This article was downloaded by: [Paula Matabane]On: 11 November 2014, At: 12:02Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registeredoffice: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK

Howard Journal of CommunicationsPublication details, including instructions for authors andsubscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uhjc20

Media Use, Gender, and AfricanAmerican College Attendance: The CosbyEffectPaula Whatley Matabanea & Bishetta D. Merritta

a Department of Media, Journalism and Film Communication,Howard University, Washington, DC, USAPublished online: 22 Oct 2014.

To cite this article: Paula Whatley Matabane & Bishetta D. Merritt (2014) Media Use, Gender, andAfrican American College Attendance: The Cosby Effect, Howard Journal of Communications, 25:4,452-471, DOI: 10.1080/10646175.2014.956549

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10646175.2014.956549

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the“Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis,our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as tothe accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinionsand views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors,and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Contentshould not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sourcesof information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims,proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever orhowsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arisingout of the use of the Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Anysubstantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing,systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

Howard Journal of Communications, 25:452–471, 2014Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLCISSN: 1064-6175 print / 1096-4649 onlineDOI: 10.1080/10646175.2014.956549

Media Use, Gender, and African AmericanCollege Attendance: The Cosby Effect

PAULA WHATLEY MATABANE and BISHETTA D. MERRITTDepartment of Media, Journalism and Film Communication, Howard University,

Washington, DC, USA

African American youth spend more time with media than othergroups, thereby enhancing media contributions to their values andbehavior. Most research focuses on negative effects of media con-sumption on Black viewers through racial stereotyping. We exam-ined pro-social effects of Black media content positively depictingblack colleges (HBCUs) on Black students’ college choice. Throughan empirical survey of 265 HBCU students we tested relationshipsbetween viewing Black media content and needs associated withcollege choice, demographics, and reliance on social networks.

Stepwise regressions showed The Cosby Show and A DifferentWorld made significant contributions to females’ HBCU choices.Feature films made significant contributions to males’ choices. Incollege choice, males were more social network reliant, femaleswere more media reliant. Results show need to consider pro socialeffects in media and race research, and examine impact of genderand digital viewing on media contributions to youths’ values andbehavior.

KEYTERMS A Different World, African Americans and media,blacks and television, college attendance choice, Cosby Show, gen-der and media, HBCUs, media effects, social learning

The Cosby Show (1984–1992) and its spinoff, A Different World (1987–1993),began successful primetime runs on commercial network television in themidst of continued racial stereotyping of African Americans in American

Address correspondence to Paula Whatley Matabane, Department of Media, Journalismand Film Communication, Howard University, 525 Bryant Street, NW, Washington, DC 20059.E-mail: pmatabane@howard.edu

452

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 453

culture and mass media. Both shows were intentionally designed as exam-ples of positive Black middle-class life and institutions, including portrayalsof historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs)—which have beenlargely invisible in popular culture. Placing number one in prime time tele-vision ratings, The Cosby Show and A Different World reflected a new realityfor minorities in media wrought by the Civil Rights Movement’s demand forincreased, expanded, and positive representation of Black people and otherracial minorities. Yet, The Cosby Show, in particular, was highly criticizedas an unrealistic (though positive) portrayal of Black life by promoting theAmerican dream and myth of social mobility, which maintains that anyonewho works hard can find success (Budd & Steinman, 1992). Some scholarsclaimed that the series relieved White America of responsibility of racismand its legacy (Gates, 1989; Jhally & Lewis, 1992). This concern seemedto dominate the research agenda about the series even as it remained themost highly viewed situation comedy on network television with very strongpopularity among African Americans.

Although the legacy of racism remains, American media, culture, insti-tutions, and society have changed dramatically in the past 50 years. Thereappears to be a much greater presence of positive portrayals of AfricanAmericans in media, such as those on The Cosby Show and A DifferentWorld. However, researchers, by and large, have not investigated prosocialways in which positive media portrayals of Blacks may influence today’syoung Black viewers who come to media content with a very different livedsocial political context and set of racial experiences from that of their parentsand grandparents. Present-day youths’ responses to media content, includingcontent produced for previous eras, will not be expected to be the same asthat of earlier generations.

The potential for differences in viewing outcomes is also influenced bythe impact of new digital delivery systems enabling continuous availabilityof media content from the past to the present. Previously, it was necessary todistinguish between viewing television and viewing feature films when mea-suring media contributions to viewers’ behavior and perceptions of socialreality. Television allowed for daily consumption of its content, but featurefilms were viewed far less frequently based on their initial theatrical releaseperiod. Profound changes in video delivery systems fostered by new digitaltechnology, cable, satellite, and Internet services, and program syndicationhave made feature films as well as previously aired television programsreadily available on a daily basis to viewing audiences. The advent of digitalmedia, including the Internet, gives audiences significantly more means forcontinuously accessing and discussing favorite television shows, current andpast. Technological innovations create a pandemic presence of media fromevery decade, which complicates what television viewing means as a cul-tural practice. In this study, we assume that theories on cultivation and social

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

454 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

learning from television viewing also apply to viewing feature films. There-fore, our references (but not necessarily references made in other studiescited) to television viewing, its effects and outcomes, also apply to viewingfeature films unless otherwise stated.

The availability of previously broadcast media content gives the il-lusion of a greater Black presence in popular media though the actualnumber of new Black characters created in any given television seasonor in new feature films released is relatively small. Without the historicalperspective or lived experiences of legalized segregation, young viewerswill process Black media characters through the lens of what is relevantto them and their cohorts who have experienced a more racially inte-grated society, especially as students in school. We caution to add thatthe absence of legalized racial segregation does not mean the absence ofracism.

