The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic

This study applies the knowledge gap hypothesis to examine the direct and interactive influence of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic in Singapore. Using a nationally representative random digit-dialing telephone survey of 1,05...

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Main Author: Ho, Shirley S.
Other Authors: Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: 2013
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Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10356/96220
http://hdl.handle.net/10220/17284
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Institution: Nanyang Technological University
Language: English
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spelling sg-ntu-dr.10356-962202020-06-10T04:10:03Z The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic Ho, Shirley S. Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Communication theories and models This study applies the knowledge gap hypothesis to examine the direct and interactive influence of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic in Singapore. Using a nationally representative random digit-dialing telephone survey of 1,055 adult Singaporeans, results show that attention to newspapers was not associated with a widened knowledge gap about the H1N1 pandemic between the high and low socioeconomic status individuals. Conversely, attention to television news and interpersonal discussion were associated with a narrowed knowledge disparity between the high and low socioeconomic status individuals. Findings suggest that the knowledge gap hypothesis was not supported in this study. Instead, results suggest that attention to television news and interpersonal discussions were associated with a reduced knowledge gap. Household income and risk perceptions were also found to be positively associated with public knowledge about the H1N1 flu pandemic. Both theoretical and practical implications were discussed. Accepted version 2013-11-05T06:12:13Z 2019-12-06T19:27:27Z 2013-11-05T06:12:13Z 2019-12-06T19:27:27Z 2012 2012 Journal Article Ho, S. S. (2012). The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic. Mass Communication and Society, 15(5), 695-717. doi:10.1080/15205436.2011.616275 1520-5436 https://hdl.handle.net/10356/96220 http://hdl.handle.net/10220/17284 10.1080/15205436.2011.616275 5 15 695 717 en Mass communication and society © 2012 Mass Communication & Society Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. All rights reserved. This paper was published by Taylor & Francis in Mass Communication and Society and is made available with permission of Mass Communication & Society Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. application/pdf
institution Nanyang Technological University
building NTU Library
country Singapore
collection DR-NTU
language English
topic DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Communication theories and models
spellingShingle DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Communication theories and models
Ho, Shirley S.
The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic
description This study applies the knowledge gap hypothesis to examine the direct and interactive influence of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic in Singapore. Using a nationally representative random digit-dialing telephone survey of 1,055 adult Singaporeans, results show that attention to newspapers was not associated with a widened knowledge gap about the H1N1 pandemic between the high and low socioeconomic status individuals. Conversely, attention to television news and interpersonal discussion were associated with a narrowed knowledge disparity between the high and low socioeconomic status individuals. Findings suggest that the knowledge gap hypothesis was not supported in this study. Instead, results suggest that attention to television news and interpersonal discussions were associated with a reduced knowledge gap. Household income and risk perceptions were also found to be positively associated with public knowledge about the H1N1 flu pandemic. Both theoretical and practical implications were discussed.
author2 Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information
author_facet Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information
Ho, Shirley S.
format Article
author Ho, Shirley S.
author_sort Ho, Shirley S.
title The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic
title_short The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic
title_full The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic
title_fullStr The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic
title_full_unstemmed The knowledge gap hypothesis in Singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the H1N1 flu pandemic
title_sort knowledge gap hypothesis in singapore : the roles of socioeconomic status, mass media, and interpersonal discussion on public knowledge of the h1n1 flu pandemic
publishDate 2013
url https://hdl.handle.net/10356/96220
http://hdl.handle.net/10220/17284
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