- J... ”L.

”~33 iii- :éW-fim
{WA “
.1 pm

‘v

H"

a“? h‘

\N
I
‘alh ‘
All.

Mu '
NS? 2‘5}... Kg”
an ' .'

‘uIlO‘fi ‘
v‘k'axfi 3% N"?
13%;“ M.

. _
3? 2.313%
Lsfi:

$43“: . ‘
V14- .

l , 7’ 17,“;
J 25.24:, ”Lax/J; .
4,-1’ ‘ {xi-3'" '-
{17);}? ’. 7'.’ :'4.‘.".’,';
.:.. 'w . ‘ J, f 3513 Hwy
" 1 1 J '3' "A "‘2 J
I L’ '7 f 44 .1
. / ‘ ‘. . .

 

.Ab‘--u1..ny» {.< ;;v(.‘ v' .

4&4‘ ‘

'1
‘u~.' ‘,

c

" 'ff'
I fl’fll' '3‘;
I; ,l '7'

J - '
Oily" 'r
(J: ( "31",?” ”112?;1.’h;“
“t! ; In. '
’1’

\s'Lv

J
1 [3:13,
. My).

 

 

”if: I-“fv‘c'bf' _‘ 5'1: 0'" . :v . .
H If: 1:15;? "I I} j’yI/"J/ ’24:, .. "‘3‘; -’ ”9;, . 0-("9 ”A" ‘ 'o‘
J ”J. M; J,
35’; /’/’"¥</’~///u//¢ a 4'0""

.‘l ‘t
33/42:;

 

3100506 77
llHlJHHl”I!llllllllllllWU! ll! "Hills

293 00066 0671

LIBRARY l
Michigan State
University

 

 

     

 

 

 

This is to certify that the
thesis entitled

BRIDGING

THE PRODUCTION AND EVALUATION OF AN
EDUCATIONAL VIDEO

presented by

Sandra Uzoamaka Mbanefo

has been accepted towards fulfillment
of the requirements for

 

MAA- degree in Telecommunication

4

Major professor

 

/

Date Fahrnary 2'1: 198

0-7639 MS U is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Institution

 

 

 

)V‘ESI_J RETURNING MATERIALS:
Place in book drop to
ngaAmEs remove this checkout from
.—,—. your record. _FINES will

be charged if book is
returned after the date
stamped below.

 

 

 

 

a MAGIC 2

W - . 'JAN0'41999
g m: -

GUN 0 3 W”?

‘t
A no.3, .4“ f
_ .3" ‘. l
Tm} g3 +
’ ; :2)
‘ 'NV 9

 

 

EBIQQLEQ
THE PRODUCTION AND EVALUATION OF AN EDUCATIONAL VIDEO
3!

Sandra Uzoamaka Mbaneto

A THESIS

Submitted to
Michigan state University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

MASTER OF ARTS

Department of Telecommunication

1988

Accepted by the Taculty of the Department of
Telecommunication, College of Communication Arts and
Sciences, Michigan state University, in partial fulfillment
of the requirement for the Master of Arts degree.

 

Director of Thesis

Copyright by Sandra Dsoamaka Mbanefo
1988

All Rights Reserved

ABSTRACT

BBIDQLHQ
TEE PRODUCTION AND EVALUATION OF AN EDUCATIONAL VIDEO

BY

Sandra Uzoamaka Mbanefo

This educational video was designed to motivate senior
citizens in northern Michigan to become more involved in
state government by increasing their confidence level and
their knowledge of the legislative process. A needs
assessment of the target audience was conducted through
questionnaires, interviews and a focus group, resulting in
the design of specific affective, cognitive and intended
behavioural objectives. Suggestions from content, regional
and production experts and a pro-test of a program segment
helped to develop program format and content: an
experimental cartoon segment was included in the program.
The program was shown to a non-random sample of the target
audience and feedback was obtained through questionnaires.
The results showed that all objectives were met; the
affective objectives being the most successfully met.

ANOVA tests showed that males and seniors living

with someone were more likely to get involved in political
activities. Education and previous attendance at an annual
political event significantly increased respondents'
cognitive means. Mo intervening variables were found to
bias responses to affective questionnaire items. The

experimental cartoon segment was well liked by the target

audience.

DEDICATION

To Akunne, Osodi and Nwanolue:
and to the Great "I AM":
who gave us each other

for a purpose!

vi

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to thank the following people, without whom
this thesis would never have been completed. My sincere
thanks and appreciation go to Don kemp for his patience,
friendship and technical expertise - I will miss your
Italian "zest" (I); to Dr. Gretchen Darbatsis, who inspired
me in the profession and offered me not only invaluable
advice, but also extended a very positive hand of
friendship: to Bob hlbers, for his keen sense of aesthetic
"balance" and for pushing me to edit with "snap" and "zip"
(I): to Abdul Nabib for his kind assistance in the data
analysis: to Ann Alchin for proof reading this thesis and
for offering stylistic suggestions: to Cynthia Brown, Susi
Dreaugh, Brenda Sprite, and Bonnie Sturdivant, for helping
me administratively, and without whom the Telecommunication
Office would not have been a "haven" of friends; to my
fellow teaching assistants, who brightened up the most
mundane duties and made the never-ending hours spent in the
studio enjoyable: to Paula Blanchard, whose work with
Telstate enabled me to work on this project: to Senator
Irwin and his staff, without whom this video would not have
been produced and the data never collected - (and who
enabled me to experience a genuine Michigan snow storm!):
to close friends who never gave up and who were willing to
truly celebrate with me, the joy of seeing this task

vii

completed, and most importantly, to my dear family, whose
love and support go unchallenged, and who encouraged me to
"keep going" when I could not see the "horizon". And
lastly, I thank and acknowledge my closest friend, Jesus,
who gives me the strength to "mount up with wings like an

eagle, to run and not grow weary, to walk and not faint".

viii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

LIST OF TABLBBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Xi

CHAPTER I.

CHAPTER II.

CHAPTER III.

CHAPTER IV.

INTRODUCTIONOOOOOOOOOOOOOCOOOOOOOOOOOO 1

LITERATURE “VI".OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 4
smarYOOOOOCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOIO

“THODOCOCOOOOCOOOOOOOOOOO00.0.000000011

Formative Evaluation..................12
Questionnaire....................l4
Interviews...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOIS
Focus Groups.0.00.00.00.00000000015

Production Design Research............16

Evaluation Research...................l7
Instrumentation..................lS
BNPIOOOOOOOO0.0.0.0000000000000021
Procedur.a....0.0.00.00000000000022
n‘ly‘i‘...0.0.00.00000000000000022

smarYOOOOOO00.0.0000000000023

”BULTBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO00.000.00.00000025

Formative Research Results............25
Questionnaire Results............25
Interview Results................29
Program Objectives as a Result
of the Formative Research........3o

Affective Objectives...........30
Cognitive Objectives...........31
Behavioral Objectives..........3l

ix

Production Research Results...................32
Meetings with Regional Experts...32
Meetings with Content Experts....34
Meetings with Production Experts.35
Meetings with the Executive

Praducar.OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOIOOOOOO.36
Opening Visual Montage.......37
Visual Essay of Bridge.......38
Transitions by an Elected

OfficiaIOOOOOOOOOO0.00.00.0039
Legislative Process..........39
Interviews/Testimonials......40
Music000000000000000000......‘0
Titles/Reywords..............41
Digital M1“t1°n00000000000041
Sequencing...................42
P.61ngoOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO‘Z
PIC-TOSt ROS“1tS.................43
Message Modifications............45
Evaluation Research Results....................46
smaneeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeS‘

CHAPTER Ve DISCUSSIONOOCO0......OOOOOOOOOOOOCOOOOOSQ
amarYeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeess

APPENDICEBOOOOOOOOOOOOO00.00.000.00...0.00.00.00.0066

APPENDIX A. Formative Research....................66
Focus Group Questions................66
Interview Questions..................66
Formative Questionnaire..............68
Formative Questionnaire Results......73
APPENDIX B. Evaluation Research...................74
Evaluation Questionnaire.............74
It” malysiSOOOOOOOO0.0.00000000000079
Independent Variables.............79
Production Components.............79
Dependent Variables...............So
Evaluation Questionnaire
R‘tion‘1.000000000000.0.0.000000081
COding sch“.........OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO‘
3" D‘t‘OOOOOOOOOOOOO00.00.00.000000092
APPENDI! Ce scriptOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.COO...0.....‘09‘

BIBLIOGMP“.OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO0.0.0.000000000000111

B-le

3.2 e

8.3 e

8.4 e

B-Se

8.7 e

LIST OF TABLES
Page

Means of Affective Questionnaire Items..........46

Percentage of Correct and Incorrect Responses
for Cognitive Questionnaire Items...............47

Means of Behavioral Questionnaire Items.........47
Means of Production Components..................48

Questionnaire Items Focusing on Choice of

Hed1WOOOCOO..0...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO00......‘9

Frequencies of Demographic Questionnaire Items..51
Intervening Variables and Differences in
Respondent's Affective, Cognitive and

BQh‘Vioral mango...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO0.0.0.55

Means and Frequencies of Questionnaire
Iten81-1°C....O...0.00.0000...0.0.00.0000000092

Frequencies and Means of Production Components
It“: 2°.-201.00000000000.0.0.000000000000000092

Frequencies of Questionnaire Item 21...........92

Frequencies and Means of Questionnaire
It“! 23-2‘0...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO0.0......0.093

Means, Frequencies, F-Ratio, and F-Probability.
of Behavioral Questionnaire Items...............93

Means, Frequencies, F-Ratio and F-Probability
of Cognitive Questionnaire Items................94

Means, Frequencies, F-Ratio and F-Probability
of Cognitive Questionnaire Items................94

xi

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Michigan is a large and diverse state with fourteen
percent of its' population over sixty years old (Anonymous,
1987). Every day legislation is passed that directly
affects this fourteen percent of the population: however,
few senior citizens are actively involved in the
legislative process. Since the elderly are often victims of
poverty and poor health (National Council on Aging, 1981)
and much legislation directly affects their well-being and
independence, law-makers have become compelled to try to
find ways to motivate this population sector to make their
feelings known. More and more concerted efforts are being
made to draw this senior population into the mainstream of
political activity.

While Michigan can boast of advancement in many areas,
there is a disparity in economic growth between the
northern and southern sectors of the state. Not only does
northern Michigan, much of which is referred to as the
Upper Peninsula, have two percent more households below the

1

poverty level than the rest of the state, it also has three
percent more seniors and seven percent more households
headed by citisens sixty-five years or older (Anonymous,
1987). Over the years, residents from northern Michigan
have often felt alienated from the economic pulse of
southern Michigan. With this lack of economic development,
rural lifestyle and sparse inhabitation, seniors living in
these northern districts need, more than ever, to be
encouraged to make their voices heard.

Social science research has shown that the media can
sometimes influence thinking and behavior. For seniors to
become involved in state and local affairs, messages need
to be sent, stressing seniorsI value to society and
informing this population sector of avenues available to
them for expressing their opinions and concerns. These
messages should: a) inform seniors how legislation is
passed and explain how and where the general public can
have an input, b) motivate seniors to become involved, and
c) give them specific "tools" to aid them in acting out the
desired behavior (e.g., taking part in public hearings).

The researcher conducted substantial formative
research to find out more about seniorsI media habits and
media preferences, and most of the studies agreed that I
television, above all other media, would most effectivly
inform, motivate and demonstrate senior involvement.

Television is one of the dominant sources of information,

entertainment and companionship for seniors (Rubey, 1980).
Therefore, this electronic medium, with its superior
demonstration and illustration characteristics, was chosen
to carry the message: television could show and tell how
involvement could be achieved, and was ideal for helping
viewers identify with role models.

In view of the basic need for involving seniors from
northern Michigan in Michigan's legislative arena, and the
proposed solution of trying to inform and motivate this
population sector, this study looks at how a variety of
political subject matter was innovatively incorporated into
an educational video in such a way that the content
increased viewers' feelings of confidence and desire to

become involved.

CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

Seniors in northern Michigan need to become more
involved in state and local issues and need to be exposed
to messages that encourage and motivate in this direction.
numerous studies and experiments have pointed to basic
design principles that increase message impact on older
audiences. Some studies have also identified the media
habits and content preferences of this group which help to
tailor messages specifically to fit the lifestyle and
tastes of older audiences.

According to Robert Kubey's (1980) extensive research
focusing on the aging and their interaction with the media,
television was indeed found to be the most popular mass
medium among seniors, and television viewing was found to
increase with age and was often positively correlated with
low income. Since the target audience of this project is
seniors and a large proportion of them are lower income
persons, Rubey's findings seemed particularly relevant to
this project. Bersey, Glass and Crocker (1984) found that
besides television, newspapers were a popular medium with

4

the elderly: and according to the National Council on
Aging, multiple media channels, coupled with interpersonal
communication, should be used when trying to reach senior
citizens (Singnorielli, 1983). This research indicates
that television is the best medium with which to reach the
elderly, but that the use of multiple media channels will
strengthen the messages! influence on viewers. As a result
of these findings, the researcher decided to present the
target audience with information in printed booklets, as a
supplement to the main television program.