Along with positive portrayals of Black characters and life, The CosbyShow and A Different World One consistently depicted higher education,including HBCUs, as pathways to success in life (Merritt, 1990). Observ-ing how a generation not familiar with legalized segregation and racismresponds to prosocial messages of success in Black media content will ex-pand our understanding of the impact of social activism, social policy, andnew media technology on society. An unpublished empirical study by un-dergraduate students in a research class at a mid-Atlantic HBCU providedsome evidence showing significant positive relationships between viewingThe Cosby Show and A Different World and current HBCU students’ deci-sion to attend an HBCU. These findings were consistent with celebratoryposts on various websites about these shows by HBCU students and alumni.Such observations suggest the need to expand the research agenda on Blackmedia portrayals from issues primarily about racism and its negative effectsto their potential prosocial influences and contributions to young viewers’perceptions of social reality and behavior.

The popularity of the two Cosby shows has resulted in what we infor-mally call the Cosby effect. The Cosby shows inspired the creation of newfilms and television shows featuring student life at HBCUs, motivated exist-ing Black sitcoms to incorporate visual and dialog references to HBCUs, andpossibly may have a positive influence on students’ decision to attend anHBCU.

We designed this exploratory study to empirically test whether view-ing The Cosby Show, A Different World, and other Black-oriented televisionshows and feature films featuring HBCUs in their storylines, locations, orbackground influenced the decisions of current HBCU students to attendan HBCU. We also explored whether reliance on media content exceededreliance on traditional socialization agents and demographic characteristicsin this decision process.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 455

MULTIPLE FACTORS AFFECTING COLLEGE CHOICES

Reliance on social networks like family, teachers, peers, and community (i.e.,traditional agents of socialization) are key factors in young people’s decision-making regarding which college to attend (Hurtado, Inkelas, Briggs, & Rhee,1997; Israel, Beaulieu, & Hartless, 2001; Sewell and Hauser, 1975; Stageand Hossler, 1989; Van Camp, Barden, & Sloan, 2010). Stage and Hosslerobserved that declining pools of high school graduates and an increasedgovernment role in funding increased research into the factors influencingstudents’ decision to attend a particular college. Freeman (1999) noted thatalthough researchers know a lot about the experiences of Black students indifferent types of higher education institutions, there has been little researchabout the influences that inspire students to attend an HBCU.

HBCUs were once the backbone of Black higher education and stillare significant doors to Black social success. In 1964, 60% of Black studentsin college attended HBCUs (Deskins, 1981) but that dropped to 22% by2002 (Gasman et al., 2007), ironically as a result of gains made by the CivilRights Movement. Meanwhile, African American youth are more likely to beexposed to dominant or mainstream values through attendance at a predom-inantly White institution. HBCU graduates are more likely to participate inpolitics and religion, make charitable donations, major in the physical sci-ences and attend graduate school than their Black cohorts at predominantlyWhite institutions. Although the value of school integration is tremendouslyimportant for America given its racial history, we argue that African Ameri-cans make unique social achievements as a result of an HBCU education.

There are commonalities among all students selecting a college basedon academic, economic, cultural, and social factors (Bowers & Pugh, 1973).Sewell and Hauser (1975) reported that family socioeconomic status and stu-dent academic ability have the greatest influence on their college decision,followed by parental encouragement, influence of significant others, and ac-tual high school academic performance. Stage and Hossler (1989) arguedthat parents’ education level followed by family income and parental expec-tations have the greatest influence. Parental income and educational level aresignificant to a child’s decision to attend college because parents of low so-cial status tend to have less information about college and the mechanics ofapplying to one (Hossler & Gallagher, 1987). Sandefur, Meier, and Campbell(2006) found that parents with more income and education expend moreresources on their children’s education and have a greater positive impacton their college attendance. Most of these factors also hold true for Blackstudents, but Van Camp, Barden, Sloan, and Clarke (2009) note that thesefindings were derived from primarily White samples and that there is noempirical research examining specific reasons why Blacks choose to attendan HBCU. Perna (2000) suggested that the college choice process is differ-ent for Black students than for Whites. Black students weigh the availability

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

456 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

of cultural support, use different sources of information than Whites, seekopportunities for racial self-development, and desire to not be a minority.They want a feeling of belonging and pride and positive Black role modelsthat they can identify with (Freeman, 2005; Freeman & Thomas, 2002; VanCamp et al., 2009).

High school racial experiences also impact the decision to attend anHBCU. Allen (1985) observed that Black students’ high school experiencesaround race were critical to their decision to attend an HBCU along with atti-tudes about themselves, religion, race, and academic achievement. Studentsattending predominantly White high schools relied more on race-relatedreasons in deciding to attend an HBCU than those who attended a predom-inantly Black high school (Freeman, 1999). On the other hand, Perna (2000)observed that Black students from segregated schools had higher collegeattendance rates than those from integrated schools. She speculated thatthe former may receive more information about college, especially HBCUs,because staff at segregated schools may more effectively communicate thevalue of higher education to Black students. Despite the indisputable role oftelevision and film as major socialization agents of and sources of informa-tion for Black youth, none of the studies we reviewed considered the roleof media in Black students’ college decision process.

GENDER DIFFERENCES AND RACE IN MAKING COLLEGE CHOICES

The American Association of University Women (1990) report that boys re-ceive more attention from classroom teachers than do girls, whereas teachersgive White girls more attention than they do African American girls de-spite the latter’s efforts to initiate interactions. Still, African American femalesoutperform African American males academically (Irvine, 1990). Stage andHossler (1989) found that females are more likely to think about attendingcollege, and they receive less family support in that endeavor than do males.African American males and females disagree with that latter observation(Bateman & Hossler, 1996). They feel that Black females are encouragedto attend college for academic reasons, but males are encouraged to seekathletic scholarships. Thomas (1980) found that in the process of college en-try, gender differences among Blacks were less pronounced than betweenWhites. Race was a stronger predictor than gender and social structure vari-ables like social class were more important for African American males.

