interesting and relevant articles and produce assignments/projects individually and in a group context.  

Interesting topics are incorporated amongst mass media and mass persuasion, cognitive psychology, digital media and culture, psychological effects of media, news framing, and cyber psychology, for example social media, movies and TV series, how we present ourselves in the media, and how the media frames events and issues.           

Learning objectives

During this minor program, you will (learn to): 

1. understand the cognitive processes involved in processing information with the focus on the media;
2. explore and understand the psychological effects of the media in areas such as violence, sex, and stereotyping in media entertainment;
3. gain an insight into mass media and persuasion in the context of verbal communication (speeches of influential persons) and framing (persuasive framing strategies used in advertising);  
4. analyse the framing of events and issues by the (news) media and the impact thereof on societies globally;
5. explore the social and cultural construction of identity from a media and cultural studies approach;
6. gain an understanding of the field of cyberpsychology including topics such as social media and self-presentation, political self-presentation, corporate storytelling, art and self-expression, and the pathology of self.

Courses

The programme consists of the following six courses, three per period:

Assessment

For five of the six courses, you will complete assignments (some individual and some in groups), or projects. For one of the courses there will be an exam. This is specified in the course manuals. 

Literature

There is currently one prescribed book:
Sanborn, F. W. (2023). A cognitive psychology of mass communication (8th edition). New York, NY: Routledge.

Additional literature will take the format of articles, chapters, notes etc. 

Schedule

As far as the schedule is concerned, the classes (3 lectures and 3 tutorials) are spread over a period of 3 days per week. This means you must be present at the university for 3 days since all classes are scheduled face-to-face. Students who are registered for the minor will receive the final timetable by mid-August / mid-January. Lesson schedules are posted on Mijn Rooster before the start of each block.

At HU, full-time education may be scheduled between 08:30 and 19:00.  

Additional costs

SPSS access (approximately 10 euros)