Cambridge A-Level Sociology: Media Representation and Media Effects — Practice Questions (9699)

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs — Cambridge International holds copyright in its own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers available through your school or Cambridge directly.

Related: Media representation and effects revision notes

These questions practise Cambridge International A Level Sociology (9699) Paper 4, heading 10 Media representation and effects (10.1, 10.2 and 10.3). Paper 4 essays carry 35 marks and must explore contrasting views; warm-ups check the core concepts.

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Warm-up questions

W1. Define moral panic. [2]

W2. Outline the hypodermic syringe model of media effects. [3]

W3. Explain one difference between the two-step flow model and the uses and gratifications model. [3]

W4. Give two ways the media might have a positive effect on behaviour. [2]

Warm-up answers

• W1. An exaggerated, media-amplified public reaction to a group or behaviour seen as a threat to social values, which often leads to calls for tougher control (Cohen, 1972).
• W2. The media inject messages directly into a passive, homogeneous audience, producing immediate and similar effects, for example imitation of violence; associated with Bandura’s Bobo doll experiments. 1 mark per developed feature.
• W3. In the two-step flow (Katz and Lazarsfeld, 1955), messages are filtered by opinion leaders who influence others; in uses and gratifications (Blumler and McQuail, 1968), individuals actively select media to meet their own needs. The first stresses social networks, the second individual choice.
• W4. Public-health or road-safety campaigns; charity appeals increasing donations; positive role models reducing prejudice; pro-social children’s programming.

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Essay 1 (10.1)

“The media represents women in stereotypical ways.” Evaluate this view. [35]

Indicative content

For:

• Tuchman (1978) — symbolic annihilation; Mulvey (1975) — male gaze; Ferguson (1983) — “cult of femininity” in women’s magazines; Wolf (1990) — beauty myth; McRobbie on Jackie — romance as the goal for girls.
• Women remain under-represented as experts and in news, and older women particularly so.
• Feminist explanations: male control of media industries; advertising’s use of women’s bodies.

Against:

• Gauntlett (2002): more diverse, assertive images of women; audiences select role models.
• Postmodernists: audiences construct identity from many images; stereotypes are increasingly parodied.
• New media allow women to produce their own content.

Evaluation: distinguish change in representation from continuing inequality in production; compare different media and societies; reach a judgement.

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Essay 2 (10.1)

“Moral panics are created by the media to sell news.” Evaluate this view. [35]

Indicative content

• For: sensationalism attracts audiences; Cohen’s Mods and Rockers (1972) shows exaggeration, prediction and symbolisation; panics around youth, migrants or welfare claimants sell papers and attract clicks.
• Against/alternative explanations: neo-Marxist view — Hall et al. (1978) saw moral panic as serving ruling-class interests in a crisis of hegemony, not merely sales; public concern may be genuine; social media mean panics can start with users, not journalists; some sociologists argue the concept is overused.
• Evaluation: commercial and ideological explanations can combine; consider class, gender, ethnic and age targets of panics.

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Essay 3 (10.2)

“Audiences are active, not passive, users of the media.” Evaluate this view. [35]

Indicative content

Supporting the view: uses and gratifications (Blumler and McQuail); two-step flow (Katz and Lazarsfeld); Hall’s encoding/decoding (1973) and Morley’s Nationwide study (1980); fan cultures and user-generated content.

Against the view: hypodermic syringe evidence (Bandura); cultural effects — cumulative influence on “common sense” (Gerbner, Glasgow University Media Group); normative model — media shape what is seen as acceptable; algorithms on new media limit choice.

Evaluation: audiences may be active in interpretation but still constrained by what is available; the strength of effects varies with age, education and social networks.

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Essay 4 (10.3)

“Violent media leads to violent behaviour.” Evaluate this view. [35]

Indicative content

For:

• Bandura’s Bobo doll experiments (1961, 1963) — imitation of observed aggression.
• Newson Report (1994) — concern that violent videos harm children.
• Desensitisation and cultivation arguments.

Against:

• Charlton’s research on St Helena after television arrived in 1995 found no rise in anti-social behaviour.
• Gauntlett’s “Ten things wrong with the media effects model” (1998): artificial methods, children treated as inadequate, violence defined inconsistently.
• Buckingham (1993): children distinguish fiction from reality.
• Correlation is not causation — violent people may choose violent media.

Evaluation: effects may be short-term and limited to some vulnerable individuals; social factors such as family, peers and poverty explain more violence; reach a supported conclusion.

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Essay 5 (10.3)

“Media sensationalism and stereotyping have a harmful effect on the groups they target.” Evaluate this view. [35]

Indicative content

For:

• Moral panics turn groups into folk devils (Cohen, 1972) and lead to tougher policing and punishment.
• Deviance amplification (Wilkins, 1964; Young, 1971): reaction increases the deviance it reports.
• Hall et al. (1978): racialised coverage of “mugging” shaped how Black youth were policed.
• Jones (2011): demonisation of working-class people justifies cuts to welfare.
• Labelling: stereotyped groups may internalise the label (self-fulfilling prophecy).

Against:

• Audiences decode stereotypes in negotiated or oppositional ways (Hall, 1973; Morley, 1980).
• Targeted groups use new media to produce counter-representations and challenge stereotypes.
• Some coverage raises awareness of injustice and leads to positive change.
• Other agencies (police, politicians, employers) may matter more than the media itself.

Evaluation: harm is likely where groups lack power to answer back; consider class, gender, ethnic and age groups separately; reach a judgement on how far the media is the main cause.

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Frequently asked questions

Should I include methodological criticism? Yes — evaluating experiments, content analysis and audience studies is one of the most effective forms of AO3 in media essays.

Can I write about social media in effects essays? Yes. The syllabus asks about the extent to which behaviour is influenced by the media generally, and new media evidence is relevant.

How do I avoid a list of studies? Group studies under each model or argument and explain what each one shows about the question.

Related pages: media representation and effects study guide | media ownership and control practice questions