Bateman and Hossler (1996) observed that although teachers and coun-selors often have little influence on White students’ college choice, they arevery important to African American males who need role models for col-lege other than athletes. Freeman (2005) noted the importance of teachersin keeping Black males in school and expressing high expectations of them.Bateman and Hossler (1996) found that mother’s educational level was the

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 457

second most significant predictor of Black females’ college attendance plansand that African Americans females do more planning to pursue educationthan males do.

EFFECTS AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF TELEVISION AND FILMVIEWING TO YOUNG AUDIENCES

Research on television viewing’s influence on social behavior and valuesoffers mixed findings depending on factors like age, race, level of education,type of content viewed, and amount of viewing. Much of the American re-search focus historically has been on television’s negative impact on youth.A comprehensive U. S. National Institute of Mental Health (1982) report as-serts, “Television on the whole also seems to interfere with educational aspi-rations” given that “heavy television viewing tends to displace time requiredto practice reading . . . and other school-based skills” (p. 90). Television (in-cluding film) is a powerful socialization agent for children because of theirheavy consumption of it and because media use requires no special skillslike reading does (Larson, 2002).

Experimental research findings indicate that educational television pro-grams can be successful in expanding young children’s knowledge, affectingtheir racial attitudes, and increasing their imaginativeness (Thakkar et al.,2006). Unsurprisingly, media use makes significant contributions to the sex-ual socialization of American youth. Adolescents spend 3 to 4 hours per daywatching television, which exceeds time spent interacting directly with theirparents or teachers (Ward & Friedman, 2006). Teens also imitate the personalstyle, behavior, and attitudes of media stars (Karniol, 2001).

In a British study, songs with prosocial lyrics fostered positive behav-ior and increased accessibility of prosocial thoughts among young people(Greitemeyer, 2009). Similarly, Harp, Bachmann, Rosas-Moreno, and Lake.(2010) observed prosocial outcomes for African American youth using me-dia that increased their civic participation and political knowledge. Flanaganand Gallay (1995) suggested that media might help youth develop a clearerunderstanding of their personal agency and develop an independent voicefrom their parents.

Race and Television

Because of the history of racial stereotyping in American popular media,much of the research on African Americans and media has focused on neg-ative influences and effects. The problem is amplified by Blacks’ heavy tele-vision viewing and their racial experiences resulting in a somewhat differentorientation and response to television viewing from that of Whites and otherminorities. For example, an early uses and gratifications study found that

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

458 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

the needs motivating Blacks’ viewing interests were the low scoring needsof the rest of the total sample (CPB, 1981). Those needs were greater self-acceptance, intellectual stimulation, and growth and status enhancement.Similarly, Frank and Greenberg (1980) reported that Black viewers exceededother viewers in using television to gratify their need for personal identitysatisfaction. Although media content plays a role in reproducing negativeracial stereotypes of Black people and their institutions, Sanders and Rama-subramanian (2012) concluded that all African Americans don’t necessarilyinternalize negative media stereotypes.

Successful Black characters on television were usually portrayed with-out connections to the Black community and associated with predominatelyWhite upscale environments. This tacitly devalues Black institutions like HB-CUs (Matabane & Merritt, 1996). The majority of Black characters, past andpresent, are still presented in comedies (Merritt, 2008; Moore, 1980). Tyree(2011) concludes that racial stereotyping of Blacks has migrated into realitytelevision, currently a very popular genre of television programming.

The Cosby Show and A Different World were a reversal of past por-trayals of Blacks in media. They intentionally designed positive images ofBlack middle-class life, promoting family, financial success, relationships ofequality between males and females, personal agency and achievement, self-discipline, female agency, and education including HBCUs (Merritt, 1990).The Cosby series inspired the creation of new feature films School Daze(1988), House Party 2 (1991), Drum Line (2002), and The Great Debaters(2007) that explicitly depicted student life at HBCUs. With less success, BlackEntertainment Television (BET) produced College Hill (2004–2009), a realityshow based at HBCUs featuring racially bland stereotypes of students withoutconcern for their futures. Cosby’s success motivated popular Black sitcomslike Martin to reference HBCUs in dialog, dress, and props. HBCU alumniwho were fans of the Cosby shows created Internet sites positively compar-ing the two Cosby series to their own HBCU experiences. Katz, Blumler, andGurevitch (1974) argue that an audience member may use media “to pre-pare oneself culturally for the demands of upward mobility.” This suggestsan active audience and offers insight into why college-bound Black teensmay favor media content depicting positive student life at an HBCU. In lightof criticism that The Cosby Show pandered to racism, we pondered the ironyof that series (along with the other media content it spawned or encouraged)influencing Black youth to attend an HBCU.

With their repetitive menu of dominant values, stories, cultural beliefs,and ideologies, television and film are the primary storytellers and agentsof socialization in American society (Gerbner, Gross, Morgan, & Signorielli,1980, 1982; Merritt, 2008; Yearwood, 2000). Cultivation theory claims thatheavy television viewers are more likely to perceive life the way it is por-trayed on television rather than based on the real world in which they live.Matabane (1988) argued that television is a powerful teacher of lessons about

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 459

racial integration for Blacks. If Blacks can learn to devalue Black institutionsby watching negative media stereotypes, it is also possible for Black youthsto associate positive attributes to HBCUs after repetitive viewing of theirpositive representations.

Digital technology allows viewers to sift through undesirable charactersand storylines for content more consistent with their values. Content that ismore salient to heavy viewers is more effective in the transmission of mediavalues to them (Gerbner et al., 1980; Steadman, 2005).

Seeing the possibility of prosocial outcomes from viewing racially pos-itive and affirming content, we felt that Black youth might use programsdepicting HBCUs for information gathering about college and as a sourcefor their college choice. We wanted to compare the contribution of mediain their decision making to traditional predictors of college or HBCU atten-dance. From education research and focus groups, we identified six needsthat students cite for attending an HBCU. They fell into two categories: racial-cultural needs and traditional college attendance needs. Predictor variablesincluded demographics, reliance on traditional social networks, reliance onvarious measures of media use, and uses and gratifications connected toviewing The Cosby Show and A Different World.

