Media - social psychological

• Range of AB's smoking/drinking/gambling often glamourised in media therefore viewer is encouraged to engage/attracted to behaviour. Content analysis of top 200 films over 20 yrs, 87 found drinking/tobacco use portrayed positively/no negative consequences.
• SLT = viewer observes 'celebrity' actor/musician etc. engage motivated to imitate due to wanting to be like them/ if they see celebrity being rewarded (glamourous/powerful etc).
• Positive - research evidence = pechman and fong-shih, experimental study show 2 versions of same film. no smoking, 1 smoking increase in positive attitudes to smoking. But not evidence of starting to smoke.
• Negative - deterministic explanation - suggest AB is determined via environmental factors such as media influences = individual has no chance/control over AB imitate what they see in other people. Removes personal responsibility.
• Positive - useful explanation to use media to challenge positive perceptions of AB.