Media exposure, information processing strategies, and knowledge about H1N1 Flu

Abstract

This study explored the relationship of factors that influenced adolescent`s learning about H1N1 flu from the news. A model constructed from data gathered in a sample of 1,409 respondents in Taiwan depicts these relationships. The results largely support the proposed model that media exposure, news attention, and news elaboration are related to knowledge about H1N1 flu. The study demonstrates that the importance of individual motivations toward mass media and media use could be considered mediators of the communication effects process. Future research should pay close attention to the reciprocal nature of relationships between information processing and the knowledge gap hypothesis.