We posed the following research questions:

R1: Did use of and reliance on media content make a more significantcontribution to the needs influencing students’ decision to attend anHBCU than traditional predictors of college choice among current HBCUstudents? (a) Did media predictors of females’ needs differ from thoseof males? (b) Did significant media predictors vary according to racial-cultural needs versus traditional needs?

R2: Did media variables measuring The Cosby Show and A Different Worldmake a more significant contribution to students’ decision to attend anHBCU than other media variables? (a) Did males and females vary sig-nificantly in their reliance on Cosby programs in making their collegechoice decision?

METHOD

Data for this study were collected from 265 students enrolled at seven HBCUsin the mid-Atlantic region and the South over a 3-week period during Spring2012, using Survey Monkey. The researchers personally contacted facultyat HBCUs for recruiting undergraduate participants. In most cases, facultyoffered extra credit for taking the 8-min survey and made a strong appeal byemphasizing the ethical research standards and importance of the study thatwere part of the online protocol.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

460 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

The survey instrument was pretested twice on HBCU students to checkfor unidimensionalism, relevant content, validity, clarity of wording, andtime required to complete. Focus groups were conducted to develop a listof popular media programs that students relied upon in making their col-lege choice, and for identifying primary needs or reasons for attending anHBCU. These findings were combined with research findings from educationliterature.

Sample

All participants were African Americans, with females comprising 62% (164)of the sample. Fifty percent of the sample identified as middle-class, and 51%(135) reported annual family incomes below $50,000. Only 20% had a maleparent with a bachelor’s degree or above, whereas almost twice as many(39%) reported a female parent with such.

We were surprised at the low number of HBCU legacy students—19%with a male parent and 26% with a female parent who attended an HBCU.Only 21% had a sibling associated with an HBCU. These three variables weresignificantly intercorrelated at the p ≤ .000 level, suggesting that a small sub-sample was responsible for positive answers to those questions. Outsidefactors like media use might have a strong influence on these respondentsbecause they lacked family or historic links to an HBCU or college. Thelow HBCU legacy and low parental college attendance help explain the rel-atively low-income level of the sample. Many respondents were first in theirfamilies to attend college, which points to the continuing importance of theHBCU in giving low-income students without college-educated parents theopportunity to overcome significant economic barriers by attending college.

Our sample reflected post-Civil Rights Movement era cultural-politicalchanges in that a majority (59%) attended a high school that was at least 50%White. On the other hand, they overwhelmingly (72%) attended predomi-nantly Black religious organizations (mainly Christian).We labeled these twovariables as real world racial experiences that may contribute to students’need for Black educational experiences and reliance on media content de-picting Black social life including college life. These respondents were alsolight viewers of television sitcoms, which is consistent with their studentstatus. Amount of viewing of specific content did not make a significantcontribution to explaining student needs, but higher levels of viewing likereliance upon and perceived realism of content did. This suggests a higherlevel of consciousness and intentionality in our respondents’ media use con-sistent with their education. A summation of respondents’ scores on mediavariables and social network variables showed that females were more me-dia reliant than males on all needs, and males were more reliant on socialnetworks than were females.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 461

Variables

Reasons for attending an HBCU were dichotomized into racial-cultural needsand traditional needs. To identify the racial-cultural needs, respondents wereasked about the need to identify with Black culture, need for positive Blacksocial interactions, and need for quality education from a Black perspective.Traditional needs were determined by responses to questionnaire items per-taining to the need for quality education, concern for costs and financial aid,and geographic location of school.

PREDICTOR VARIABLES

1. Traditional college decision variables included encouragement from a so-cial network of parents, religious advisors, and high school teachers; re-liance on a social network of high school counselors, siblings, friends andpeers, community members; and prior experience with HBCUs throughalumni, special programs, parents, or siblings.

2. Racial experience was measured by the majority race of high school at-tended, and majority race of religious organization attended.

3. Media variables included amount of daily viewing of television; amountof viewing Black-oriented sitcoms; reliance on viewing television and filmdepicting HBCU life in general; reliance on specific Black-oriented tele-vision and film content popular among HBCU students and or depictingHBCUs.

4. Television shows included The Cosby Show, A Different World, Martin,Living Single, and College Hill, and films included The Great Debaters,House Party 2, Drum Line, School Daze, Boyz in the Hood, and Love andBasketball.

5. Amount of viewing and perceived realism of the above television pro-grams and films was measured, as well as uses and gratifications associatedwith viewing The Cosby Show and A Different World.

6. Demographics included age, family income, parent’s level of education,perceived social class, gender, and level of religious participation.

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

The first set of research questions asked if media use and reliance made amore significant contribution to the needs influencing students’ decision toattend an HBCU than traditional predictors of college choice like demograph-ics and reliance on social networks among current HBCU students; whethermedia predictors of female needs differ from those of males; and whethersignificant media predictors vary according to racial-cultural needs versustraditional needs? We ran separate stepwise multiple regression analyses forfemales and males to observe significant predictor variables of student needs

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

462 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

TABLE 1 Stepwise Multiple Regression Analysis of Racial-Cultural Needs of Females andMales

1 2 3

F M F M F MSignificant predictor variables Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta

Level of religious participation .14∗ .25∗ .12∗

Encouragement from religiousadvisors

.21∗

Encouragement from adultfamily

.24∗ .16∗ .44∗ .14∗ .44∗

Rely on peers and friends .16∗

Rely on community members .21∗ −.22∗ .16Encouragement from teachers .06Rely on HBCU alumni .20∗

