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Social Theories on Game Shows
Some social theories are dedicated to game shows. These theories attempt to explain what game shows mean and what they say about society. Game shows also are compared to other forms of programming. Knowing what types of programming a society prefers and what the differences are between the types of programming can provide insights into the society and its members.
Game Shows Providing Data
Game shows have been used by social theorists to provide data for their theories. Game shows provide taped footage of people reacting genuinely to their situation. Game shows often include contestants of varied gender and racial, familial, and economic backgrounds, allowing researchers to have a broad sample and to make comparisons within it. Many game shows last for years, or even decades, giving researchers opportunities to examine changes and similarities over time. An example is a study of "Jeopardy" contestants that analyzes gender differences in speech intonations.
Game Shows as an Experiment
Some social theorists have used game shows as an experiment. They tell participants that they are going to be contestants on a television program. If the participants believe that they are on television, rather than in a lab, their reactions are believed to be more genuine. An example is the 2010 French documentary "Game of Death." Filmmakers recreated a classic experiment by psychologist Stanley Milgram. The original experiment was designed to show how people reacted to authority. Milgram ordered participants to give electric shocks to a person whom the subjects did not know was an actor. He was able to convince them to give increasingly stronger shocks despite the screams and pained reactions of the actor. In "Game of Death," the premise was the same, only participants believed that they were on a game show and the announcer and crowd were ordering them, not a researcher. Participants said they felt helpless to stop providing shocks; not stopping until the actor feigned death.