Reading Behavior and Punitive Perceptions: Testing the Cultivation Capability of Banned Books

• In Event: Media and Narratives on Punitiveness and Marginalization

Abstract

Gerbner’s (1969) Cultivation Theory proposes that heavy consumption of mass media cultivates a shared social reality among media consumers. While much of the existing cultivation literature has focused on the cultivation capacity of television, social media, and other forms of digital media, there has been comparatively little research on the cultivation potential of traditional literature. The current study explores this gap in literature by exploring the capacity for traditional literature and restricted (banned) book consumption to cultivate punitive perceptions among readers. The current project explores the cultivation capacity of literature in light of ongoing debates around the possible harmful impact of exposure to restricted literature (PEN America 2023; Meehan et al., 2024). Data for the current project are part of a multi-university survey of reading behaviors disseminated among New England universities. In addition to discussing the cultivating potential of literature, implications for literary censorship and restriction will be considered and potential directions for future research will be explored.

Authors

• Elliot P. Gamelin, University of New Haven

• Gregory A. Wadsworth, University of New Haven