Mother’s education .14Rely on A Different World .19∗ .24∗

Cosby shows positive Blackindividuals

.33∗

Cosby helps me escapeboredom

−.29∗ −.22∗

Cosby is socially stimulating .28∗

Rely on Living Single .32∗

Rely on College Hill −.12Rely on Great Debaters .22∗

Realism of Drum Line .26∗ .30∗ .30∗

Rely on Boyz in the Hood −.44∗

Rely films. TV on HBCU life .26∗ .17∗

Notes. F = females; M = males; 1 = need to identify with Black culture (females: adjusted R2 = 20%;F = 7.32∗; n = 164; males: adjusted R2 = 32%; F = 8.13∗; n = 101); 2 = need for positive Black sociallife (females: adjusted R2 = 39%; F = 12.94∗; n = 164; males: adjusted R2 = 43%; F = 10.80∗; n = 101);3 = need for quality education from Black perspective (females: adjusted R2 = 30%; F = 15.18∗; n =164; males: adjusted R2 = 46%; F = 20.00∗; n = 101); HBCU = historically Black college and university.∗p ≤ .05.

for attending an HBCU. We examined each significant predictor for size ofits beta and the percentage it added to explained variance. The regressionanalyses of racial-cultural needs for men and women are depicted in Table 1and that of traditional needs of males and females are presented in Table 2.

As indicated in Table 1, high religious participation and different mea-sures of The Cosby Show and A Different World were significant predictorsof the three racial-cultural needs influencing HBCU attendance among fe-males but not among any of those needs for males. The following variablessignificantly explained female racial-cultural needs:

1. Need to identify with Black culture—two religion variables and threeCosby content variables;

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 463

TABLE 2 Stepwise Multiple Regression Analysis of Traditional Needs of Females and Males

1 2 3

F M F M F MSignificant predictor variables Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta

Encouragement from adultfamily

.45∗ .26∗ 14

Level of religious participation .23∗

Encouragement from teachers .18∗ .16 .38∗ .15Family income −.22Encouragement from religious

advisors.35∗ .24∗

Rely on HBCU programs andvisits

.15∗ .25∗

Race of religious organization .24∗

Race of high school attended −.25∗

ADW shows positive Blackindividuals

.28∗

Cosby makes me feel goodabout myself

−.20∗

Realism of Cosby Show .18∗

Realism of Living Single −.21∗

Rely on Living Single .39∗

Rely on College Hill −.19∗

Realism of Drum Line .35∗

Realism of School Daze −.22∗ .26∗

Realism of Boyz in the Hood .21∗

Rely on House Party2 −.35∗

Rely on Great Debaters −.26∗

Rely films/TV on HBCU life .21∗ .23∗ .25∗

Notes. F = females; M = males; 1 = need to identify with Black culture (females: adjusted R2 = 33%; F= 5.80∗; n = 164; males: adjusted R2 = 39%; F = 15.8∗; n = 101); 2 = need for positive Black sociallife (females: adjusted R2 = 29%; F = 7.32∗; n = 164; males: adjusted R2 = 29%; F = 5.0∗; n = 101); 3= need for quality education from Black perspective (females: adjusted R2 = 28%; F = 7.88∗; n = 164;males: adjusted R2 = adjusted R2 = 23%; F = 8.3∗; n = 101); HBCU = historically Black college anduniversity.∗p ≤ .05.

2. Need for positive Black social life—variables measuring reliance on adultfamily, community and peers, high religious participation, and three mediavariables including two Cosby factors; and

3. Need for quality education from a Black point of view—reliance on family,high religious participation, media viewing in general, and reliance on ADifferent World.

The following variables significantly explained male racial-culturalneeds:

1. Need to identify with Black culture—reliance on adult family, communityand teachers, and three media variables including two feature films;

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

464 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

2. Need for positive Black social life—variables measuring reliance on adultfamily, and community, and three media variables including two featurefilms;

3. Need for quality education from a Black point of view reliance on adultfamily, HBCU alumni, mother’s education, and perceived realism of DrumLine.

Cosby content contributes significantly to each female racial-culturalneed but to none of those of males. Except for the need for a positive Blacksocial life, female needs are clearly more media reliant than social networkreliant. Males are overwhelmingly social network reliant, largely driven byreliance on adult family members. We did not expect this latter finding givenresearch suggesting females are more likely to depend on family membersas role models, whereas males tend to look outside their families for such.

In their early adulthood, we see the establishment of socialization pat-terns that tend to characterize Black females later in life—high religious par-ticipation and media reliance. For each racial-cultural need among women,media variables effectively compete with traditional socialization agents; anda Cosby media variable is a significant predictor. Viewing The Cosby Showwas not a means of escapism or overcoming low esteem for females. Twouses and gratifications variables—”The Cosby Show helps me escape bore-dom” and “The Cosby Show makes me feel good about myself”—were in-versely related to female needs for attending an HBCU. This suggests inten-tionality in viewing and relating Cosby content to an important life decision.Cosby variables were the only significant media predictors of female racial-cultural needs. One probable reason for the high importance of Cosby showsto females is the intentional inclusion of pro-female messages and empow-ered female images in those programs. According to Jhally and Lewis (1992),The Cosby Show often used humor to uncover the foibles of male chauvinism.Although female characters led this effort, they were fully supported by Dr.Cliff Huxtable (played by Cosby), who was featured as a highly educatedcompetent medical professional and a strong character. Jhally and Lewis(1992) contend that it is unusual to find strong male characters in sitcomsthat espouse pro-female attitudes without being ridiculed.

The likelihood that female respondents consciously chose programmingportraying female agency and positive HBCU stories is supported by findingsfrom regression analyses of the predictors of male racial-cultural needs. NoCosby programming was a significant media predictor of their racial-culturalneeds. Feature films, particularly Drum Line, were the most significant mediavariables across all racial-cultural needs, but males were solidly more socialnetwork reliant than media reliant. Encouragement from adult family mem-bers was the single most important variable predicting male racial culturalneeds both in beta size and contribution to change in variance, followed by

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 465

reliance on community members. Living Single is the only sitcom that madea positive significant contribution to any male needs.