In regards to types of programs of interest to
seniors, numerous studies identified specific subject areas
and production formats that appealed to this segment of the
population. Baran, Briley, Gillham, Foshko and White
(1984) conducted a needs assessment of older adults in an
effort to come up with guidelines for producing effective
nutrition programs and found that informational and factual
documentaries were the preferred program formats. Kubey
(1980) found that retired people did not necessarily turn
to television for relaxation after a hard day!s work and
probably for that reason, favored informational programs
and documentaries. In addition, he found that other
preferred televison formats were quis programs and
travelogues, while detective dramas, love stories and
commercials were less popular program types. Baran et. al.

(1984) also discovered that seniors preferred variety in

location and narrators, and that characters, along with
music, were found to be important production elements to
the older viewing public. These findings seemed relevant
to this project in view of production design decisions.
While focusing on content and program formats that
appeal to seniors is important, research has shown that
there is also little quality programming presenting seniors
as non-stereotypic, positive and active members of
society. Studies have emphasized the importance of
producers incorporating positive elderly role models into
their programs in producing messages for and about
seniors. While the past two years have seen major
television networks incorporate a few programs featuring
seniors (e.g. Golden Girls), a number of studies focusing
on the portrayal of older Americans found that only seven
percent of advertisements aired on network television
featured elderly characters, while older Americans make up
twelve percent of the total population (Swayne 5 Greco,
1987). Another study found that older women are usually
presented as having less powerful positions than older men
and were frequently portrayed quite negatively
(Singnorielli, 1983). Guidelines set up by the National
Council on Aging encouraged producers to make every effort
to portray the elderly as both a significant political
force and as personalities rather than stereotypes (Davis,

1980). As a result of these studies and guidelines, this

project was produced with non-stereotypic characters: for
example, the leading cartoon character was female and
positive role models were comprised of both genders.
Producing a program that presents seniors as politically
active not only meets the needs of the target audience, but
also contributes to the overall body of quality material
for and about the elderly.

A number of studies conducted by the Open University
in Britain also established a strong case for using
television. Particularly relevant to the design of this
production were the unique characteristics of television
and video cassettes identified in these studies. Although
research has shown television to be the most popular medium
in reaching senior citizens, the cost of producing a video
tape is substantial. Nevertheless, after taking into
consideration television!s unique instructional
characteristics, the researcher, together with production
and content experts, agreed on the design of a video
program. The following characteristics of television and
video, gathered through a review of the literature, proved
of particular relevance to the design of this program:

a) The television medium can give viewers the
vicarious experience of a field visit by providing a
comprehensive visual context for certain phenomena

(Bates, 1979). In describing the legislative process,

it was important to introduce viewers to the context
within which laws were passed and bills debated (e.g.,
the Senate Chambers).

b) The television medium can bring viewers primary
resource material used to demonstrate "real world"
situations, where visualisation of the application of
learned principles allows viewers to understand
abstract principles more fully (Bates, 1979). In the
design of the program, the law-making process was
explained and an actual case of a law recently passed
helped viewers to visualize and therefore understand
the application of legislative theory.

c) The television medium can change viewers! attitudes
by presenting material in a unique, creative and novel
way or from an unfamiliar viewpoint. This medium can
also allow viewers to identify closely with someone in
the program who overcomes certain problems by applying
the principles presented in the program (Bates, 1979).
These characteristics were deemed very relevant and a
character was included in the program, who was applying
the very principles of involvement advocated in the
program. This character was also presented in a unique
way, through digital animation, and it was hoped that
viewers would identify closely with the experiences of
the character. Additionally, active seniors were

interviewed and clips were included in the program,

with the intent of causing viewers to identify with
these role models.

d) The television medium can explain and demonstrate
practical activities that viewers are to emulate.

This characteristic was deemed especially relevant
since the final goal of the program was to change
viewer behavior by giving examples of practical ways of
getting involved (e.g., attending public hearings).

e) Video cassettes provide viewers with a greater
amount of control than broadcasts because of their
"interactive control characteristics" (Brown, 1983).
Video cassettes allow viewers the versatility of
stopping, starting, forwarding and rewinding the tape
at whim, as well as giving viewers the freedom of
watching the program numerous times. Since the program
was designed primarily for senior citizens regularly
attending senior centers, these control characteristics
suited the intended viewing environment.

Consideration of these broadcast and videotape
characteristics are used continuously in designing courses
at the Open University, and many of the aforementioned
qualities proved to be relevant in deciding to produce this

video message to motivate seniors in northern Michigan.

10

SUMMARY

There is a need for seniors in Northern Michigan to
become involved in government activities. Through a review
of the literature, it became apparent that television and
more specifically, a video cassette, was the most
appropriate medium for reaching the elderly and for
informing, illustrating, motivating and changing the
attitudes of the target audience. A number of studies also
illustrated that programs designed for the elderly should
be presented in a news or informational format and that
programs presenting older Americans as active, educated,
capable, and respected members of society were needed to
increase the general storehouse of quality programming for

and about senior citizens.

CHAPTER III

METHOD

In designing a message motivating older citizens in
northern Michigan to become more involved in the mainstream
of political activity, it was decided that a video program
would be the most suitable medium. This program was
designed with three general goals in mind: a) to inform
viewers of how the legislative process works, b) to
motivate viewers by providing positive role models of
active seniors, and c) to illustrate in practical ways, how
seniors could make their feelings and opinions known to
their representatives.

Instructional media planners most often combine their
creativity with systematic research. In producing this
program, formative research was conducted to assess the
baseline knowledge of the target audience, to discover
their psychographics and demographics and to find out what
political issues were of importance to them. This
information was subsequently used in the formation of
measurable objectives for the program.

11

12

The videotape was eventually designed with
consideration of the principles regarding format and
content revealed through the literature review, with the
findings from the formative research, and with the input of
content and production experts.

Lastly, the program!s effectiveness was measured by an
in-depth analysis of the impact of the program on its
target audience. These three research stages, formative,
production and evaluation research, are discussed in detail
in the following sections, especially in regards to the

method of data collection employed.

PORMATIVE EVALUATION

In designing this educational video, it was important
to fully understand the target audience for whom the
program was being designed. Only an accurate understanding
of the intended viewers! psychographics and demographics
along with an understanding of their entry level knowledge
could ensure that the program would actually motivate them.

Under ideal research conditions, the values and
lifestyle of the target audience are studied. A good
sampling method is decided on (usually a variety of

non-probablity and probability samples) in order to get a

13

representative cross section of the audience. Once the
sample has been determined, the researcher gathers
pertinent imformation through a variety of methods,
namely: small group discussions, interviewing,
observation, word association tests, role playing, echo
techniques, cognitive response measures, decision process
models, trade-off analysis and cojoint measurment and
perceptual mapping or positioning (Solomon, 1979).
Researchers usually use a triangulation of research methods
since each method has its own bias. The formative data for
this project was collected through questionnaires,
interviews and focus group discussions. In order to set
measurable objectives and plan the program content, the
researcher had three main concerns: 1) trying to discover
what political issues were of importance to senior
citizens. This would allow the producer to include
material in the program of particular interest to the
target audience: 2) finding out what initially prompted
already active seniors in getting involved in local and
state political events, and 3) inquiring about what they
felt would encourage other senior citizens to become more
involved. The second and third findings would aid the
producer in the design of instructional and persuasive

appeals for the program.

14

The questionnaire was made up of seven openFended and
thirteen close-ended items, comprised of true and false
statements and Likert scale items (see Appendix A). The
questionnaire was administered on Senior Power Day, a
large, state-wide, annual senior citizens! gathering.
Respondents were self-selected and most of the sample was
comprised of seniors from northern Michigan attending the
gathering. Since these respondents were obviously more
actively involved in government (than their contemporaries
who did not attend the function) the researcher was
interested in finding out what their baseline knowledge
about the legislative process was, assuming that less
involved seniors would also know less. The findings would
later aid the producer and content experts in deciding on
the degree of detail needed in covering legislative theory
in the program.

Questionnaire items also focused on why these seniors
attended Senior Power Day and what parts of the day they
enjoyed most and why. The answers to these items, it was
hoped, would aid the producer in presenting aspects of
Senior Power Day, attractive to an older audience, in the

hope of increasing senior motivation to get involved.

15

Interline

Five interviews were conducted on Senior Power Day.
Because of the open-ended flexibility of an interview
situation and the possibility of rephrasing questions,
probing and being able to ask for more in-depth
explanations, the researcher felt she would get further
insight into the extent and motivation for senior
involvement. The interviews were held between special
sessions in a public lounge, and each one was videotaped.
All the interviewees were senior citizens from Petoskey
Senior Center, in northern Michigan, and volunteered
themselves, after being invited to be interviewed by their
group leader. Some of the interview clips were eventually
used in the program. (See Appendix A for individual

interview questions.)

00 EC“

Pre-testing of individual program segments is often
carried out by formative researchers, in an effort to find
out if production components have the desired effects on
the target audience. At Television Ontario (TVO), for
example, formative evaluation is structured through careful

needs assessments of target audiences before rough pilot

16

programs are shot and edited. These pilots are carefully
tested on representative samples of the target audience and
message modifications are made before the final program
productions (Gillie 8 Nickerson, 1981). TVO evaluation
sessions are made up of four parts: "an introduction, a
screening or reading of the document, an evaluation
questionnaire and a group discussion," (Parsons 8 Lamire,
p.9).

For this project, the beginning of the program was
shot and roughly edited together and a pilot segment was
shown to a non-representative sample of twenty senior
citizens. These seniors resided at a retirement home in
Lansing, southern Michigan, and were shown a segment of the
program which was about two minutes in length. After the
screening, a group discussion ensued in which participants
gave their response to the program segment. It was assumed
that this pre-test would aid the producer in finding out if
the content, format and technical quality of the pilot were

conducive for an audience of older adults.

PRODUCTION DESIGN RESEARCH

During the pre-production stages, the producer
consulted with various subject and production experts and

conducted an informal literature review of instructional

17

materials previously used to teach people about the
legislative process. During production meetings, findings
from the formative research were discussed in light of
planning the program content. The target audience!s
entry-level knowledge about the legislative process helped
content experts and the producer to decide how complex and
detailed the legislative theory should be presented.

For example, it was decided that a flow chart with
animated arrows and enlargements of sections of the chart
at certain stages of the narration, would enhance the
instructional effectiveness of the program. After meeting
with production experts, this idea took on a completely
different shape. Of course, budgetary constraints also
influenced the pre-production stage in regards to
production components, such as the digital animation, that

were included in the program.

EVALUATION RESEARCH

The most useful measure of a program!s effectiveness
is to have it evaluated by its target audience. Producers
however, have to deal with many smaller "target audiences"
(e.g., clients, funding agencies, networks) as well. These
gatekeepers have far greater power and control over the

form and content of messages than the final program

18

viewers, yet the producer!s end goal, is to affect the

viewers, not the gatekeepers, in the most positive and

conducive way.

W

In order to test the impact of the video on its target
audience, it was decided to use a questionnare as the test
instrument. The questionnaire was made up of thirty-one
items comprised into five sections: a) questions testing
affective objectives, b) questions testing cognitive
objectives, c) questions testing behavioural objectives,

d) questions testing the over-all appeal of certain program
segments and lastly, e) questions aimed at gathering
demographic information.

Questions testing affective objectives were made up of
nine items which were constructed on the Likert scale.
These responses were coded on a scale from five (5) to one
(1), with "strongly agree" corresponding to the highest

score (5), and "strongly disagree" corresponding to the

lowest score (1).

19

Example: Q.1. After viewing BRIDGING, I feel more
confident about getting involved in local and state
government issues

___strongly agree ___agree ___neutral

disagree strongly disagree

Behavioral items were designed to elicit "yes", "no",
or "not sure" responses and were coded on a scale of one
(1) to three (3), with "yes" corresponding to the highest

score (3) and "no" corresponding to the lowest score (1).

Example: After viewing BRIDGING, do you feel it is
important for seniors all over Michigan to become more
united?

yes not sure no

The cognitive items on the questionnaire were of a
"true" and "false" nature and respondents were asked to
respond to each statement by indicating whether the
statement was "true", "false" or whether they were simply
"not sure". Every correct answer was assigned a one (1),
and every incorrect and incomplete answer was assigned a

zero (0).

Example: A bill can be introduced into either the

 

523;! 0r £39521-

Lastly, respondents were asked to rate production
characteristics of the program by giving each segment a
score from plus three (+3) to minus three (-3) with plus
three signifying the highest score and minus three
signifying the lowest score.

Example: liked neutral disliked
very much very much
+3 +2 +1 0 -l -2 -3
Music

Demographic items were placed at the end of the
questionnaire and entailed questions regarding the age,
gender and education of respondents, as well as the number
of years they attended a Senior Center, their living

situation and whether the respondent had ever attended

Senior Power Day.

Example: How long have you been coming to this Senior

Center?

less than 1 year 1 - 2 years

2.5 - 8 ’03:! 4.5 - 6 ’08:!

over 6 years

21

Sample

A sample of 39 seniors in northern Michigan was
selected for evaluation of the program. Although not a
random sample, the researcher strongly felt that
respondents were similar to the target audience envisioned
for the program: most of the respondents regularly attended
senior centers and all the respondents were senior
residents of northern Michigan. Three senior centers took
part in the program evaluation: Gaylord Senior Center,
Central Lake Senior Center and Petoskey Senior Center. In
order to get a more diverse sample of older adults in the
Upper Peninsula, the video was additionally shown to a
women!s interest group in Gaylord and a retired couple in
Sault St. Marie. Viewing environments differed from group
to group. The retired couple watched the program
undisturbed in their living room. The women!s interest
group viewed the program in a quiet conference room.
Respondents from the Gaylord Senior Center viewed the
program in a large cafeteria, and were slightly distracted
by some card games being played at the opposite end of the
hall. Respondents from Central Lake watched the program in
a small cafeteria and noise from maintenance work being‘
done in another part of the building proved to be slightly

distracting. Finally, respondents from the Petoskey Senior

22

Center viewed the program in a small television lounge and

were not distracted at all.

