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1. Uses of Gratification Theory
By Gursimran Deol

2. The Theory
• The Gratification Theory was created by Elihu Katz in
1959. This theory attempts to understand how and why
people seek out to certain parts of the media to satisfy
their specific needs, this theory is popular to understand
mass communication. The theory is based on finding out
why people use certain parts of the media rather than
the content of the media.
• The theory suggests that the audience is responsible for
choosing certain parts of the media to satisfy their
needs.

3. Main uses of Gratification Theory
• Entertainment
• Integration and Social Interaction
• Personal Identity
• Information

4. Entertainment
• Entertainment is seen as a method of relaxation or to
escape the reality of the peoples lives, it could also be
seen as an emotional release. For example; when
audiences watch a movie they forget about the problems
they have, the entertainment diverts or distracts the
person from the their harsh reality.

5. Integration and social interaction
• Social interaction is done through communication with family
and friends. This can be simply by talking about the
characters, general thought of film etc.
• This can also be done in groups, for example; if a group of
people were to go to the cinema, they could talk about the
film after it is finished and see what each member of the
group thought of the film.

6. Personal Identity
• This is used to see how people reflect us and our personalities
through the media. For example; sometimes we may find
similarities through celebrities and role models.

7. Information
• Through the media you can gain a variety of information such
as; events, conditions, society etc. You can also gain
information about celebrities lifestyles and gossip.
• The media can help us throughout our lives, for example; the
information gained through the media can help an individual
on certain matters and opinions in their life. Also, the media
can educate people by feeding them useful information.