The three feature films (Drum Line, The Great Debaters, and Boyz inthe Hood) significantly related to male racial-cultural needs all feature strongmale leads. Reliance on Boyz in the Hood, however, is inversely related to themale need for a positive Black social life. Male students may have rejectedthis film as a model for success because it depicted Black-on-Black violence.One character hoping to use his football skills to get to college is killed.The film does not depict life at an HBCU but going to college is clearly ameans of escape from dysfunctional families and friends. Similarly, the realitytelevision show College Hill makes a negative contribution to male needs.Though set at HBCUs, this program does not model successful behavior butfeatures nudity, profanity, excessive drinking, and acts of violence. Althoughour male respondents did not rely upon Cosby content, they rejected negativeportrayals, and relied upon Drum Line and The Great Debaters that portrayedheadstrong but determined young Black men who overcome adversities togain positive success while attending an HBCU.

The following variables significantly explained female traditional needs:

1. Need for quality education—reliance on adult family, teachers, and highreligious participation, and perceived realism of two television shows in-cluding one Cosby show

2. Need for costs and financial aid—high religious participation, encourage-ment from teachers, reliance on HBCU programs, and four media variablesbut no Cosby factors; and

3. Need for school geography—encouragement from teachers, and six mediavariables including two Cosby measures.

Reliance on social networks was the most important predictors of fe-males’ need for a quality education and costs and financial aid. However,their concern for the geographic location of the school was explained pri-marily by media reliance variables. We surmise that perhaps females did notresonate with the strong male leads in The Great Debaters and House Party2. The limited female roles along with specifics in each film, like the ruralsetting of The Great Debaters in a racially explosive area and the chaotic sce-nario of House Party 2, were not good role models for these females. “TheCosby Show makes me feel good about myself” was also inversely relatedto that need suggesting that these females were in a mode of informationseeking and gathering to support their college choice decision. They wereintentional and relied upon positive portrayals of themselves as females. Pos-itive portrayals of HBCU life did not outweigh limited depictions of femalesin the feature films. These females were discerning viewers. At the sametime, females’ perceived realism of the very violent Boyz in the Hood makesa positive contribution to their need for financial aid. It may be that viewing

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

466 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

urban violence, its toll on young Black men and women, and the lack ofopportunities for disempowered women had the cultivation effect of height-ening females’ perceptions of Cosby’s message that college is a positive wayout of a negative lifestyle.

The four films predicting female traditional needs depict limited femaleroles compared to the television sitcoms. Female concern about the geo-graphic location of their college was overwhelmingly predicted by mediavariables, strongly suggesting intentionality in using Black media for infor-mation gathering. Perhaps in the absence of direct input from HBCUs, theiralumni (most of our respondents had no HBCU family legacy), or on-sitevisits, these students substituted media as a way of assessing the geographicdesirability of a college. Cosby, as the competent Dr. Huxtable, became aknowledgeable substitute father figure. It is not surprising that reliance onparents, teachers, religious advisors, and The Cosby Show would positivelyinfluence females’ need for a quality education, but it is not theoreticallyclear why media reliance would.

The following variables significantly explained male traditional needs:

1. Need for quality education—two racial experience measures, encourage-ment from adult family and teachers, and perceived realism of Drum Line;

2. Need for costs and financial aid—encouragement from adult family andteachers, and watching television and films in general about HBCU life;and

3. Need for school geography—encouragement from adult family and reli-gious advisors, family income, and perceived realism of School Daze.

Only three media variables—perceived realism of Drum Line, perceivedrealism of School Daze, and reliance on films and television in general de-picting HBCU life—significantly predicted any male traditional needs. Maleswere overwhelmingly social network reliant for traditional needs. Salomenand Cohen (1978) contend that television viewing is a multilayered constructthat increases in intensity from amount of viewing in general, amount ofviewing of specific content, to perceived realism as evaluation of content.Higher levels of engagement imply more intense recall and comprehensionas well as influence on the viewer. Two of the significant media variables pre-dicting male traditional needs were at the higher viewing level of perceivedrealism. These findings suggest, that like females, males were intentionalconsumers of media content, absorbing prosocial values and behaviors.

In line with our assumption that the different racial experiences of to-day’s youth will result in different viewing outcomes from that of their par-ents, we note that racial experiences are important predictors of one maleneed but none for females. Attending a White school and a Black churchheightened males’ need for a quality education. We do not know if males inour sample were responding to attending an integrated school in defiance

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 467

of a hostile academic setting expecting them to fail or positively in accor-dance with encouragement. We also do not know if males in our samplewere predisposed to attend college, given their strong reliance on familyencouragement.

Our second set of research questions asked if measurements of TheCosby Show and A Different World made a more significant contribution tostudents’ decision to attend an HBCU than other media variables? Did pre-dictors vary based on student gender? For females, the answer is yes. Cosbyprogramming outweighed other media content, as well as social network re-liance and social status (demographics) in explaining their needs. Uses andgratifications associated with viewing Cosby, perceived realism of The CosbyShow, and reliance on A Different World, were significant predictors of fiveout of six female needs.

For males, not one variable measuring use of Cosby programs was sig-nificant. Though males viewed Cosby content at some point in the past,probably its content skew toward female characters and their empowermentwas not a compelling influence on them as feature films with their unam-biguous male focus.

