Journalism and Mass Communications, College of
Date of this Version
12-2013
Citation
Bartholomew, A., & Hachtmann, F. (2014). A Professional Project Surveying Student-Run Advertising and Public Relations Agencies at Institutions with ACEJMC Accredited Programs. University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Abstract
Behaviorism as defined in 1913 by John B. Watson was a science that used repeated, observable human activity to develop hypotheses that would eventually predict and control responses. Through repeated experiments, Watson developed a thorough knowledge of what he defined as base human reactions. Stanley Resor, then president of J. Walter Thompson Agency, hired Watson to promote a partnership between advertising and science, and the subsequent 15 years of Watson’s career included some notable scientific contributions. This study shows that though these outcomes may not have provided many measurable positive results, they set into motion industry-wide change that continued to develop until the present. The study also argues that though behavioristic principles may not have found solid footing in a mass media environment, the current networked communication state provides much more fertile ground for analyzing message receivers and eliciting desired responses.
Advisor: Frauke Hachtmann
Comments
A PROFESSIONAL PROJECT Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln For the Degree of Master of Arts, Major: Journalism and Mass Communications, Under the Supervision of Professor Frauke Hachtmann. Lincoln, Nebraska: December, 2013
Copyright (c) 2013 Abby Bartholomew