Procedures

The program was shown before and after lunch at each
senior center. Before the program was shown to
respondents, a brief statement was made by the researcher
regarding the subject of the video and the program length.
It was also pointed out that each respondent would be asked
to fill out a brief questionnaire, giving their response to
the program. After the program was shown, respondents were
given the questionnaire and asked to fill it out. The exact
same procedures were followed when the program was shown to

the two smaller groups.

All thirty-one questionnaire items were coded and
frequency measures were obtained for each item. For some
items, mean scores and standard deviations were calculated
and certain sections were combined by collapsing the data

into composite means. Unanswered questions were not

23

figured into the means and were simply listed as "missing
cases".

Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Tukey!s test were
conducted to test whether six intervening variables (age,
gender, length of attendance at the senior center, previous
attendance at Senior Power Day, living situation and
education) were related to the outcome of the cognitive,
affective and the intended behavioral portions of the
questionnaire. Also, respondents were asked if they had
ever been involved in a group dealing mainly with senior
citizen issues and if yes, through what mass media or
inter-personal channels they had heard about the group.
This question was intended to find out how seniors are
encouraged to become active and involved. It was assumed
that a mix of both mass media and interpersonal
communication is necessary to motivate and change people!s

behavior.

SUMMARY

As with all productions, the pro-planning stage is
divided into two research branches, namely formative and
production research while post-production is often

comprised of some form of program evaluation research.

24

In formative research, the researcher tried to
discover media preferences and entry-level knowledge as
well as psychographic and demographic characteristics of
the target audience. The findings of this research would
eventually aid the producer in designing a message
specifically tailored to the needs, thought patterns and
value system of the target audience. This information was
collected through self-administered questionnaires,
interviews and focus group discussions.

During the production research stage, consultation
with content experts and meetings with production experts
gave the producer valuable insight into the possible form
and content of the program.

During the post-production stage, the program was.
evaluated by analyzing its impact on the target audience.
To accomplish this, the program was screened and a
questionnaire was administered. This summative evaluation

would reveal how well the program fulfilled its objectives.

CHAPTER IV

RESULTS

The findings from the pre-production research helped
the producer analyze the specific needs of the target
audience in order to design and modify program components
to fit those needs. Upon program completion, evaluation
research was conducted on the target audience to test
whether their needs, as discovered through formative

research, were actually met.

PORMATIVE RESEARCH RESULTS

Questionnaire Results

Results of formative research, carried out through use
of a questionnaire, aided greatly in the choice of content
for the video produced.

The cognitive section of the questionnaire was
comprised of various true and false statements about the
legislative process and respondents were asked to state
whether these statements were correct or incorrect.

Although the researcher encouraged respondents to complete
all items, this section was left blank on most of the
surveys. As a result, the producer assumed that
respondents were not familiar with legislative theory in
regards to how bills pass through various arms of the
legislature before they become law. As a result, this
theoretical part of the program content was covered on a
very elementary level. It was also decided that most of
the complex procedures in law-making would be covered in
the supplemental booklet provided to all viewers after the
program was screened.

In regards to believing that voicing their opinions on
Senior Power Day would make a difference, forty percent of
respondents believed that it would make a difference while
sixty percent of the respondents remained neutral. This
finding led the producer to focus less attention on Senior
Power Day in the program, and to focus more attention on
how seniors could become involved through other activities
in their communities (e.g., attending public hearings or
taking part in the senior intern program).

On being asked whether seniors felt it was important
for other seniors to get involved in government, forty
percent of the respondents strongly agreed while fifty
percent agreed and only ten percent felt neutral. This
finding reinforced previous knowledge about the target

audience and enabled the producer and script-writer to

27

further stress the importance of seniors! involvement in
government.

When asked whether they felt that their state senator
cared about their needs, eighty percent of the respondents
agreed while only twenty percent remained neutral: there
were no negative responses. This finding allowed the
producer to design various transitional segments using one
of the senators from northern Michigan as on-camera
narrator. Since the senator proved to be a positive and
credible representative in the eyes of the target audience,
his presence could be assumed to increase the overall
appeal of the program.

The open ended items received a variety of responses.
On being asked what they enjoyed the most about Senior
Power Day, respondents stated that they enjoyed the main
session with the keynote address, the public hearings, the
reunion with old friends and an opportunity to make the
government aware of their needs. On being asked why they
enjoyed these activities the most, respondents stated that
they liked being given the chance to hear about new issues
and ideas affecting seniors in their own district as well
as across the state. Some of these answers were directly
incorporated into the program script as reasons for seniors
to attend Senior Power Day.

In order to get a better understanding about what

avenues senior citizens felt were open to them for

expressing their opinions on government issues, one
open-ended question asked: "Now could you make your
feelings about a specific issue known to your state
government?" some responses were: contacting legislators,
talking to representatives and senators who visited senior
centers, writing respresentatives and joining organizations
that work for seniors. All but the last response, together
with suggestions from content experts, were incorporated
into the program script as ways for seniors to make their
feelings and opinions known to their represenatitives.

In addressing content regarding how a bill is passed,
the researcher decided to try to identify specific bills of
interest to senior citizens to achieve relevance in
choosing an example for use in the video. The question
asked: "What law that was passed in the past two years has
greatly affected your life?" Responses incorporated
seatbelt laws, federal cuts in social programs and laws
concerning health care (e.g., Medicare and Medicaid). These
specific laws were of obvious interest to the target
audience, and the final program contained an example of two
laws which were similar to those stated by respondents.

One of the laws explained in the program was geared
specifically to seniors (shared housing plan) while the
second law, which was used as a case study, dealt with the

speed limit law.

1mm

Respondents were asked how they first got involved in
government at the local level. The responses touched upon
the need for senior citizens to become involved with people
on a regular basis and the need to have a daily/weekly
routine: these needs were met by respondents taking part in
community activities and attending senior centers. One
respondent, who became physically disabled late in life,
used these external activities to overcome a major
depression. Another respondent became actively involved in
local issues after his wife became a victim of Alzheimer
disease and he discovered that victims of terminal
illnesses needed to get recognition in the national
healthcare bill currently under consideration. Other
interviewees felt a need to make their skills available to
seniors at the senior centers and got involved in senior
programs for that reason. These responses were all included
in the program in the form of short interview clips. The
producer assumed that short "testimonials" from senior
peers would lend credibility to the program and increase
senior motivation and involvement.

From the different data collection methods, certain
patterns became evident and a great deal of overlap was

discovered regarding issues of importance to the elderly.

30

From the findings, both general and specific needs of the
target audience became obvious and it was the specific
needs that were used in determining the affective,
cognitive, and intended behavioral objectives for the

program.

P o r Ob ec ves as a Res t o the Format ve ese rc

Affective Objectives

After viewing the program, viewers will:

1. feel a sense of pride in their state (especially the
Upper Peninsula)

2. feel motivated to get involved in the political process

3. feel a sense of solidarity with seniors presented in
the video as well as with seniors in their own
community

4. feel capable of getting involved in government

5. feel like respected and valuable members of society

6. feel that they can make a difference in society: and

7. feel a sense of trust in their representative!s sincere

interest in their well being.

31
Cognitive Objectives

After viewing the program, viewers will:
1. know how an idea is formulated into a bill
2. know how a bill travels through the legislative process
3. know how to get involved in government, by:
attending public hearings
writing letters
joining advocacy groups
being a senior intern
attending Senior Power Day
4. know how to get in contact with an elected official or
representative
5. know that law-making has both formal and informal
aspects
6. know how building bridges is similar to making laws
7. know that there are already senior citizens actively

involved in the government process.

Behavioral Objectives

After viewing the program, viewers will exhibit a positive

intention to:

1. get involved in a senior citizens interest group

2. attend Senior Power Day

3. become united with seniors from across the state.

32

PRODUCTION RESEARCH RESULTS

Pre-production meetings with content, production, and
regional experts, resulted in the program being designed in
a more effective way. It is usually in these production
meetings that producers make major program decisions. The
producer met with three different groups of experts, as
well as with the executive producer of the program and a

musical consultant.

Meetings with Regional Experts

The producer met with experts on northern Michigan
who shared their insight regarding some of the
psychographics of the target audience. It was suggested
that the program include some scenery from northern
Michigan in order to increase the target audience!s feeling
of pride in their region. Since northern and southern
Michigan are two separate Peninsulas, it was suggested that
the Mackinac Bridge, connecting the two regions, should in
some way be included in the program. The Bridge would_not
only act as an important unifying symbol for the state, but
would additionally also strike a deep chord in the minds
and memories of the target audience. As a result of these

suggestions, the producer used the Bridge as a recurring

33

theme throughout the program and named the program
Brigglng. The beginning of the program was designed as a,
visual montage with familiar scenes from Northern Michigan,
which culminated with the bridge. The Senator was first
introduced into the program at the bridge. Further, the
idea of a bridge served as a useful metaphor, describing
the law making process (e.g., laws need bills just as
bridges need blueprints: a bridge and a law both symbolize
a union of different entities, the bridge of two shores,
the law of different points of view).

Subsequent suggestions from regional experts also
affected the choice of narrator for the program. It was
assumed that a familiar voice would lend both appeal and
credibility to the program. As a result, a public
broadcaster from northern Michigan delivered the voice-over
narration.

Lastly, regional experts offered various suggestions
about the wording used in the script, with the intent of
having the copy appear as close to northern Michigan speech
patterns as possible. As a result, the script was
rewritten and edited numerous times, before the narration

was finally recorded.

34

Meet o e

The producer met several times with content experts
regarding the legislative theory included in the program.
Suggestions were made regarding correct terminology,
differences in "textbook" and "practical" law-making, and
possible laws that could appropriately be used as case
studies in the program. These experts also helped the
producer to plan the production schedule and made
suggestions for program modifications after seeing the
rough edit.

In many ways, these content experts became program
gatekeepers because the producer was forced to design the
program in order to match their understanding of the
"perceived" needs of the target audience. Since these
experts also happened to be funding the program, the
producer had to periodically negotiate and "bargain" when
she felt that their suggestions were not in the best
interest of the target audience, or when suggestions were
not conducive to the televison medium.

As a result of these planning sessions, the Speed
Limit Law and the Shared Rousing Law were used as case
studies in the program. Also, the script-writer greatly
simplified the explanations on legislative theory. And,
following further suggestions from experts, the program

covered some of the informal, behind-the-scenes activities

35

of law makers. This "informal" section was designed with
the intention of dissuading viewers from the notion that
law-making was complex, formal and inaccessible. By
including footage of spontaneous encounters in hallways,
breakfast meetings and other behind-the-scenes events, it
was hoped that the viewer would feel less intimidated by
the government and more confident about getting involved.
As a result of these suggestions, a segment of the program
dealt with the informalities of law-making and the producer
included some footage from humorous committee sessions to

further lighten this section of the program.

Mgetings with Production Erperts

Since most educational programs reinforce previously
covered material through the use of specially designed
graphics or flow charts, the producer felt that a flow
chart, mapping the course of a bill through the various
legislative branches, would help to simplify the
educational program content for viewers. After meeting
with production experts and evaluating the costs of y
producing a flow chart with some animation, an alternate,
cheaper solution was found. As a result of various options
presented by digital animation experts, the producer

decided to experiment with a digitally animated cartoon

36

segment explaining the passage of a bill by using cartoon
characters. The cartoon segment went through numerous
design phases and both the content and regional experts
shared their impressions regarding the different
characterizations. In the end, eight partially animated
cartoon "scenarios" were designed and incorporated into the
program. Since no secondary literature dealing with
seniors! reactions to cartoons was available, the producer
took a professional risk in the inclusion of this
experimental animated material.

During the post-production stage of the project,
production experts were consulted regarding the pacing,
sequencing, and editing of the program. As a result of
these meetings, the editing was "fine-tuned" and the pacing
of the program was increased. Lastly, audio experts
assisted in post-production audio !sweetening! and in the

recording of the music used for the program.

M e xecutive od

The executive producer and producer met periodically
throughout the pre-production, production and
post-production stages. During these meetings, suggestions
from content, production and regional experts were

evaluated and decisions were made regarding the inclusion

37

or exclusion of content and format suggestions. The
executive producer and the producer also met with the
funders of the program in order to discuss and agree on the
program proposal and budget. As a result of these
meetings, the target audience for the program was more
narrowly defined and special financial provisions were made
to include the digitally animated cartoon segment. Another
one of these meetings, dealing with choice of music for the
program, resulted in the hiring of a music consultant to
compose original music for the program.

The design of many of the program components was
directly influenced by the suggestions made by experts and
consultants. A producer!s role is often to act as a
conduit between the target audience and the information
they presumably need. With the findings from the
production research, the producer designed the following

program segments, focusing exclusively on form and content:

0 e V s a ont

A peaceful program opening was designed to capture'
viewers! interest with panoramic, aerial footage of the
Upper Peninsula, with a special focus on the Mackinac

Bridge. According to Rubey (1980), older adults sighted

38

travelogues as a preferred program type and this panoramic
opening, accompanied by pastoral flute and piano music, was
aimed at attracting attention, as well as keeping viewers!

interest in regards to the information following.