CONCLUSION

Both males and females preferred content depicting their gender in sociallyadvantaged positions. Both chose positive depictions of successful youngBlacks over violence and negative portrayals. Society trains females to bemore domestically inclined and oriented, but in our sample their relianceon media over social networks suggested greater autonomy in making theirchoice for college. This concurs with research indicating that Black femalesplan more for college than Black males do. It also points to the successof The Cosby Show and A Different World, in particular, in offering femalesempowering and positive models of female success. Males were more influ-enced by their social status and more reliant on family and other traditionalagents of socialization in deciding which college to attend. Our findings onmales may have been skewed by the limited choice of media programs. Theymay have relied upon content like sports or action-oriented shows that werenot included in this study. Higher levels of viewing (perceived realism, se-lective viewing, and uses and gratifications) were significant, which suggestsintentionality in viewing by our sample. Because of digital technology (i.e.,content may be viewed at any time), we don’t know when or how oftenthese students viewed the media content in this study. We assumed that anyeffects or contributions had already taken place.

In summary, we observed that (a) overall, females were more mediareliant particularly in their racial-cultural needs whereas males were moresocial network reliant; (b) level of religious experience was important to

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

468 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

females but not for males; (c) racial experience was significant to males butnot to females; (d) demographics helped to significantly explain some maleneeds but none of females; (e) reliance on adult family members and teacherswas more salient for males than females; (f) females were more reliant onThe Cosby Show, A Different World, and other television shows whereasmales were more reliant on feature films; (g) a greater number of mediaprograms significantly explained female needs than male needs, suggestingthat females were more intense and diverse in consumption of Black mediaespecially those depicting HBCU student life; (h) total explained variance ofmale needs was higher than that of females, which maybe partially explainedby the male sample being about one-third smaller than the female sample;and (g) none of the Cosby shows variables were significantly related to maleneeds; however, some of the variables of the Cosby shows dominated mediaused by females for deciding which college to attend.

Education research reports that females are more likely to choose familymembers as role models than males are (Coates, 1987). It may be that in thisstudy, females substituted Bill Cosby as a virtual father figure whereas malespreferred the hip hop world of males seeking success as depicted in the fea-ture films that explained variance in their needs. Although our model needsgreater specification especially, with respect to choice of media content, weobserved that traditional socialization factors are still important variables im-pacting all students’ decision to attend an HBCU. It is not surprising thatpopular Black media content makes a strong contribution to that processand it should be included in future education and communications researchon this topic.

We conclude with the obvious that African Americans of all generationscontinue to see race in media content, especially if it depicts aspects of Blacklife. If Blacks are portrayed, race is an issue or subtext for African Americansof all generations. Concern for what White people may think about Blackpeople did not dominate what today’s young Blacks see in Black content, asthis sample showed. Instead, they saw models of success upon which to relyin making a very important decision about their own upward mobility. Theyrejected or ignored portrayals of social failure and did not view positiveprogramming as a form of escapism or just a means to feel good aboutthemselves. Though the post-Civil Rights Movement generation of Blackyouth never experienced legalized segregation, they have not moved to apostracial consciousness in how they process media content.

In terms of communication theory, this means that the social context ofthe audience is crucial. Media are not all powerful and the media–audiencerelationships that were once observed are not permanent but change associal relations do. Researchers need to continue to test what youth arelearning today from all media without exclusive focus on racism and racialstereotypes. Even programs that many may lament lack real social value maypositively inspire young viewers. Our models for studying media effects and

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 469

cultivation must be updated to reflect the racial experiences of a new gener-ation and how constant access to almost all Black programming regardlessof original release date influences their beliefs, values, and behavior.

This study, like all studies, has limitations. The sample was one of con-venience, so no levels of error could be calculated, nor can the findings begeneralized. Yet, this study makes several contributions. It amplifies the usesand gratifications and cultivation theories by highlighting the unrecognizedcontribution of television and film to African American students’ college de-cision. It also points out the need for additional interdisciplinary research,namely education and communication research that focuses on prosocial as-pects of the media. Specifically, additional research is needed on the media’sinfluence on the college decision generally and on the factors affecting thedecision to attend an HBCU.

REFERENCES

Allen, W. R. (1985). Black students, white campus: Structural, interpersonal andpsychological correlates of success. Journal of Negro Education, 54, 134–147.

American Association of University Women. (1990). How schools shortchange girls.Washington, DC: Author.

Bateman, M., & Hossler, D. (1996). Exploring the development of postsecondaryeducation plans among African American and White students. College and Uni-versity, 72, 2–9.

Bowers, T., & Pugh, R. (1973). Factors underlying college choice by students andparents. Journal of College Student Personnel, 14, 220–224.

Budd, M., & Steinman, C. (1992). White racism and The Cosby Show. Jump Cut, 37,5–12.

Coates, D. (1987). Gender differences in the structure and support characteristics ofblack adolescents’ support networks. Sex Roles, 17, 667–687.

CPB. (1981). Attracting minorities to audiences to public television. Washington, DC:Author.

Deskins, D. R., Jr. (1981). Minority recruitment data: A preliminary report. RackhamReports Univ. of Michigan, 7(2), 1–5.

Flanagan, C., & Gallay, L. S. (1995). Reframing the meaning of “political” in researchwith adolescents. Perspectives on Political Science, 24(1), 34–42.

Frank, R., & Greenberg, M. (1980). The public’s use of television: Who watches andwhy. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

Freeman, K. (1999). Increasing African Americans’ participation in higher educa-tion: African American high-school students’ perspectives. Journal of HigherEducation, 68, 523–550.

Freeman, K. (2005). African Americans and college choice: The influence of familyand school. Albany: State University of New York Press.

Freeman, K., & Thomas, G. E. (2002). Black colleges and college choice: Charac-teristics of students who choose HBCUs. The Review of Higher Education, 25,349–358.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

470 P. Whatley Matabane and B. D. Merritt

Gasman, M., Baez, B., Drezner, N. D., Sedgwick, K. V., Tudico, C., & Schmid, J. M.(2007). Historically black colleges and universities: Recent trends. Academe, 93,69–78.

Gates, H. (1989, November 12). TV’s black world turns—but stays unreal. New YorkTimes.

Gerbner, G., Gross, L., Morgan, M., & Signorielli, N. (1982). Charting the mainstream:Television’s contribution to political orientations. Journal of Communication,32, 100–126.

