Blog 7

What is meant by uses and gratifications? Which uses and gratifications do you think are the most important for people nowadays?

Within sociological analysis uses-and-gratifications is a theory used in an attempt to understand why an audience seeks out a specific form of media to fulfill a specific need. In addition to this, the theory can also be used to help us understand the power the media has on us. To answer the second question proves difficult. The text explains that viewers “often see a particular event differently or identify different identifications.” Because of this, what I see as important may not be hold the same weight to others. To combat this, I’m going to focus on one form of mass media that I heavily identify with: video games. Many of the gratifications identified in the reading hold true within video games. Of these, I find the following to be the most important: to be amused, to share experiences with others, to experience empathy, to experience extreme emotions, and to gain identity. Many of these, I feel, go hand-in-hand. From my own experience, people play games to escape reality for a bit, to delve into a story and enjoy it, to be amused by the game. This leads gamers to identify what their favorite genres of games are which then allows them to seek out and find individuals that share similar opinions and tastes; they gain an identity and then use that identity to share their similar experiences with others whose self identity is in-line with their own. Finally, the user plays games in order to experience the journey of the hero; they become a character whose journey mirrors their own emotions. The player experiences all the triumphs and defeats of the game’s protagonist, allowing them to experience empathy.