V s o d

The Mackinac Bridge is one of Michigan!s most prized
symbols and, especially to the people living in the Upper
Peninsula, marks a very important union with the Lower
Peninsula. The bridge was used as a metaphor for making
laws. A bridge needs plans and blueprints before it is
constructed and becomes a connection between two distant
shores. Likewise, a law needs a "plan" and serves to
connect different points of view in society. A bill,
therefore, becomes the blueprint of the law and needs to be
amended and improved upon before it is finally "built" or
becomes law. The Mackinac Bridge is a familiar sight to
all seniors in the Upper Peninsula, and the metaphor, it
was assumed, would be easily remembered and would help
viewers understand in very simple terms, the relationship
of laws to bills. The early construction of the bridge was
depicted with old photographs and an electronic wipe
pattern and was designed to create a sense of nostalgia by

bringing back proud memories.

39

r t ec e O

Baran et al. (1984) found that preferred program
components enjoyed by older adults were "variety in
locations, narrators, characters and music." In order to
keep viewers! interest, a few transitions between program
segments were made with short monologues by an elected
official. Not only did these segments break up the
monotony of the voice-over narration, but the transitions
served to introduce the audience to one of the key
"characters" within the government context being

scrutinized.

Le s at ve s

In order to make the government appear more accessible
in the minds of the target audience, footage of impromptu
meetings, talks and breakfast gatherings with constituents
and representatives were incorporated into the program to
show both the formal and informal aspects of lawmaking.
After the theory of lawmaking was explained, an example was
given of an actual bill going through the legislative
stages, before being passed. This example was designed to
solidify the theoretical process of lawmaking in the

viewers! minds.

40

Wheaten

Interview clips of seniors from the Upper Peninsula
were interspersed between segments to "liven up" the
content and to further motivate the audience by peers
expressing concern about issues facing seniors across
Michigan. The interviewees also provided positive images
of active and involved seniors, a strong positive

reinforcement for elderly viewers lacking self-confidence

or motivation.

Muglg

Various styles of music were used to increase the
entertainment appeal of the program by creating a
background for both the visuals and voice-over narration.
The music was varied in pace and different instruments
helped to provide different "timbres" for the program.

During the opening, a flute and piano accompanied the
panoramic footage of the Upper Peninsula and conveyed an
"uplifting" mood. During the cartoon segment, the flute
played lighthearted, fast-paced music to create a sense of
cheerfulness to accompany the characters. The segment
showing the informal aspects of lawmaking was accompanied

by piano ragtime, creating an informal, relaxed and

41

familiar mood. This same ragtime was used at the end of
the program as the credits were shown, leaving the viewer

on a positive, up-beat note.

W

Throughout the cartoon section, certain key words and
phrases were inserted at the bottom or top of the screen to
aid viewers in the retention of material. These added
"visuals" also helped to break up the monotony of
periodically animated cartoon characters and signified

educational "signposts" for material that was important.

Digital nnimanion

Cartoon characters were used to help viewers
understand the theoretical aspects of the legislative
process more fully. Barbara Billsworth, the principal
character, was designed to portray an active, elderly woman
in the midst of a community representing all age groups.
Barbara Billsworth was purposely created as a positive,
non-stereotypic image of an older woman. Actual footage of
scenes within the legislature were interspersed throughout

the digital animation, showing viewers the "real"

42

context within which this cartoon character was supposed to

exist.

massing

The program segments were sequenced with a basic
instructional philosophy in mind: the viewer was first
presented with familiar information to motivate and
increase overall confidence at being able to understand.
This "foundation" of viewer confidence was followed by

segments of new material.

racing

The program pace varied with the information conveyed
and the sequencing was designed to create a variation in
pace in order to keep the attention and interest of the
target audience. Most of the editing was moderately
paced. The voice-over portions of the script varied
between a newscast delivery and a slower, more explanatory
delivery, depending on the accompanying footage. The music
also helped to give the program variety in its pace.

(The program script is provided in Appendix C.)

43
Pre-test Results

Even though the pre-testing of a program segment was
conducted in the formative research stage, it was decided
that the findings should be included after the program
design was discussed, giving the reader the opportunity of
making sense of the results and program modifications.

The segment which was used for the pre-test was two
minutes in length. Old photographs of the construction of
the Mackinac Bridge were framed with an electronic wipe
pattern, and were edited together, forming a visual essay.

The pro-test was conducted at a retirement home in
Lansing (southern Michigan). Approximately twenty senior
residents took part in a focus group discussion after the
test program segment was screened.

Before the program was screened, the researcher
introduced herself briefly, and asked the audience to
identify what images came to mind when they heard the word
"Bridge". The responses ranged from Mackinac Bridge to
cards, coming together, teeth and the bridge of glasses.
This informal "word-association test" helped the researcher
to understand participants! psychographics and additionally
broke the ice and got respondents comfortable with talking
in front of a group. The researcher then showed the brief
program segment, and afterward, asked them some questions

(see Appendix A). These were the findings:

44

Content: the majority of the audience did not remember
the main point of the message - namely the analogy
between the bridge and laws. Everyone was too
intrigued with the graphics depicting the

development of the bridge.

Narration: the narrator!s voice was too low in
frequency and intensity. Seniors with hearing aids were
unable to understand the copy clearly. Also the
background music was too loud and some of the
respondents felt that the narration was delivered too
fast.

Visuals: the transitions between the visuals were too
fast and there was continuous narration throughout the
segment: respondents were therefore losing some of the
message because their concentration was "divided".
Lastly, all the participants liked the use of the
bridge in the video and one senior suggested using
other scenic sites of Michigan for the rest of the
message.

Credibility: the message was believed and when probed
as to why, the participants unanimously agreed that it
was because the information presented was familiar to

thsl.

45

Pacing: the pacing of the segment was too fast for the
audience to fully comprehend the message: also the
segment presented to them was probably too short, not
allowing the audience time to get "accustomed" to the

message.

Messngg Modificntionn
In response to the findings of the pre-test, the

producer changed the audio mix between the narration and
the background music, and allowed more time between the
introductory narration and the eventual analogy of the
bridge. Additionally, a narrator was chosen who had a
higher pitched voice in order that seniors with hearing
aids would be able to listen to the narration with greater
ease.

The introduction to the visual essay was made by an
elected official giving the audience some time before
having to concentrate on the voice-over narration:
additionally, the final graphic was not accompanied by
narration and all camera movement (pans, tilts and zooms)
was elimintated. In order to give the viewers some
"breathing space", a number of segments were also designed
with no voice-over narration. Natural sound-on-tape and
music were used for these transitions. Overall pacing of
the visual essay and the transitions throughout the video

were significantly slowed down.

4‘

EVALUATION RESEARCH RESULTS

It was the researcher!s intent to test whether
Bringing, an educational and motivational video designed
for senior citizens in northern Michigan, met its
cognitive, affective and behavioral objectives. This
program was shown to a sample of seniors residing in
northern Michigan, with the objective of testing whether
the program had the assumed and planned-for effect on its
target audience. Generally, the findings revealed that the
program was most successful in meeting the affective
objectives of the program.

As shown in Table 1, means for the affective
questionnaire items 1 - 10 were high. The composite mean
for this section was 4.2 out of the highest possible score
of 5.0. These findings indicate that viewers increased
their feelings of confidence, motivation and pride in their

state.

Table 1. Means of Affective Questionnaire Items (N = 39).

Mean 3.94 4.0 4.41 4.38 4.1 4.12 4.3 4.0 4.2 4.51

47

The cognitive section, comprised of items 11 - 19,
revealed variations in the knowledge increase of viewers
(Table 2).

Table 2. Percentage of Correct and Incorrect Responses for
Cognitive Questionnaire Items (N = 39).

ItOIE 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

Right 77.8 40 84.2 27 90.6 100 53.1 12.1 91.4

Wrong 22.2 60 15.8 73 9.4 0 46.9 87.9 8.6

Items 11, 13, 15, 16, and 19 revealed a high frequency of
correct answers, while items 12, 14, 17, and 18 revealed an
overall lower frequency of correct answers.

Items 23, 25, and 26 evaluated intended viewer
behavior. The composite mean for these questions was 2.6
out of a possible score of 3.0 (see Table 3).

Table 3. Means of Behavioral Questionnaire Items

(N = 39)

48

Items 20a - 20i, evaluated the production components
used in the program. As shown in Table 4, all were
evaluated positively. The composite mean for this section
was 6.3 out of the highest possible score of 7.0 .

Table 4. Means of Production Components

(N = 39)

Item Mean
(20a) music 5.67
(20b) cartoon segment 6.06
(20c) Barbara Billsworth 6.53

(20d) old photos of Bridge 6.76

(20s) segments with senator 6.14

(20f) interviews 6.4

(20g) footage of n. Michigan 6.8

(20h) narration 6.24

(20i) titles/keywords 6.12

There were two items on the questionnaire that focused

on seniors! choice of medium. Item 21 showed that 54.1
percent of all respondents at one time were involved in‘a
senior interest group. Item 22 tested whether a mass
medium or interpersonal communication, played a part in
increasing their involvement in their senior interest

group. The results showed that interpersonal communication

49

was the most frequent motivational channel for senior
involvement (8 responses). Radio and Television, together
with "Other" channels (e.g., information gathered at the
work place, the senior center or at other special interest
clubs) were the next most frequent way in which seniors
received and acted upon invitations for involvement (7
responses each). Newspapers gained the lowest frequency of
responses (5 responses). Some overlap did occur however,
since some respondents checked off multiple sources of
information (see Table 5).

Table 5. Questionnaire Items focusing on Choice of Medium.

(N = 39)
Item yes no not sure NP R/TV IP Other
21 54.1% 43.2% 2.7% -- -- -- --
22 -- -- -- 25% 35% 40% 35%

Item 24, and items 27 - 31 revealed demographic data as
well as possible intervening variables. The results for
item 24 showed that 22.2 percent of respondents attended
Senior Power Day while 77.8 percent never attended this,
annual function. Item 27, focusing on the number of years
seniors had attended senior centers, revealed that 15.2
percent had attended the center for less than a year, 3

percent had attended for one to two years, 21.2 percent had

attended for two and one half to four years, 6.1 percent
had attended for four and one half to six years and 54.5
percent had attended for over six years. Item 28 revealed
that 43.2 percent were male while 56.8 percent of
respondents were female. Item 29 focused on the age of
respondents and revealed that none were less than 50 years
of age, 10.8 percent were between the ages of 51 to 59,
21.6 percent were between the ages of 60 to 69, 56.8
percent were between the ages of 70 to 79, and 10.8 percent
were 80 years old or older. Item 30 focused on
respondent!s educational level and the results showed that
16.7 percent attended only Elementary School, 0 percent
attended only Junior High School, 50 percent Bigh School
and 33.3 percent of respondents attended College. Item 31
revealed that 30.6 percent of the respondents lived alone,
while 69.4 percent lived with someone. Lastly, the
respondents were categorized according to viewing
environment, and the results showed that 15.4 percent of
those who took part in the survey were made up of both the
retired couple and the women!s interest group, 25.6 percent
of respondents were comprised of seniors from Petoskey
Senior Center, 33.3 percent of respondents were comprised
of seniors from Central Lake Senior Center and 25.6 percent
of respondents were comprised of seniors from the Gaylord

Senior Center (See Table 6. for demographic items).

51

Table 6. Frequencies of Demographic Questionnaire Items
(N = 39)

(Attendance) <1 yr. 1-2yrs. 2.5-4yrs. 4.5-6yrs. 6+yrs

Percentage 15.2 3.0 21.2 6.1 54.5
(Gender) Female Male

Percentage 56.8 43.2

(Age) <50 51-59 60-69 70-79 80+
Percentage 0 10.8 21.6 56.8 10.8
(Education) Elem. Junior High High Sch. College
Percentage 16.7 0 50 33.3
(Living Arrangement) Alone With Someone
Percentage 30.6 69.4

(Viewing Env.) Couple/Wmn. Petoskey Cen. Lake Gaylord
Percentage 15.4 25.6 33.3 25.6
(Attend. at Senior Power Day) Attended Not Attended

Percentage 22.2 77.8

It was assumed that certain intervening variables
(gender, age, education, living arrangement, length of
attendance at a senior center, previous attendance at
Senior Power Day, and viewing environment) possibly
confounded the findings. In order to alleviate this
possibility, one-way ANOVA tests were conducted to find out
if these intervening variables affected viewer response by
calculating if differences between certain group means were
significant.

It was assumed that those seniors who had been
attending senior centers for a long time might be more
passive and less likely to get involved in government
issues than those who had perhaps lived a more independent
lifestyle and had not been associated with a senior center
for long. Since there were very few responses in each of
the categories below six years of attendance, the
researcher decided to collapse the data and combine the
responses for the "less than one year" to "six years"
categories. The analysis revealed that there were no
significant differences in any of the cognitive, affective,
or behavioral means between those respondents who had
attended senior centers for less than six years and those
who attended senior centers more than six years (Table
7).

It was also assumed that females might be more likely

to agree with becoming involved in government rather than

53

males because during the questionnaire pre-testing stage,
it was more difficult to get males to watch the program and
fill out the questionnaires. Interestingly, although males
and females did not differ significantly in regards to
affective and cognitive scores, significant differences
became apparent between behavioral composite means (items
23,25,and 26). Males scored higher on these items with a
composite mean of 2.9 out of a possible 3.0, while females
scored 2.6 (Table 7).

