ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with an overview of the chronicle of the study of media effects. Although there is some disagreement about the progression of theory about and study of media effects, throughout the history of our field there have been bodies of research that emphasize different forces as the impetus for media effects. Those beliefs can be summarized by four basic models of media impact. This chapter presents these four models that will be the structure for the following chapters. Because this book focuses on understanding how media effects occur, these four models serve to highlight aspects of media content and the audience that serve as the basis for influence so that we can understand the process of media effects.
