An investigation of television programs that illustrates superstition and its effect on viewers
Journal Title: Anthropological Researches and Studies - Year 2018, Vol 8, Issue 8
Abstract
Objectives. Superstitious beliefs continue to plague the Indian society despite efforts from revolutionists and various organizations, who have used science to eradicate some beliefs. People with deep rooted superstitions face the risk of losing their families and livelihoods due to their over dependence on such beliefs. To overcome this problem, media are used to create awareness among people. This study aims to check whether non-fiction television programs on superstitions play a role in changing people’s mind-sets. Materials and Methods. Content analysis was done on non-fiction programs like Moondravathu Kan, Nambinal Nambungal and Marmam that aired during February and March 2016. Totally 40 episodes of the programs were analysed. The survey method was adopted to understand how superstitious content in Tamil television affected the audience. A purposive sampling technique was used to identify 132 respondents. Results. Majority of the content is related to religious beliefs and blind beliefs like magic healing, future prediction and black magic. These programs are produced based on information gathered from superstitious practitioners or the public and is telecast in a dramatized form. Almost 65% of the episodes use a neutral narrative tone passing no judgments on such beliefs. The survey revealed that around half of the respondents believe in superstitions. People believe that the majority of the stories are only partially true. Conclusion. Watching of these programs has resulted in superstitious beliefs being reinforced in few people and has stimulated interests in some people to know more about such superstitions rather than creating awareness on the negative effects. This study therefore recommends that programs focus on providing scientific explanations and having expert discussions that provide an in depth understanding of a superstition rather on simply showcasing a superstition.
Authors and Affiliations
Arulchelvan Sriram
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP569423
- DOI 10.26758/8.1.28
- Views 114
- Downloads 0
Parental stress and bedtime routines in toddlerhood
Objectives. Main purposes of our study were to explore: a) the relationship between paternal and maternal perceptions of their interactions with the child during bedtime routines; b) the possible relationship among conte...
Recreation of personal activist identity in a post-war west Balkan city: Petrinja
Objectives. Civil Society is the most important instrument to obtain democratic transformation and get EU membership in post-Yugoslav countries. Activism in post-war West Balkan cities, especially in border cities like P...
Child-to-parent violence: a study of socio-demographic causes in Ilorin Metropolis, Kwara State
Objectives. Child-to-parent violence (CPV) is gradually attracting interest all over the world. Therefore, it is becoming a social problem. It has severe effects on the parents and the children. This study observed the s...
The role of epistemic beliefs and epistemic emotions in online learning
Objectives. The aimed objectives of this study are 1) to determine which factors of epistemic beliefs are significant in an online course, 2) to determine if positive or negative epistemic emotions are significant in an...
Changes in occupational profiles and occupational health service
Objectives. Changes in the economy and occupational profile, implementation of new technologies and fragmentation of tasks and work processes justify the urgent needs in specialized occupational health and basic services...