It was assumed from the onset that respondents living
with others might be more likely to get involved in
activities taking them outside the home, rather than those
respondents living alone. As shown in Table 7, these two
groups did not score significantly differently on cognitive
and affective items. However, those respondents who lived
with someone scored significantly higher on behavioral
items (composite mean 2.8) than those respondents who lived
alone (composite mean 2.5).

Likewise, it was assumed that those respondents with a
higher level of education might score differently on
affective items and higher on cognitive items than
respondents with lower education. The researcher decided
not to test if there were significant differences between
educational groups and intended behavior because she felt
that education was most likely not a confounding variable

in this instance. None of the three educational

54

groups scored significantly differently on effective
scores. As was expected however, there was a significant
difference between educational level and cognitive means.
Those respondents who attended college scored significantly
higher (composite mean was 6.5 out of 9.0) than respondents
who had attended nigh School (composite mean was 4.9) and
Elementary School (composite mean was 4.9). No significant
difference was found between respondents who attended nigh
School and Elementary School (Table 7).

Similarly, the analysis revealed that those
respondents who previously attended Senior Power Day scored
significantly higher on the cognitive section (composite
mean was 6.85) than those who had never attended the annual
function (composite mean was 5.14). As shown in Table 7
however, there were no significant differences between the
affective and behavioral means in regards to Senior Power
Day attendance.

And lastly, since the level of distraction varied
from session to session, it was assumed that those groups
who watched the video under quieter conditions would score
higher on the cognitive questionnaire items than
respondents who viewed the video under distracting
conditions. Suprisingly, as shown in Table 7, there was no
significant difference between the viewing conditions and

the affective, cognitive, and behavioral means.

55
Also age did not prove to be an intervening variable, as no
significant difference was found for any of the means.
Table 7. Intervening Variables and Differences in
Respondent!s Affective, Cognitive, and

Behavioral Means.

VARIABLE Difference in Difference in Difference in

Cogn. Mean Affect. Mean Beh. Mean
52:32; """""" E; """"""""" E; """""""" §22""
3;;T’;T'32; """ §§2 """""""" II """""""" II""'
;;2 """"""" Q; """"""""" £2 """""""" E3""
iii:§2?'22'222?"§3 """"""""" §2 """""""" §3""
£3522223; """" §;; """"""""" Q; """""""" ;S""
EZ;E;;';;;2;;T"'II """"""""" £2 """""""" §;;"'
€125I;;';;;T """ £3 """"""""" £3 """""""" §;""

(N = 39: Level of Significance at .05)

Summary

The formative research results revealed that
respondents: 1) possessed little knowledge of legislative
theory, 2) felt that voicing their opinions on Senior Power
Day would not make a big difference, 3) agreed that seniors
needed to get more involved in state government, 4) felt
that their representatives cared about their needs, 5)
listed numerous laws recently passed that were of interest
to them, 6) listed their favorite events on Senior Power
Day, and 7) listed practical ways in which seniors could
voice their opinions. This audience profile helped the
researcher to compile measureable affective, cognitive and
intended viewer behavioral objectives.

The production research results led the producer to
make numerous production decisions after evaluating the
advice and suggestions from content, regional and
production experts. The meetings with the regional experts
resulted in the Mackinac Bridge being used as a recurring
symbol and metaphor in the program. Also, a narrator from
northern Michigan was chosen to read the script.

Meetings with content experts resulted in the
inclusion of certain content, terminology and case studies
of previous bill in the program. Meetings with production

experts resulted in a segment of the program being

57

digitally animated and suggestions were made in regards to
"fine-tuning" the editing, music composition and audio
mix. The Executive Producer and the Producer evaluated
experts! suggestions and made decions on what information
to include and exlude. Budget meetings with program
funders and producers also resulted in the inclusion of a
digitally animated program segment. As a result of the
information gathered from different experts and the
audience profile, the program segments (opening visual
montage, visual essay of the bridge, transitions,
legislative theory, interviews, music, instructional
titles/keywords, and digital animation) were designed and
the sequencing and pacing of the program were produced
accordingly. Additionally, a short program segment was
roughly edited together and pre-tested on an audience of
older adults. This pre-test resulted in message
modifications being made to the audio mix, the narration,
and the pacing.

Lastly, the evaluation research results showed the
program!s effect on its target audience. The data analysis
revealed that there were significant differences between
males and females in regards to intended viewer behavior:
males had higher means than females and are therefore more
likely to get involved in government activities. The
analysis also revealed that those respondents who lived

with someone had significantly higher means on intended

viewer behavior items than respondents who lived alone. In
regards to cognitive differences between groups,
respondents who previously attended Senior Power Day and
resondents who had a college education, had significantly
higher means than respondents with a lower educational
level and those who had never attended Senior Power Day.

In general, affective and intended behavior composite means
were high, while cognitive items revealed a considerable

percentage of incorrect answers.

CHAPTER V

DIEQEQEIQ!

Social science research has shown that creativity in
producing mass media messages should always be coupled with
research during the pro-production, production and
post-production stages. Although some studies have shown
that invisible walls exist between researchers and creative
staff, there is evidence to show that creativity need not
be negatively limited by research. On the contrary, this
study has shown that through creative research, a message
can be positively fine-tuned to have a greater impact on
its! target audience.

In producing Bridging, the producer was able to gain
insight into the thinking and value system of the program!s
target audience. Although specific objectives were set for
senior viewers, the program had to additionally meet the
unspoken expectations of various gatekeepers (e.g.,
funders, content and regional experts). No producer ever
works in a vacuum, and this project proved to be an
excellent example of the many different audiences a
producer has to be aware of and satisfy.

Although this study effectively traced the role of the
producer and researcher in the pre-production, production
and post-production stages, it also had a number of
weaknesses that decreased its! generalizability. Even
though the researcher is confident that respondents were in
many ways representative of the target audience, the study
was evidently weakened by the lack of random sampling.

The formative and production research that was carried
out for this project increased the effectiveness of the
message. However, more in-depth research could have
affected the program!s format and content even more
positively. For example, the cartoon segment should have
been pre-tested on a representative sample of the target
audience and the findings used to increase the lucidity of
the theoretical legislative principles. Also the program
segment, presenting the visual essay of the bridge and
which was pre-tested on the target audience, was probably
too short: the pilot should have been comprised of more
program segments that tested all three objectives
(cognitive, affective and intended behaviour).
Additionally, the final program evaluation should have been
conducted with the use of a control group, in order to give
the researcher a better understanding of the program!s
effect.

A discussion after the final program screening could

have given the target audience more information while

61

hopefully providing additional motivation for them to get
involved: based on the knowledge that thinking and
behavior is most often affected by interpersonal
communication (rather than only through mass media
messages), interpersonal contact between researcher and
target audience through a discussion session, might have
increased the program!s overall effectiveness.

The evaluative portion of this project tried to
identify the impact the program had on its intended
audience. The program was designed to inform senior
citizens of the legislative process, motivate them to get
involved in local and state political activities and
provide practical ways for viewers to change their behavior
by giving specific examples of how to get involved. The
test instrument was designed to reveal the target
audiences! feelings regarding involvement and test the
impact in terms of the cognitive and intended behavior
objectives.

The target audience generally scored quite high on
affective questionnaire items, giving the researcher the
impression that their motivation and confidence level rose
as a direct result of watching the program. The program
seemingly increased most respondents! feelings about the
need to get involved, and none of the intervening variables
(gender, age, living arrangements, senior center

attendance, education and viewing environment) seemed to

confound the results. However, since the audience!s
"affective level" was not tested before the program was
shown, the results, implying an increase in the target
audience!s confidence and motivation regarding involvement,
are approximate measures. Although the researcher is
confident that the videotape did in some way change
viewer!s feelings about involvement, at least for the short
term, a more complete study would have tested the audience
before and after the screening.

Interestingly, the findings revealed that males and
seniors who live together with other people are more likely
to get involved in government, than females or seniors
living alone. The gender differences were totally
unexpected since during the pre-testing and final
administration of the questionnaire, the researcher had a
harder time convincing males to take part in the screening
sessions while females were usually more willing to
oblige. This phenomonon could possibly be explained by
taking into consideration that most of the female
respondents were socialized in a pre-feminist era and
therfore are probably less likely to feel a stong
inclination to get involved in government activities.
Future attempts to encourage seniors to take part in
political functions should probably place a special

emphasis on targeting females and seniors who live alone.

63

The overall scores for the cognitive section were
quite low, leading to the conclusion that the legislative
theory was probably not covered adequately and that the
program should have contained more repetition and possibly
more case studies. However, respondents exhibited far
greater knowledge of the legislative process on the
evaluation questionnaire items than on the formative
questionnaire items. Therefore the possibility exits that
the cognitive objectives were unrealistically high and that
respondents gin increase their knowledge of the legislative
process -- only not to the extent expected by the
researcher. However, as was suggested by a review of the
literature, viewers were given booklets containing the same
message in greater detail after each screening. Not only
will respondents be able to refer back to the booklets, but
opportunities exist for seniors to replay the videotape as
many times as needed. Nevertheless, if the program were to
be modified, more attention would have to be paid to the
pre-production research regarding the entry-level knowledge
of the target audience and the production design of the
program segments focusing on legislative principles.

In regards to the cartoon segment, viewer response was
very positive. The finding also supports the thesis that a
novel treatment of content material can be done very
effectively through use of the television medium. Although

viewers! cognitive scores were generally low, the cartoon

64

segment might not necessarily have contributed to low
cognition of the material presented: the digital animation
had considerable appeal and somewhat helped in clarifying
the legislative process (item 5, asking viewers if the
cartoon character helped them to better understand how
bills become law, had a composite mean of 4.08 out of

5.0). Further research could test a similar instructional
cartoon segment on a similar target audience with a control
group seeing a non-cartoon segment, to see if the format
alone affected viewer congnition.

Of all the program components tested (music, cartoon
segment, cartoon character, old photos of the bridge,
segments with the senator, interview clips with seniors,
opening footage of the Upper Peninsula, the narrator!s
voice and the titles) the music scored the lowest with an
overall mean of 5.67 out of 7.0. Although the volume of
the background music was considerably lower in the final
program than on the pilot segment that was pre-tested, some
seniors still complained that the music was too loud during
the screening sessions. Future research could focus on
testing the volume and intensity of backgroud music to find
an acceptable level for those seniors with hearing aids.

Since the five different screening sessions had I
differing levels of distractions, the researcher was
somewhat surprised that there were no significant

differences between the group means. One possible

explanation is that those respondents who viewed the
program under distracting conditions, made a greater effort
at concentrating on the material presented.

The researcher is confident that the program gig
positively affect the morale of the target audience.
However, one videotape is hardly ever enough for viewers to
change their behavior. Through the production of this
videotape, the needs of the target audience were beginning
to be addressed. However, an extensive, multi-media
information campaign is most probably necessary to increase
senior citizen involvment in northern Michigan. This study
looked at the very short term impact of a message. Now
that the ground is tilled, the stage is set for long range
strategies to be planned and significant efforts to be made

to meet the needs of the target audience.

SUMMARY

The conclusion of the impact study testing the effect
of nrigging, an educational video designed for senior
citizens in northern Michigan, was positive with the
affective objectives met most successfully. The behavioral
and cognitive objectives were also met, and the researcher
made numerous suggestions for future research as well as
for program and research modifications. Additionally, the

findings of the evaluation design were interpreted and

discussed.

APPENDICES

APPENDIX A

PORMATIVE EVALUATION INSTRUMENTS

G u ODS

What was this segment about? What was the main point
that was made?

Did you find it interesting? Why or why not?

Do you feel it was important or relevant to you?

How clear were the words spoken? Were you able to
understand everything clearly?

Did you notice the music? Did you like it or did you
find it distracting?

Do you believe what you saw is true?

From this segment, would you watch the whole program?
Are there things you would change in this message?
When you think of a bridge what kinds of things come to
mind?

uestions

Why did you come to Senior Power Day?

Can you name some bills or laws passed recently that
are of interest to you?

What kinds of concerns have been voiced so far?

How does one go about voicing one!s opinions on these

issues?

67

5. When did you first get involved in government?

6. What does it mean to be involved?

7. Do you feel other senior citizens should make more of
an effort to get involved?

8. What motivates you to keep involved in these
activities?

9. How could we encourage senior citizens to become more

involved in local issues?

10. When would you correspond with your representative?

PORMATIVE QUESTIONNAIRE

Dear Senior Citizen,

This short questionnaire is designed to find out how
you feel about taking part in political activities such as
today!s Senior Power Day, and to determine your
understanding of how a bill is passed in government and
subsequently becomes a law. This questionnaire will only
take a few minutes to fill out. Thank you for your kind

cooperation!

1. From which district do you come?

 

2 . BOX ‘ Female M31.

3. Age - so - so yrs.
61 - 65 yrs.

75 and above yrs.

4.

Have you ever participated in a Senior Power Day

before?

____yes ____no : if no, go on to question 45.
if yes, a) How many times?

CDC.

 

.____2 - 5 times
6 - 10 times

____10 or more times

b) What part of the day do you usually enjoy the most?

 

 

c) What makes you enjoy this part of the day the most?

 

 

Are you involved in local government in the district

from which you come? yes no (If no,

 

skip down to question #7. If yes, continue to question
#6.)

70

6. If yes, what committees, special interest groups or

other forms of local government are you involved in?

 

 

(Continue to question #8)

7. If no, what are your reasons for not getting involved

in your local government?

