More than entertaining: a typology of family portrayals and inherent persuasive potential

ABSTRACT

Family portrayals in entertainment media represent a significant concern for both media and family communication scholars. These fictional families can model both effective and ineffective family behaviors. Research within this realm often focuses on either the content or the effects of portrayals rather than providing a comprehensive picture. The family portrayal typology offers a tool to bridge this content-effects gap by providing explanatory and predictive power regarding family portrayals’ persuasive potentials. Stemming from social cognitive and entertainment theories, this paper identifies six family portrayal types and proposes their varying levels of persuasion based on the latent constructs of a family’s wishful identification arousal, eudaimonic quality, and general family outcomes. Suggestions for future research utilizing the typology are proposed.

Acknowledgments

The author wishes to thank Dr. Norman P. Lewis for his invaluable, constructive feedback in the conceptualization stage of this typology.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).