Gerbner, G., Gross, L., Morgan, M., & Signorielli, N. (1980). The mainstreaming ofAmerica: Violence profile no. 11. Journal of Communication, 30, 11–29.

Greitemeyer, T. (2009). Effects of songs with prosocial lyrics on prosocial thoughts,affect, and behavior. Brighton, UK: University of Sussex.

Harp, D., Bachmann, I., Rosas-Moreno, T., & Lake, J. (2010). Wave of hope: AfricanAmerican youth use media and engage more civically, politically than whites.Howard Journal of Communications, 21, 224–247.

Hossler, D., & Gallagher, K. (1987). Studying student college choice: A three-phasemodel and the implications for policymakers. College & University, 62, 207–221.

Hossler, D., Braxton, J., & Coopersmith, G. (1989). Understanding student collegechoice. In J. Smart (Ed.), Higher education: Handbook of theory and research(pp. 220–245). New York, NY: Agaton Press.

Hurtado, S., Inkelas, K. K., Briggs, C., & Rhee, B. S. (1997). Differences in collegesuccess and choice among racial/ethnic groups: Identifying continuing barriers.Research in Higher Education, 38, 43–75.

Irvine, J. (1990). Black students and school failure: Policies, practices, and prescrip-tions. Westport, CT: Praeger.

Israel, G. D., Beaulieu, L. J., & Hartless, G. (2001), The influence of family and com-munity social capital on educational achievement. Rural Sociology, 66, 43–68.

Jhally, S., & Lewis, J. (1992). Enlightened racism: The Cosby Show, audiences, andthe myth of the American dream. San Francisco, CA: Westview Press.

Karniol, R. (2001). Adolescent females’ idolization of male media stars as a transitioninto sexuality. Sex Role, 44, 61–77.

Kaiser Family Foundation. (2010). Generation M2: Media in the lives of 8–18-yearolds. Menlo Park, CA: Author.

Katz, E., Blumler, J., & Gurevitch, M. (1974). Utilization of mass communication bythe individual. In J. Blumer & E. Katz (Eds.), The uses of mass communication:Current perspectives in gratifications research (pp. 19–34). Beverly Hills, CA:Sage.

Larson, M. (2002). Race and interracial relationships in children’s television commer-cials. Howard Journal of Communications, 13, 223–237.

Matabane, P. W. (1988). Television and the black audience: Cultivating moderateperspectives on racial integration. Journal of Communication, 38(4), 21–31.

Matabane, P. W., & Merritt, B. (1996). African Americans on television: 25 years afterKerner. Howard Journal of Communication, 7, 329–339.

McDonough, P. M., Antonio, A. L., & Trent, J. W. (1997). Black students, blackcolleges: An African American college choice model. Journal for a Just andCaring Education, 3, 9–36.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

The Cosby Effect 471

Merritt, B. (1990). Bill Cosby: TV auteur? In H. B. Shaw (Ed.), Perspectives of blackpopular culture (pp. 131–143). Bowling Green, OH: The Popular Press.

Merritt, B. (2008). Charles Burnett: Creator of African American culture on film.Journal of Black Studies, 39, 109–119.

Moore, M. (1980). Black face in prime time. In Bernard Rubin (Ed.), Small voicesand great trumpets (pp. 109–140). New York, NY: Praeger,

Perna, L. W. (2000). Differences in the decision to attend college among AfricanAmericans, Hispanics, and whites. Journal of Higher Education, 71(2), 117–141.

Salomen, G., & Cohen, A. (1978). On the meaning and validity of television viewing.Human Communication Research, 4, 265–270.

Sandefur, G., Meier, A., & Campbell, M. (2006). Family resources, social capital, andcollege attendance. Social Science Research, 35, 525–553.

Sanders, M., & Ramasubramanian, S. (2012). An examination of African Americanstereotyped perceptions of fictional media characters. Howard Journal of Com-munications, 23, 17–40.

Sewell, W. H., & Hauser, R. M. (1975). Education, occupation, and earnings: Achieve-ment in the early stage. New York, NY: Academic Press.

Stage, F. K., & Hossler, D. (1989). Differences in family college attendance plans formale and ninth graders. Research in Higher Education, 3, 301–315.

Steadman, J. (2005). TV audience special: African American audience. New York,NY: Nielsen Media Research.

Thakkar, R., Garrison, M., & Christakis, D. (2006). A systematic review for the effectsof television viewing by infants and preschoolers. Pediatrics, 118, 2025–2031.

Thomas, G. E. (1980). Race and sex difference and similarities in the process ofcollege entry. Higher Education, 9, 179–202.

Tyree, T. (2011). African American stereotypes in reality television. Howard Journalof Communications, 22, 394–414.

U.S. National Institute of Mental Health. (1982). TV and behavior, ten years of scien-tific progress and implications for the eighties: Vol. 1. Summary report. Rockville,MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Van Camp, D., Barden, J., & Sloan, L. (2010). Predictors of black students race-related reasons for choosing an HBCU and intentions to engage in racialidentity–relevant behaviors. Journal of Black Psychology, 36, 227–251.

Van Camp, D., Barden, J., Sloan, L., & Clarke, R. (2009). Choosing an HBCU: An op-portunity to racial self-development. Journal of Negro Education, 78, 457–468.

Ward, L. M., & Friedman, K. (2006). Using TV as a guide: Associations betweentelevision viewing and adolescents’ sexual attitudes and behavior. Journal ofResearch on Adolescence, 16, 133–156.

Yearwood, G. L. (2000). Black film as a signifying practice. Trenton, NJ: Africa WorldPress, Inc.

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Paul

a M

atab

ane]

at 1

2:02

11

Nov

embe

r 20

14

All in-text references underlined in blue are linked to publications on ResearchGate, letting you access and read them immediately.