 

 

 

In the next section, please indicate how you feel about the
following statements, by indicating whether you strongly

agree, agree, are neutral, disagree of strongly disagree.

9. I feel that I have enough opportunities to get involved
in the local government in my district?
__strongly agree __agree __neutral __disagree

__strongly disagree

10. I feel that voicing my opinions on a day like Senior
Power Day will make a difference in how the government
deals with issues affecting senior citizens?

__strongly agree __agree __neutral __disagree

__strongly disagree

71

11. I feel it is important for senior citizens to become
actively involved in government?
__strongly agree __agree '__neutral __disagree

__strongly disagree

12. I feel that my senator cares about the needs of senior
citizens?
__strongly agree __agree __neutral __disagree

__strongly disagree

In the next section, please indicate whether each of the
statements are true or false by placing a mark next to the

appropriate response.

13. True False A bill is debated at the House and
the Senate before it sent to the

GOVBI’DOE .

14. True False Various committees are formed to
study a bill before it is sent to

the Governor.

15. True False The Governor has five days within

which to consider a bill

16.

17.

18.

19.

72

True False A committee reviewing a bill may

hold public hearings.

True False The passing of a bill is a formal

process and there is no roam for
informal meetings or emotional
verbal interchanges while it is

being reviewed.

True False Once a bill becomes a law, it takes

some time and effort to put the new
law into effect.
Would you say that senior citizens could make an
impact on specific issues being debated by your local
government? (___yes ___no __maybe :
If yes, how could you make your feelings about a

specific issue known to your state government?

 

 

 

What law, passed in the past two years, has greatly
affected your life?

 

 

Thank you very much for participating in this survey.

Enjoy the rest of the day!

73

WELL!

The Likert scale was employed to get the respondents
feelings about government issues: the frequency responses
are listed below:

a) Would you say that senior citizens in your district
receive enough attention from the local government?
36% - agree: 25%-neutral: 25%-disagree: 8%-strongly

disagree

b) Do you feel that you have enough opportunities to
get involved in local government in your district?

40% - agree: 40% - neutral: 20% - disagree

C) Do you feel that voicing your opinions on a day
like Senior Power Day will make a difference in how the
government deals with issues affecting senior citizens?

20% - strongly agree: 20% - agree: 60% - neutral

d) Do you feel it is important for senior citizens to
become actively involved in government?

40% - strongly agree: 50% - agree: 10% - neutral

e) Do you feel that your senator cares about the needs
of senior citizens?

80% - agree: 20% - neutral

APPENDIX B

74

Dear Senior Citizen,

I am the producer of BRIDGING, the program you just view-
ed. I would like you to evaluate BRIDGING, and give your
honest feedback in regards to the issues discussed in the
program. This survey is given on a strictly confidential
basis. Thank you for taking a couple of minutes to answer
the following questions:

FOR THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS, PLEASE INDICATE
HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT EACH STATEMENT BY
PLACING A CHECK ( ) NEXT TO THE RESPONSE
THAT BEST DESCRIBES YOUR FEELINGS.

1. After viewing BRIDGING, I feel more confident about getting involved in local and state
government ISSUCS.

_strongly agree ___agree _neutral _disagree _strongly disagree
2. After viewing BRIDGING, I think I would write my senator or representative and express my
feelings and opinions on current issues.

__strongly agree _agree __neutral _disagree __strongly disagree

3. While viewing BRIDGING, I felt a sense of pride in our state.
__strongly agree _agree _neutral _disagree _strongly disagree
4. While viewing BRIDGING, seeing old photographs of the construction of the bridge brought
back many memories.
_strongly agree _agree _neutral __disagree _strongly disagree
5. Barbara Billsworth, the cartoon character, helped me to better understand how bills become
law.
__strongly agree _agree _neutral _disagree __strongly disagree
6. After viewing BRIDGING, I feel that our government representatives value my opinions and

concerns.

__strongly agree _agree __neutral _disagree _strongly disagree

-1-

10.

75

. After viewing BRIDGING, I believe that my senator really wants me to get in contact with

him.

_strongly agree _agree __neutral _disagree _strongly disagree

While viewing BRIDGING, the interviews of seniors motivated me to get involved too.

__strongly agree _agree __neutral _disagree _strongly disagree

After viewing BRIDGING, I believe that there are many mix; seniors involved in local and
state government.

_strongly agree _agree _neutral _disagree __strongly disagree
After viewing BRIDGING, I feel that there should be m active seniors involved in local

and state government.

_strongly agree _agree _neutral _disagree _strongly disagree

FOR THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS, PLEASE INDICATE
WHETHER THE STATEMENTS ARE TRUE, FALSE, OR
YOU ARE NOT SURE, BY PLACING A I FOR 1111:, AN
E FOR Lam, AND AN NS FOR DUI—$111: NEXT TO

EACH STATEMENT.

11. A bill can be introduced into either the Eggs; or the m.

12. When a bill is introduced into the $911,119, a committee is set up to present the
bill to the governor.

13. If the governor chooses not to sign a bill, it can never become law.

14. If the governor mm a bill, the House and Senate can override the veto with a
letter of protest.

15. While committees are deliberating over a bill, public hearings are held for all
interested parties.

16. Senators vote on bills after they have carefully studied the committee’s
recommendations.

17. The 65 MPH. Speed Bill was an example of how bills can be 11115115355311-

18.
19.

20.

scion

file
0

21.

22.

Segments with senator

Opening sh0ts of UP

Typed information

76

Senior Interns work in the governor’s office and help with his campaign.
Building a bridge and making laws is similar -- both need a blueprim.

PLEASE RATE THE FOLLOWING PROGRAM
COMPONENTS BY INDICATING HOW MUCH
YOU LIKED OR DISLIKED THEM.

liked don’t know disliked
very much
+3 +2 + 1 0 -1 -2 -3
Music. _ _ _ __ __ __ __
Cartoon segment __ _ _ __ _ __ _
Barbara Billsworth _ __ __ _ _ __
Old photos of bridge

Interview with seniors

N arrator’s voice

Have you ever been involved in a group that was mainly interested in senior citizen
ISSUCS.

yes no IlOI sure

What prompted you to get involved with such a group?

__I read about it in the newspaper

__l heard about it on the radio or television

___I heard about it from a friend/ family member/ acquaintance

other (please specify):

 

 

I have never been involved in such a group

-3-

23.

24.

26.

7 7
Now that you have viewed BRIDGING, are you more likely to get involved in a group
that focuses on semor citizen’s issues?

yes no not sure

Have you ever participated in Senior Power Day?

yes 110 not sure

After viewing BRIDGING, do you feel it is important for seniors from across Michigan
to meet once a year, m order to make their feelings known collectively to their
rcpresentauves?

yes no IlOI SllI'C

After viewing BRIDGING, do you feel it is important for seniors all over Michigan to
become more united?

yes 110 DOI sure

And now, some final questions:

27.

28.

29.

How long have you been coming to this Senior Center?
___under one year

__1 to 2 years

__2.5 to 4 years

__4.5 to 6 years

over 6 years

What is your gender?

male ___female

Which group best describes your age?
__below 50 years

__51 to 59 years

___60 to 69 years

___70 to 79 years

___over 80 years

78

30. Which category best represents your education?
_attended Elementary school
_attended Junior High school
_attended High school

attended College

31. Which best describes your living situation?
live alone
live with someone

other (please specify):

 

Additional Comments:

 

 

THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND COOPERATION:
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

79

ITEM ANALYSIS

Independent Variables

1.

Viewing environment/Session: The different groups who
viewed the video were in different environments and the
noise level as well as external distractions varied
from one session to the next.

Gender (Item 28)

Age (Item 29)

Education (Item 30)

Living Situation (Item 31)

Previous attendance at Senior Power Day (Item 24)

Length of regular attendance at senior center (Item 27)

Production Components

Music (Item 20a)

Cartoon Segment (Item 20b)

Cartoon Character (Items 5, 20c)

Old Photos of Bridge (Items 4, 20d)
Segments with Senator (Item 20e)
Interviews with Seniors (Item 20f)
Footage of northern Michigan (Item 20g)
Narration (Item 20h)

Instructional Titles/keywords (Item 201)

Dependent Variables

The amount of information grasped: response to the

cognitive section (questions 11-19)

Respondents! feelings about:

a. self confidence

b. getting involved in government

c. unity among seniors in Michigan

d. representatives! interest in their well-being
e. northern Michigan

f) being respected and valued members of society

Respondents! positive intention to:

a. get involved in senior interest groups

b. meet once a year with seniors from across Michigan
c. become more united with other seniors

(Items 23, 25, 26)

81

W

The following section should be read in conjunction with

the questionnaire. Each number represents the question

number on the questionnaire and is followed by the

corresponding rationale. After most of the rationales, an

"a" or "c" will clarify whether the question tests an

affegrivn, bennvioral or cognitivn objective:

#1

f2

#3

#4

tests if BRIDGING has increased the viewers feelings of

confidence (a)

tests if BRIDGING increased the viewers! feelings of

capability of getting involved in government (a)

tests if BRIDGING increased the viewers! pride in the

Upper Peninsula (a)

tests whether the visual essay helped to make viewers
feel comfortable with familiar material before moving

to the unfamiliar material (c/a)

tests whether the cartoon character helped the viewer

to better conceptualize the theoretical aspects of

legislation (c)

#7

#9

#10

tests whether viewers feels like respected and valuable

members of society (a)

tests whether viewers trust that representatives are

sincerely interested in their well-being (a)

tests whether viewers feel more motivated to get
involved, after seeing interview clips of active

seniors (a)

tests whether viewers believe that there are actively

involved seniors already in the government process (a)

tests whether viewers feel more motivated to get

involved in the political process (a)

#11-i19 tests whether viewers understood the theoretical

and practical procedures of law making (c)

#20, a-i tests the degree to which the various program

components appealed to the target audience

#21 s #22 test whether those seniors who are involved in

their communities were encouraged through the

mass media or interpersonal communication or

bOth

83

#23, 25, 26 tests whether viewers exhibit a positive
intention to get involved in senior interest
groups, and are likely to make an effort to
become more united with seniors across

Michigan (beh.).

#24 tests what percentage of respondents have
attended Senior Power Day.

#27 - #31 reveals demographic information

84

CODING SCHEME

Itnn God;
1. confidence 5 = strongly agree

4 = agree

3 = neutral

disagree

I" M
II

strongly disagree

0 = not answered

2. write 5

strongly agree

4 = agree

w
ll

neutral

to
u

disagree

1 = strongly disagree

0
ll

not answered

3. pride 5 strongly agree

a
u

agree
3 = neutral

disagree

:a m
u

strongly disagree

0 = not answered

4. memories

5 . Barbara

7. senator

8. clips of seniors

OI-‘Nub

strongly agree
agree

neutral

disagree

strongly disagree

not answered

strongly agree
agree

neutral
disagree

strongly disagree

strongly agree
agree

neutral

disagree

strongly disagree

not answered

strongly agree
agree

neutral

disagree

strongly disagree

not answered

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

active seniors

more active seniors

bill intro.

committee to governor

governor doesn!t sign

letter of protest

public hearings

recommendation

opnweu
H

N u
u u

p
H

strongly agree
agree

neutral

disagree

strongly disagree

not answered

strongly agree
agree

neutral

disagree

strongly disagree

not answered

1, = 0, not sure
1, = 0, not sure
1, = 0, not sure
1, = 0, not sure
1, = 0, not sure
1, = 0, not sure

17.

18.

19.

20

C.

65 M.P.H.

interns

blueprint

music

cartoon

Billsworth

+3

+2

+1

+3

+2

+1

+3

+2

+1

7

1, T

1, T

1, E

GIG

bill

0:

not sure

0, not sure

0.

not

sure

0- N

OH”

photographs

segments with senator

interview clips

Upper Peninsula

narrator

+3

+2

+1

+3

+2

+1

+3

+2

+1

+3

+2

+1

+3

+2

+1

i. typed information

21. senior group

a. newspaper

b. radio/television

c. interpersonal

d . 0th.!

23. old group

24. Senior Power Day

25. united seniors

+3

+2

+1

N

p

you.

Y‘s:

yes.

yes,

Y‘s!

Y's:

Y's:

YQ'I

I
p
u
U

I
U
H
3..

not sure, 2 = no

no
no
no
no

not sure, 1 = no

no, 0 = not sure,

not sure, 1 = no,

26. importance of unity

27. center attendance

28. gender
29. age
30. education

0 #0 ID

90

yes, 2 = not sure, 1 = no,

6+ years
4.5 - 6 years
2.5 - 4 years
1 - 2 years
<1 year

DOE QDSNCEOC

male, 2 = female

80+ years
70 - 79 years
so - 69 years
51 - 59 years
<50 years

not answered

College

High School
Junior High School
Elementary School

not answered

31. living situation

32. session

91

lives with someone
lives alone

not answered

Gaylord Senior Center
Central Lake Senior Center
Petoskey Senior Center
Gaylord Ladies Group

Sault St. Marie couple

RAN DATA

Table B-1. Frequencies and Means of Questionnaire

Item SDis. Dis. Neut. Agr. SAgr.
l 0% 5.1% 15.4% 56.4% 23.1%
2 0% 7.7% 12.8% 51.3% 28.2%
3 0% 0% 7.7% 43.6% 48.7%
4 0% 0% 5.1% 51.3% 43.6%
5 0% 0% 10.8% 66.7% 18.9%
6 2.6% 0% 2.6% 71.8% 23.1%
7 2.6% 0% 0% 56.4% 41.0%
8 0% 2.6% 16.7% 58.3% 22.2%
9 0% 5.1% 2.6% 59.0% 33.3%
10 2.7% 0% 0% 37.8% 59.5%

Table B-2. Frequencies and Means of Production
Components, Items 20a - 20i.

