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Health issues disproportionately affect Latinos, but variations within this ethnic group may mean that some Latinos are harder to reach with health messages than others. This paper introduces a methodology grounded in communication infrastructure theory to better target "hard-to-reach" audiences. A random digit dialing telephone survey of 739 Latinos living in two Los Angeles communities was conducted. The relationships between health access difficulties and connections to an integrated storytelling network as well as individual health communication source connections were explored. Findings suggest that Latinos who are connected to an integrated storytelling network report marginally greater ease finding healthcare, despite not being any more likely to have insurance or a regular place for healthcare. Latinos who have health access problems tended to rely more upon Spanish-language television for health information. In addition, those without healthcare access problems are more likely to indicate that they use health professionals, the Internet, mainstream TV and printed materials like health pamphlets for health information. The theoretical and methodological contributions of this work, its major findings, implications, limitations and policy guidelines are discussed.

From a communication infrastructure theory perspective, the current study examined individuals' civic engagement (neighborhood belonging, collective efficacy, and civic participation) as influenced by 2 multilevel components of the communication infrastructure--an integrated connectedness to a storytelling network (ICSN) and the residential context--focusing on ethnic heterogeneity and residential stability. Our multilevel analyses show that ICSN is the most important individual-level factor in civic engagement--neighborhood belonging, collective efficacy, and civic participation--after controlling for other individual-level and neighborhood-level factors. In both ethnically homogeneous and heterogeneous areas and in both stable and unstable areas, ICSN is an important factor in civic engagement. As contextual factors, residential stability positively affects neighborhood belonging and collective efficacy, and ethnic heterogeneity is negatively related to collective efficacy. Our data do not show any direct contextual effects of residential stability or ethnic heterogeneity on civic participation. However, our HLM analysis showed that the relative importance of ICSN for the likelihood of participation in civic activities is significantly higher in unstable or ethnically heterogeneous areas than in stable or ethnically homogeneous areas.

A unique effect of geo-ethnicity on individuals' neighborhood engagement is demonstrated, based on the survey data gathered in seven geo-ethnic communities, and analyzing two types of cross-sectional comparisons. The implications of the results are discussed from a communication infrastructure perspective.

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2885.2006.00267.x Byline: Yong-Chan Kim (1), Sandra J Ball-Rokeach (2) Abstract: The purpose of this study is to articulate the concepts and assumptions of communication infrastructure theory (CIT) in its present stage of development and validation. As an ecological approach to communication and community, CIT claims that access to storytelling community resources is a critical factor in civic engagement. When embedded in a neighborhood environment where key community storytellers encourage each other to talk about the neighborhood, individual residents are more likely to belong to their community, to have a strong sense of collective efficacy, and to participate in civic actions. CIT framework offers a way to examine the ecological processes that concern the effects of communication resources on civic community. Author Affiliation: (1)Department of Telecommunication and Film, College of Communication and Information Sciences, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487 (2)Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90087 Article note: Yong-Chan Kim; e-mail: ykim@ua.edu.

This article discusses the political aspects of the relationship between media, violence, and social action. Topics include government regulatory policy, the history of the Violence Commission, and social learning.

The complexities and interconnections of human life are increasing, with familiar boundaries dissolving in organizations, including academic disciplines. The social dynamics of information and communication technology challenge communication researchers to build bridges between established and emerging ideas of how to think about and how to undertake communication theory and research.

This paper summarizes some of the major principles of belief system theory and describes the method of value self-confrontation. An example of how value self-confrontation can be used to modify environmental values is provided. The research on value self-confrontation is reviewed and critically evaluated. Although there is support for belief system theory and for the efficacy of value self-confrontation as a means of inducing long-term change in important values, attitudes, and behaviors, a number of important questions remain unanswered. In particular, the psychological mechanisms underlying change in values, attitudes, and behaviors after value self-confrontation require clarification and further study.

Values are an important and unique construct in social psychological research. In many ways they offer insight into human belief and behavior that other concepts, particularly attitudes, cannot provide. Milton Rokeach is remembered as a pioneer in the study of human belief and behavior, particularly in the study of values. In this essay we review the essential insights that Rokeach offered and the ways that those insights have been applied in the study of social issues such as racism, political behavior, social justice, and social change. We also briefly introduce the articles in this collection.

The television shopping phenomenon is analyzed in terms of media system dependency theory. The analysis begins with a discussion of potential changes in structural relationships within the media system introduced by television shopping. We discuss how these structural changes imply changes in microlevel dependency relations. A hierarchy of dependency relations is proposed, with television dependency leading to dependency upon a genre of TV programming and, ultimately, to the development of parasocial relationships with the hosts of specific programs. Using measures of television dependency, parasocial interaction, demographic variables, and buying behavior, a model is proposed and tested upon a random sample of viewer-buyers from a major television shopping service to explain the relationships among the viewer-buyer, the television shopping program, and the television medium. Results indicate that genre dependency plays a central role in the pattern of relationships.

