Selling College: The Iconography of College Life in College Bowl Games’ Public Service Announcements

• In Event: Poster Session 9
  In Poster Session: Postsecondary Research 1

Abstract

Researchers have attempted to identify and address factors to increase student persistence in higher education. In spite of these efforts, retention numbers remain stagnant, suggesting there are untapped issues affecting student success. College bowl games affect student college choice, so it seems possible that the games and the public service announcements (PSAs) produced and aired by the institutions during these televised games may affect viewers’ college expectations. As Braxton et al. (1995) noted, unrealistic expectations are more likely to lead to students’ college dissatisfaction. Therefore, this paper, using cultivation analysis as a framework, explores major college bowl PSAs from 2003-2010 to better understand their college representations as a first step in discovering their potential effects on student expectations

Authors

• Barbara F. Tobolowsky, The University of Texas - Arlington

• John W. Lowery, University of South Carolina