Item -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3

a 13.9% 0% 0% 0% 13.9% 22.2% 50.0%
b 3.0% 3.0% 0% 0% 15.2% 30.3% 48.5%
C 0% 0% 0% 0% 10.0% 26.7% 63.3%
d 0% 0% 0% 0% 2.6% 18.4% 78.9%
e 2.8% 0% 0% 5.6% 16.7% 19.4% 55.6%
f 0% 0% 0% 6.1% 15.2% 12.1% 66.7%
g 0% 0% 0% 0% 5.5% 16.75 77.8%
h 2.6% 0% 0% 2.6% 13.2% 26.3% 55.3%
1 0% 0% 0% 12.1% 15.2% 21.2% 51.5%

Table B-3. Frequencies of Questionnaire Item 21.

It“ YOS NO NOE Sure MORE
21 54.1% 43.2% 2.7% 2.514

T‘bl. 3" e

Item

23
24
25
26

T‘bl. 3'5 e

93

Frequencies and Means of Questionnaire

2.8 ”at 811:. NO H.“
50.3% 25.0% 15.7% 2.33
22 e 2% -- 77 e 8% --

77.1% 17.1% 5.7% 2.60
94.4% 5.5% 0% 2.08

Means, Frequencies, F-Ratio and
F-Probability of Behavioral Questionnaire
Items.

Level of Significance at .05

Variable Mean Frequency F-Ratio F-Prob
Gender

Female 2.6 21 7.3154 .0105
Male 2.9 16 7.3154 .0105
Yrs. of Attendance

0 to 2 2.5 6 1.3329 .28
2.5 to 6 2.7 9 1.3329 .28
6+ 2.8 18 1.3329 .28
Age

51 to 69 yrs. 2.8 12 1.4132 .2422
70+ yrs 2.7 25 1.4132 .2422
Education

Elementary 2.7 6 .4309 .6535
High School 2.6 18 .4309 .6535
College 2.8 12 .4309 .6535

Living Arrangement

Live Alone 2.5 11 5.5325 .0246
With Someone 2.8 25 5.5325 .0246
Viewing Environment

SSM/Women!s 2.4 6 1.8 .1692
Petoskey 2.8 10 1.8 .1692
Central Lake 2.7 13 1.8 .1692
Gaylord 2.7 10 1.8 .1692

94

Table B-6. Means, Frequencies, F-Ratio and F-Probability
of Affective Questionnaire Items.
Level of Significance at .05

Variable Mean Frequency F-Ratio F-Prob
Gender

Female 4.2 21 .0020 .96
Male 4.2 16 .0020 .96
Yrs. of Attendance

0 to 2 4.0 6 .77 .50
2.5 to 6 4.1 9 .77 .50
6+ 4.3 18 .77 .50
Age

51 to 61 4.3 12 .6404 .4290
70+ 4.16 25 .6404 .4290
Education

Elementary 4.0 6 .5626 .5751
High School 4.3 18 .5626 .5751
College 4.2 12 .5626 .5751
Living Arrangement

Alone 4.1 11 .3342 .5670
With Someone 4.2 25 .3342 .5670
Viewing Environment

SSM/Women!s 4.1 6 .6252 .6035
Petoskey 4.3 10 .6252 .6035
Central Lake 4.3 13 .6252 .6035
Gaylord 4.1 10 .6252 .6035

Table B-7. Means, Frequencies, F-Ratio and F-Probability
of Cognitive Questionnaire Items.
Level of Significance at .05

Variable Mean Frequency F-Ratio F-Prob
Gender .

Female 5.36 19 .2242 .6390
Male 5.62 16 .2242 .6390

Senior Power Day Attendance

Attended 6.85 7 7.95 .0081
not Attended 5.14 28 7.95 .0081
!rs. of Attendance

0 to 2 5.0 6 .2314 .7949
2.5 to 6 5.5 9 .2314 .7949
6+ 5.5 16 .2314 .7949

95

Table B-7 Con!t.

Variable Mean Frequency F-Ratio F-Prob
Age

59 to 69 5.25 12 .3999 .5315
70+ 5.6 23 .3999 .5315
Education

Elementary 4.83 6 4.6322 .0171
High School 4.94 17 4.6322 .0171
College 6.5 12 4.6322 .0171

Viewing Environment

SSM/Women!s 5.5 6 2.6275 .066
Petoskey 6.55 9 2.6275 .066
Central Lake 4.83 12 2.6275 .066
Gaylord 5.0 10 2.6275 .066

APPENDIX C

BRIDGING
Video Audio
Short montage of typical (1) Music Full - flute and
scenery from the UP (2) electric piano:Music under
nCU of genator with bridge 3 enator: A T
in bkgd. (4) TO BUILD THE MACRINAC

(5) BRIDGE -- A LOT OF VISION
(6) HARD WORK AND DEDICATION
(7) FROM MANY PEOPLE. OVER
(8) YEARS, I'VE POUND THAT
(9) MAKING LAWS IS A LOT LIKE
(10)BUILDING BRIDGES

M o Se ator° low zoom 11 A BR E NNE T TWO

out to NS (12)AIAY SHORES JUST LIKE
(13)LAIS CONNECT MANY
(14)DIFPERENT POINTS OF VIEW.
(15)AND BOTH MAKE IT POSSIBLE
(16)TO OVERCOME DEEP
(17)DIVISIONS -- WHETHER THEY
(18)BE WATER OR COMPLEX

(19)ISSUES. Music Under.

97

SI111.222E29IAPA§_!1£2____ i1l_N§££;£2£i_IE£_EAQ£INAQ

an electronic border wipe

(2) BRIDGE MAS OPENED TO THE
(3) PUBLIC IN 1957. PRIOR
(4) TO THAT DATE, THERE HERE
(5) THOSE NHO POUGHT ITS VERY
(6) CONSTRUCTION, SAYING

(7) MICHIGAN IINTERS AND

(8) GREAT LAKES ICE 'OULD
(9) SURELY DESTROY IT. BUT
(10)OTHERS, FIRED WITH THE
(11)VISION AND STEADPAST
(12)BELIEP, THAT A PIVE MILE
(13)LONG BRIDGE COULD BE
(14)BUILT TO UNITE MICHIGAN’S
(15)TNO PENINSULAS, KEPT
(16)NORKING TO'ARD IT IN THE
(17)LEGISLATURE AND IN THE
(18)COURT OP PUBLIC OPINION,
(19)AND THEY NON. ENGINEERS
(20)AMMENDED NUMEROUS PLANS,
(21)AND AFTER THE BLUEPRINTS
(22)NERE APPROVED, THE
(23)CONSTRUCTION BEGAN IN
(24)EARNEST. TODAY THIS
(25)BRIDGE STANDS AS A

(26)MONUMENT TO THOSE WHO

(1) DREAM OF A BETTER WORLD,
(2) AND WORK TO MAKE IT A
(3) REALITY.
(4) Music Full.
(5) Music Under.
lg n: nridgn. Senntor (4)_§22S£2£1_£!§I_A§_A
enters from screen right, (7) BLUEPRINT WAS NEEDED TO
turns and faces the camera (8) BUILD THIS BRIDGE, 80
MS of senator with traffic (9) BILLS BECOME BLUEPRINTS
in background (10)OF LAWS. SO LET!S TAKE A
(11)LOOK AT HOW BILLS GO
(12)THROUGH THE BLUEPRINT
(13)PROCESS.
(14)Music under
IS.2£_§e£DS£5L_£££222_12££ I1é1Ne££;§2£i_INA§IN§_ZQB_A
(16)MOMENT A SMALL TOWN IN
(17)NORTHERN MICHIGAN.
(18)BARBARA BILLSWORTH, A
(19)SENIOR CITIZEN CALLS IT
(20)HOME. SHE IS VERY
1n§2£&_£2!!E£1£1_2B_£££222 I21lIN!QE!£2_IN_EEB_QQMEEEIIX
right (22)AND A FEW YEARS AGO SHE'
ineert_shgught_bellesn_gs IZ1IEAQ_A!_IQEA_£EE_IEQ!§EI
top of screen (24)WAS A GREAT ONE. BARBARA

(25)KNEW MANY SENIORS IN HER

(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(5)
(7)
(8)
(9)

AREA WHO WERE HAVING A
TOUGH TIME MAKING IT IN
THEIR OWN HOMES. SHE
ALSO KNEW MANY YOUNG
PEOPLE WHO WERE JUST
STARTING OUT IN MARRIED
LIFE, AND WHO COULDN’T
AFFORD THEIR OWN HOME OR

APPARTEMENT.

In§£££_£1£1e_2§25£22______.i1Q1QEAB£D_EQ!§INEI_MAI£HINQ

"Housing on screen bottom (11)SENIORS WITH THESE YOUNG

(12)PEOPLE SEEMED LIKE THE

(13)PERFECT SOLUTION TO

non of narnarn, ncreen (14)§ARBnnn, fin; Pngnnn nnR
right, and senator screen (15)SENATOR, TO SEE HOW SHE

left with diagonal wipe (16)COULD HELP PROMOTE THE

(17)SHARED HOUSING IDEA. SHE

(18)LEARNED THAT A STATEWIDE

(19)SENIOR CITIEEN'S

(20)ORGANISATION WAS WORKING

(21)TO PUT THE PROPOSAL

(22)BEFORE THE LEGISLATURE,.

(23)AND THAT HER SENATOR HAD

(24)AGREED TO PUT THE

(25)PROPOSAL BEFORE THE

100

(1) LEGISLATURE. TOGETHER
(2) WITH OTHER MEMBERS OF HER

(3) COMMUNITY, BARBARA

Insert.2:rite_let§erei____ lil_DEEIQ£D_IQ_!BIIE_L§TI§E§
attend public hearings" (5) IN SUPPORT OF THE BILL
at bottom of screen (6) AND ATTEND PUBLIC

D1592D31_!122§_§B£2;££_2££ I11_E§ABINQSI__ID§A§_LIK§
screen leaving the senator (8) BARBARA!S COULD HAVE

(9) ORIGINATED FROM SPECIAL

inns—ti.l__o___q__t tosoriht MW

side of screen:"sp.int. (11)SENATOR OR REPRESENTATIVE,
group", "sen. or rep." (12)Anorxsn carvers crrrzsw
"priv. citizen", "other" (13)OR OTHER SOURCES. BUT

(14)BEFORE AN IDEA CAN BE
(15)INTRODUCED AS A BILL, IT
znll ncreen winh title lining§1_nn_nnnrrnn_lnrg
"an idea is drafted into (17)LEGAL LANGUAGE BY THE
leg. lang. by legislative (18)LEGISLATIVE SERVICE
service bureau.(blue bkgd) (19)BUREAU. AFTER A DRAFT
EE.21.!2!£2_2£_L29121B£2£2 i22II§_QQE£L§!§I_A_§ILL_QA!
(21)BE INTRODUCED INTO EITHER
B2£121.119h§_32_!1&!_£1£12 12ZIIBE_EQ!££_QB_§ENAIEI_INs
(23)BARBARA'S CASE, THE HILL
(24)SHE IS SUPPORTING IS

(25)INTRODUCED INTO THE

101

E2£2£_£22££2£_£££222_£1925 lll.§£!§1§r.!l§§£_11_1§

and passes the houses of

legis. and exits screen 1.

(2) ASSIGNED TO THE SENATE
(3) COMMITTEE ON SENIOR
(4) CITIZEN'S ISSUES

(5) S.O.T. Full

(6) S.O.T. Under

I223592_2£_£_£2!!1E£22____ 111_I§§_£Q!EIII§£_EQL2§

meeting

(8) PUBLIC HEARINGS ON THE
(9) BILL, CHANGES IT
(10)SLIGHTLY BY AMENDMENT
(11)AND THEN VOTES ON
(12)WHETHER TO SEND IT TO
(13)THE FULL SENATE FOR
(14)DEBATE. IN THIS CASE,
(15)THE COMMITTEE APPROVES
(16)THE BILL. IF COMMITTEE
(17)MEMBERS HAD VOTED
(18)AGAINST THE BILL, IT
(19)WOULD HAVE REMAINED IN
(20)COMMITTEE UNTIL THE END
(21)OF THE LEGISLATIVE
(22)SESSION.

