Skolen for Statskundskab Standardtitelblad til seminaropgaver, praktikrapporter, projekter og specialer Titelbladet placeres i opgaven umiddelbart efter selvvalgt forside Til obligatorisk brug på alle ovennævnte opgavetyper på: • BA - politik og administration • BA – samfundsfag som centralt fag og tilvalgsfag • Kandidat – politik og administration • Kandidat – samfundsfag som centralt fag og tilvalgsfag • Cand. it i it-ledelse • BA – offentlig innovation og digitalisering (Alle felter skal udfyldes) Uddannelse: Kandidat Samfundsfag Semester: 10. semester Udarbejdet af (Navn(e)) Modul Sandra Thorup Mose Specialemodul Opgavens art (seminaropgave, projekt, bachelorprojekt, praktikrapport eller speciale): Speciale Titel på opgave: De forandrede Medier & De uforandrede Holdninger Vejleders navn: Christian Albrekt Larsen Afleveringsdato: 1. juli 2015 Antal normalsider (excl. bilag, indholdsfortegnelse og litteraturliste): 75 Antal anslag (excl. bilag, indholdsfortegnelse og litteraturliste): Tilladte normalsider jf. studieordning/formalia i moodle: 75 OBS! Hvis du overskrider de tilladte antal normalsider, kan din opgave afvises efter aflevering Til Bendt Mose – Du lever i minderne, dør i sorgen og mangler i glæden   Abstract The paradox between the changes in medias’ attitudes towards receivers of social assistance and the stability in the Danes’ attitudes towards the same group creates the foundation for this study’s research question: Why have the Danes’ attitudes towards receivers of social assistance not changed significantly when the medias’ framing of the group has seemingly become more negative? During recent years Danish newspapers have seemingly portrayed the recipients of social assistant rather negative. Studies from Jensen and Mose, among others, showed that in 1998 – 1999 the typical receiver of social benefits, who were portrayed in Danish newspapers, was represented by a homeless man, who were not to blame for his wretched situation. However, articles collected from 2011 – 2012 show that the frame has changed. The typical receiver of welfare payments is no longer portrayed by a homeless man, who is not able to work, but instead by a man named Robert or by a woman named Carina, who is portrayed as people who will not work despite their ability to. A study by Thaysen & Nedergaard 2013, confirms the result by a quantitative study of articles from Danish newspapers. They divided the articles into two groups – 1. Including articles which frames the receivers of social benefits as worthy receivers. 2. Including articles which frames the receivers of social benefits as unworthy receivers. The last frame was found to be most dominating. Parallel to the changes in the Danish newspapers framing of receivers of social assistance ran studies concerning the Danes’ attitudes towards receivers of social assistance. Several studies from Hedegaard 2013, among others, show that the Danes’ attitudes have not changed during the framing changes in the media. Thru a casestudy of interviewing eight informants and their perception of the television show Blok på Bistand, this study sheds some light on, which thoughts and attitudes the informants are marked by, during and after watching the television show mentioned above. The interviews of the informant took place immediately after watching the show and a second interview took place five days later. Other studies from Iyengar, among others, show that Iyengar’s informants are affected by a tv show about welfare payments and their statements are quite negative, which is consistent with the frame of the tv show. The problem with the study mentioned before is that it gives the informant little time to process the information and to reflect on it. It is not in line with reality. This study, however, focuses on each informant, their thoughts and attitudes and due to a hermeneutic position it embraces the differences in the informants’ attitudes towards the participants in the show. The informants where selected on the basis of three variables: gender, level of education and political standpoint. These variables were presumed to influence the informants’ attitude and position. Therefore the study found that theories concerning attitude, such as John Zaller and his RAS-model and the theory of stereotyping, among others, where able to answer the study’s research question. However the empirical data showed some other aspects of the individual’s cognitive process. The analysis showed that 1. The informants reflected on the tv show and they became more positive towards the participants in the show from the first to the second interview. The informants’ reflections were expressed differently due to their level of education. The highly educated informants were quite critical of the questions of the interviewer, while the lower educated were more critical of their formerly expressed attitudes. 2. In the first interview the informants cognitively categorized the participants of the show, whereas in the second interview the categorization seemed less important. Many informants, especially two workmen, spend a lot of time in the first interview to try and categorize the participants cognitively. It seems that the time from the first to the second interview gave the informants time to reflect on the program and to reflect on their attitudes towards it. At the same time the results suggest that the informants lack stereotypes to compare the participants in the show to. It seems that the informants do not have a negative stereotype of receivers of social assistance but they do not show a positive stereotype either. Therefore they do not seem to be in possession of a stereotype. 3. The analysis also showed that the informants became more emphatic and sympathetic from the first to the second interview; this was quite distinctly in the female group. One male informant was emphatic during the whole period of interviewing, while others first showed their empathy in the second interview. This seems to have a connection to the forth finding. 4. The informants’ occupations were found to be quite relevant for their attitudes. The study showed that informants who have a social profession showed more empathy towards the participants in the show, whereas informants who worked within a trade seemed less emphatic. The result of the study made it clear that the chosen theories Zaller, among others, were missing a crucial point that is, that the informants can reflect on the potential impact, in this case the tv show, and be in possession of various attitudes. One of the answers to the research question written above is found in this study. Even though the media represents the receivers of welfare payments quite negatively the individual is able to reflect on the framing, on the participants in the show, on the interviewer’s questions and on their own attitudes, which creates a stability in the Danes’ attitudes towards receivers of social assistance.