Informed by communication infrastructure theory (CIT) and the social capital approach to health, this study focused on the role played by communication hotspots: physical places in a community (e.g., parks, churches, or restaurants) where health information is shared between network actors. By analyzing survey data that included information about communication infrastructure, frequency of health conversations, as well as the size and diversity of respondents' social networks, this study illustrates how communication hotspots may reduce perceived barriers to healthcare among Latinas in the greater Los Angeles area (N = 780). The results suggest that communication hotspots can influence people's health by facilitating information-sharing activities. In addition, communication hotspots may reduce perceived barriers to healthcare by bringing together diverse network actors. We conclude by considering future health interventions and policy planning to leverage and enhance community members' interactions at communication hotspots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comparison of the propositions, concepts and assumptions of the uses and gratifications (U&G) and media system dependency (MSD) theories shows how they differ on their notions of interpersonal networks, audience, nature of media power and the media system. While the U&G theory considers the individual's shaping of media content to satisfy his needs as theoretically interesting, MSD theorists hold a more social-oriented view of the behavior of audience members relative to media. In short, where the U&G theory is focused on the sociodemographic origins of differences in media use, the MSD theory is grounded on an interpersonal and sociological view of media use.

Objectives: Latinos have a disproportionately high risk for obesity and hypertension. The current study analyzes survey data from Latin American women to detect differences in rates of obesity and hypertension based on their number of health-related social ties. Additionally, it proposes individuals' health-related media preference (ethnic/ mainstream) as a potential moderator. Design: The dataset includes 364 Latinas (21–50 years old) from the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, who responded to a series of sociodemographic, physiological, health-related, and media-related questions. Results: Controlling for various sociodemographic and health variables, each additional health-related tie in a Latina's social network significantly decreased her likelihood of being obese OR =.79, p =.041, 95% CI [.66,.95], but did not affect hypertension. Further, the analysis revealed a significant interaction between media preference and health-related social ties, such that exposure to ethnic media tended to compensate for the absence of social ties for the likelihood of obesity OR =.75, p =.041, 95% CI [.52,.97], as well as hypertension OR =.79, p =.045, 95% CI [.55,.98]. Conclusion: In concurrence with the literature, increases in health-related ties reduced the likelihood of obesity in this population. Moreover, ethnic media preference may play an important role in mitigating the likelihood of obesity and hypertension among Latinas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informed by the theory of normative social behavior (TNSB) and ego-network analysis, the present study outlines the mechanisms that contribute to the creation and maintenance of social norms and their subsequent behavioral outcomes. By analyzing different patterns of normative influence associated with cervical cancer detection among Latinas (N = 982), the study concludes that network brokerage provides individuals with nonredundant information, helps resist normative pressure, and contributes to efficacy beliefs, promoting more informed decision making. Conversely, network closure perpetuates conformity, increases the influence of social norms, and induces less confidence in individual's ability to comply with cervical cancer screening, subjecting Latinas to unnecessary health risks. Overall, the results suggest that the study of normative influence should be combined with social network analysis, trying to shed a light on the distinct social structures and communication practices that can either reinforce or challenge norms. These findings extend the discussion of social norms in health-related decision making to a more nuanced approach that recognizes the antecedents and outcomes of normative influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article develops and tests a communication infrastructure model of belonging among dwellers of urban residential environments. The concept of a communication infrastructure--a storytelling system set in its communication action context--is discussed. Storytelling neighborhood, the communication process through which neighborhood discussion transforms people from occupants of a house to members of a neighborhood, is proposed as an essential component of people's paths to belonging, an attachment to a residential area that is evidenced in everyday exchange behaviors. A multimethod research design is employed to study seven residential areas in Los Angeles through the use of multilingual data collection to discover the relevant factors that determine belonging in new and old immigrant communities. A communication infrastructure model that posits storytelling as an intervening process between structural location and belonging is proposed and tested. Overall, the most important factor in creating belonging was found to be an active and integrated storytelling system that involves residents, community organizations, and local media. The diagnostic potentials of the communication infrastructure approach and the policy implications of the findings are discussed.

Imagining urban space as being comfortable or fearful is studied as an effect of people's connections to their residential area communication infrastructure. Geographic Information System (GIS) modeling and spatial-statistical methods are used to process 215 mental maps obtained from respondents to a multilingual survey of seven ethnically marked residential communities of Los Angeles. Spatial-statistical analyses reveal that fear perceptions of Los Angeles urban space are not associated with commonly expected causes of fear, such as high crime victimization likelihood. The main source of discomfort seems to be presence of non-White and non-Asian populations. Respondents more strongly connected to television and interpersonal communication channels are relatively more fearful of these populations than those less strongly connected. Theoretical, methodological, and community-building policy implications are discussed.

This study explored how structural and cultural forces work together with psychological and communication factors in influencing Pap test compliance among Latinas in Los Angeles County, a group who face health disparities related to cervical cancer screening, incidence and mortality. By adopting a multilevel approach to obtain a grounded understanding of this issue, this work revealed that structural barriers, fatalism, religious service attendance, perceived susceptibility, perceived costs, and cues to action from health care providers are all associated with Pap test compliance. Financial barriers also influence compliance, with underinsurance having a stronger negative impact compared to no insurance at all. These findings provide insights into how communication efforts can be strategically designed to address both individual- and system-level barriers to promote health-seeking behaviors among Latinas, and potentially among other population groups experiencing health disparities due to similar reasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hyperlocal news operations have been considered a promising alternative to the shrinking legacy media for sustaining civic discourse and engagement in local communities. However, these operations’ meso-level influence on civic engagement has not been widely investigated. Building upon the Media System Dependency theory, this article proposed an analytical framework for assessing such influence. This framework was applied to an ethnically diverse city as a case study, and 15 interviews with city officials and legacy media reporters helped elucidate the ways in which organizational actors might respond to the entry of a non-commercial, participatory local news website. The implications of these organizational responses for shifting the power–dependency relation between the local media and political systems were discussed, and the findings pointed to both promises and barriers in materializing the democratic potential of hyperlocal news websites while calling for more research across different community contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]