(23)S.O.T. Under

I22£;92_2£_§££B£2_1§______ iZi1INEIEE_§§NAIEI_I!§_§ILL§

in session

(25)ARE READ AND THE

102

(1) COMMITTEE'S

(2) RECOMMENDATIONS ARE

(3) CONSIDERED, AND THE

(4) BILL’S MERITS ARE DEBATED
(5) ONCE AGAIN, AS IN

(6) COMMITTEE, THE BILL CAN
(7) BE APPROVED, AMENDED OR
(8) VOTED DOWN. IN BARBARA'S
(9) CASE, THE SHARED HOUSING
(10)MEASURE RECEIVES OVER-
(11)WHLEMING APPROVAL FROM
(12)THE SENATORS, AND IT
(13)IS PASSED ON TO THE HOUSE
(14)FOR FURTHER CONSIDERATION.
(15)ON THE SAME DAY THE
(16)SENATE CONSIDERED
(17)BARBARA'S BILL, THERE WAS
(18)A FULL CALENDAR, WITH

(19 ) OVER TWENTY OTHER

(20)MEASURES FOR

(21)cousrnsnamrow.
gr 2; Lngis, the ngnse _ lzleN_THE_HQn§E._T!E
is labeled (23)BILL coss manoucn a

(24)SIMILAR Process: AFTER
Iaeer§_292mmi:§ee_nsgei___ iz5lQQEMITT£§_QQN§IPEBATIQN

at bottom of screen

103

Insi;uzubl._nearinge2_12§l I1l_ANP_2!BLIQ_EEABIN§§1_IEE
IB£1.22£§;£2_£2Q_!2£2119§l 2 L BATBD
(3) FULL HOUSE AND A VOTE 18
S2B££2£_2B&2££_H££229_121£ I11_IAE£!s__BASBAEAL§_BILL
and Barbara enters scr. r. (5) ALSO PASSES THE HOUSE,
Legis. Building in bkg. (6) AND IT IS PRESENTED TO
(7) THE GOVERNOR TO BE SIGNED.
ES_2£_§222£B2I_AL_Q2§£____ l§l_!BEN_A_BILL_QQEEE_TQ_EI§
(9) DESK, THE GOVERNOR HAS
(10)THREE OPTIONS: HE CAN
t "8 the b1 1" CG i111§I§!_A_BILLL_EAEI!§_II
lnsert "vigo the Q111"(QG) (1g1nnwz 03 fig COULD !ETQ
(13)IT. HOWEVER IF THE
(14)GOVERNOR VETOES A BILL,
(15)IT COULD STILL BECOME A
(16)LAW IF THE HOUSE AND

(17)8ENATE OVERRIDE THE VETO

" o i vote" 1 W A MAJ‘
(CG) (l9)THE GOVERNOR COULD ALSO
Iaeert_flzet_sign_shs_billfl l22lSINPL!_§BQQ§E_NQT_TQ_SI§N
(CG) (21)THE BILL, AND AFTER 14

(22)DAYS, IT WOULD AUTOMATIC-

122:2.215125 IZélALL!_EEQQEE_LA!s_IE§
(24)covsnnoa BELIEVES mas

 

(25)SHARED HOUSING IDEA IS A

104

(1) GOOD ONE, AND SO HE
(2) SIGNS THE BILL INTO LAW.
Inser£_2§hr_nss§ill_22§s__ i11_A_N!!_PBQQBAM_§A§_£!§I
Law" on top of screen (CG) (4) BEEN CREATED IN MICHIGAN.
(5) THE BLUEPRINT STAGE IS
zS.21_Barbers_!sgrssa_bkgg Ié1_Q!IBs__SINQ£_§AB§ABALQNLX
(7) EXISTS IN OUR IMAGINATION
(8) LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT HOW
(9) A REAL LAW IS MADE.
(10)Music Out.
oo o o o drivin 11 N 9 ED RAL
in car: highway traffic (12)GOVERNMENT REDUCED THE
(13)SPEED LIMIT ON ALL U.8.
(14)HIGHWAYS FROM 70 MILES
(15)PER HOUR TO 55 MILES PER
(16)HOUR. THIS MEASURE WAS
(17)PROMPTED BY A WORLD-WIDE
(18)ENERGY CRISIS AND THE
(19)REDUCED SPEED BILL WOULD
(20)INEVITABLY REDUCE THE
(21)NATION'S OVERALL ENERGY
QU gr nign: rgll irons ___ IZZIQQNSEMPTIQNI_IN_EABLI
(23)1987, THE FEDERAL GOVT.
(24)ALLOWED STATES TO RAISE
129!.2!&_1£2!_Q!_£2_!§1___ IZéII!£_£PEED_LIEII_ZBQM_§§
55 symbol with a 65 symbol

105

(1) MILES PER HOUR TO 65

(2) MILES PER HOUR. THIS

WS of Qapitol: glow zoom 188 P D MONTHS
in to CU of spire (4) INTENSE DEBATE IN

(5) MICHIGAN, BUT IN THE END,
(6) ALL THE VARIOUS VIEWPOINTS
(7) WERE ACCOMMODATED, A
(8) COMPROMISE WAS REACHED AND
(9) THE HOUSE AND SENATE BOTH
(10)VOTED IN FAVOR OF THE 65
CU of newspaper headlines 11 MILE E HO EED MIT.
(12)ONCE THE GOVERNOR SIGNED
(13)Music Under
(14)THE BILL, NUMEROUS CHANGES
(15)HAD TO BE MADE TO PUT THE

(16 ) NEW LIMIT INTO EFFECT .

U t. o ans . 7 M08 RT OLD
sign (morass srcws wear aromas
L_&es__f____:_g___oo e a new 1 as W
being made (20)AND POSTED. WITHIN WEEKS,

(21)THE NEW SPEED LIMIT WAS

(22)FULLY IN EFFECT.

(23)Music Full

(24)Music Under
W0 n t as in W
Senate (24)YOU KNOW HOW LAWS ARE

106

(1) CREATED, YOU MIGHT THINK
(2) THIS LAW MAKING PROCESS
(3) LOOKS VERY COMPLEX AND
(4) FORMAL. WHY DON'T WE TAKE
(5) A QUICK LOOK BEHIND THE
(6) SCENES, YOU MIGHT JUST
(7) FIND SOME SPONTANEITY AND
(8) INFORMALITY YOU DIDN'T
(9) EXPECT.

WS or fienator coming up ilginnrrnrgrr__§!EN_gangn_

stairs: has a short verbal (11)THE FORMAL PROCESS OF

exchange before cont. (12)MARING LAWS IS IMPORTANT,
(13)A LOT OF BUSINESS IS
(14)CONDUCTED ON THE GO.
(15)S.O.T. Full
(16)S.O.T. Under

gnornge pr a preanfast mtg lllearratera_INIQBEAL
(18)BREAKFAST MEETINGS GIVE
(19)CONSTITUENTS THE OPPOR-
(20)TUNITY OF EXCHANGING VIEWS
(21)AND EXPRESSING THEIR
(22)OPINIONS TO THEIR
(23)REPRESENTATIVES.
(24)S.O.T. Full

(25)S.O.T. Under

nCU or genator at desk in

Senate

t ee mt

107

W
(2) FORMAL PUBLIC HEARING nae

(3) ITS! LIGHTER SIDE.

4 enator: W T !

(5) SEEN HOW LAWS ARE MADE AND
(6) GOVERNMENT CAN BE CHANGED,
(7) PERHAPS YOU HAVE AN ISSUE
(8) LIKE BARBARA'S, THAT NEEDS
(9) TO BE ADDRESSED. AND LIKE
(10)SARBARA, YOU NEED TO GET
(11)INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS,
(12)TO MAKE THOSE CHANGES.
(13)Music Out

(14)S.O.T. Under

gootnge or neniorn at (i§)Nnrratpr: 131 19 2; IN

senior center

(16CONTACT WITH OTHER INTEREST-
(17)ED CITIZENS IN YOUR
(18)COMMUNITY. YOU MAY WANT
(19)TO VISIT YOUR LOCAL
(20)FRIENDSHIP CENTER, OR
(21)BECOME INVOLVED IN AN
(22)ADVOCACY GROUP FOR ISSUES

(23)YOU FEEL ARE IMPORTANT.

ngo gr nnnipr girinQn _. W

(25)S.O.T. Under

108

I222egg_f£22_§2ni£2!er_251 I1l_NA££££2£1_RX_QQ!§INI!§
(2) YOUR vorcss, YOU STAND A

(3) BETTER CHANCE OF BEING
(4) HEARD. ALSO, TRY TO KEEP

(5) ABREAST ON HOT ISSUES, AND

EQQ_QI_22212£_AE_42§£L____.I§1.!BII§_XQ!E_EEEATQB_AEQ
writing letter (7) REPRESENTATIVE TO LET THEM

(8) KNOW YOUR FEELINGS AND
(9) OPINIONS.
U e or 10 W

(11)S.O.T. Under

I222B92_1£2!_§22s22!2£_22! I12lNBI£B£2£1_!EEN_BQ§§I§LEI
(13)ATTEND PUBLIC HEARINGS TO
(14)EXPRESS YOUR VIEWS. YOU
(15)MAY ALSO WANT TO ATTEND
(16)SENIOR POWER DAY IN
(17)LANSING TO SHARE
(18)EXPERIENCES WITH SENIORS
(19)FROM ACROSS THE STATE.

HEB—21.111112: 1W
(21)S.O.T. Under

 

(22)Narrator: NUMEROUS
WW
working in office (24)SENIOR INTERNS DURING

(25)SENIOR INTERN WEEK IN

109

( 1) LANSING . THESE SENIOR

(2 ) INTERNS PERFORM ADMINIS-
(3 ) TRATIVE DUTIES FOR

(4 ) LEGISLATORS AND ARE

(5) ABLE TO BECOME MORE

(6) FAMILIAR WITH HOW NEW

(7) LAWS ARE MADE AND HOW
(8) EXISTING LAWS ARE MADE TO
(9 ) WORK FOR PEOPLE .

(10) S.O.T. Full

(11)Music Under

(12)S.O.T. Out

nS or genator ntanding (13)Senatpr: nnlDGES, L15;

in front of Capitol

(14)coon LAWS, DON'T JUST
(15)HAPPEN our DAY, THEY
(16)REQUIRE HARD WORK AND
(l7)DEDICATION, BUT THE
(18)REWARDS ARE CERTAINLY
(19)WORTH IT. I'M SURE you
(20)WANT To BE REMEMBERED AS
(21)HAVING MADE MICHIGAN A
(22)MORE ADVANCED sTATE. WE.
(23)NEED To WORK TOGETHER,
(24)TOWARDS THAT GOAL. I NEED

(25)TO KNOW HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT

110

(1) ISSUES AFFECTING US EVERY-
(2) DAY. 80 DROP ME A FEW

(3) LINES OR CALL, AND LET ME
(4) KNOW HOW I CAN BEST

(5) REPRESENT YOUR NEEDS. MY

QEE! SQEOQQ Wig; 96 Of 6 D 88 CH
of address (7) IRWIN, STATE CAPITOL,

(8) ROOM 300, LANSING,
(9) MICHIGAN 48909: OR YOU CAN
(10)CALL: (517) 373-1725.

CU of Senatorn 1 LET!S S T OW U LD

(12)BRIDGES TOWARDS A BRIGHTER

IA§£_£22!_29&_£2_!§_______ ILAIIQIEB§_IQB_MIQEI§A!1
gredit noll over still (14)Music Full
photo of Bridge (15)Music Full

ade t ack (16)Mnsic gut

 

111

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anonymous, 1987. etc ! 3 t t t
Wee.

Baran, S. 5 Briley, M. e Gillham, M. Foshko, R. 5 White, C.
(1984). Utilizing television to bring nutrition

information to the elderly: a needs assessment.

iournnl pr Entrition for the filgerly, 1, 15-25.
Bates, Anthony (1979). Appropriate granning znngtipns rgr
Telev on R dio and Audio Cas ttes n

gnivnrnity gourses. Revised Edition. Open University,
Institute of Technology, Milton Reynes.

Bates, A. s Gallagher, M. (1975). v o e f
s ch to roadcasti t he v .

Unpublished manuscript. Open University, Institute of

Educational Technology, Milton Keynes.

Brown, Stephen (1983). V so as e .
Revised paper for "Teaching at a Distance No. 225".

Open University, Faculty of Technology, Milton Reynes.

Davis, R. (1980). Ielnvigion ang rne Aging nuginngn.

California: Univ. of 8. California Press.

112

Gullah-r. It. (1976) W
Qpnn_gniynrniry. Paper presented at the International

Conference on Evaluation and Research in Educational

Television and Radio, Open University, Milton Keynes

Gillis, L. 5 Nickerson, R. (1981). genearcn nng ggnlnntion
W- Innuscript- Tel-visor!

Ontario, Ontario, Canada.

Hersey, J. a Glass, L. & Crocker, P. (1984). Aging_nng

ealth o ot o ° Marketin e ea c f r li
W- Springfield: National

Technical Information Service.

Rubey, R. (1980). Television 6 Aging: Past, Present and
Future. zne Gnrontologist, 22. 16-35.

Louis Harris & Associates, Inc. (1981). Aging in Eng

s: ca n an it . Washington D.C.: The

National Council on the Aging.

Novelli, N. (1985). ann s o o - n

QIQ:I.AI2I1£ADH- Washington D.C.: National Council on
the Aging.

113

Parsons, P. & Lemire, A. (19__). a v luat on:
Insign L99; an tne grocnss. Manuscript. Television

Ontario, Ontario, Canada.

Reinhold. B. (1985). Wflx- Cambridge:
Schenkman Books, Inc.

Signorielli, N. (1983). n and eve tio : ew

Approaches ror Preventing Health nnd Mental nealth
Problems ror Older Adults. New York: Haworth Press, Inc.

Solomon, D.S. (1979). nessage pesign. Unpublished

manuscript.

Swayne, L. & Greco, A. (1987). Portrayal of older people in

television commercials. Journal or ndvertising, in,
47-54.

Television Ontario Office of Project Research. (1981).
se d uat on ca e o .

Unpublished manuscript.

t; cg-ut .- .-° c i- l,:-- --, .c-_-. e -nyun . .,;,
(1984). Washington D.C.: American Association of Retired

POE-ODS .

"Illlllllllllllllllll