Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Chloe Jayne Price
1
Table of Contents
CONTENTS ................................................................................................................................... 1
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 2
METHOD....................................................................................................................... ..........................2
DATA ........................................................................................................................................... 4
Detailed table of results displaying the participants age, favourite TV programme and why ...... 4
Table of the numeric favourable responses to each TV programme .........................................17
Bar chart A displaying the favourable responses for each TV programme ................................18
Pie chart B displaying the top three TV programmes...............................................................18
RESULTS ......................................................................................................................................19
DISCUSSION ................................................................................................................................19
CONCLUSION...............................................................................................................................21
APPENDIX A (Copy of the questionnaire used to enable feedback from some participants) ..............22
Chloe Jayne Price
2
Concurring relationship between television programmes and the female demographic audience,
aged (18-22yrs).
Introduction
The purpose and aim of this report is to collate and analyse information in regards to which television
programmes female youth culture (18-22yrs) prefer within today’s society. The reason this research is
being carried out is to establish the successful running themes within the popular programmes so that
Hollyoaks can adapt this information to create amendments and improvements to the show so that it
can appeal to the demographic..
In order to investigate this, the report will be based upon an opportunity sample i.e. asking young adults
in person that walk by for their age, whether they are a student, their favourite television programme
and why. The information will then be collated into an organised table to create charts so that the
information collected can be drawn to generic conclusions.
Method
In order to carry out the investigation, I prepared a table that was split into 5 categories with the
headings, ‘Hometown’ ‘Age’ ‘Student’ ‘Favourite program’ ‘why’. The aim was to approach at least 100
females aged between 18 to 22 yrs and to ask them where they are from, their age, whether they are a
student, their favourite TV program and why. The first location visited was inside Manchester
Metropolitan student union (the SU) on Oxford road which is location in the centre of Manchester city.
This was a great place to approach students as it is very popular and busy, especially around lunch
time.
After collecting the required information from 20 students, I decided that it was time to visit an area that
wouldn’t be based just upon students. On a visit to Ainsdale beach (a small sea-side town located in
Southport at approximately 38miles south of Blackpool on the West coast.) I decided to use this
opportunity to carry out some of my research here, mainly because it would help display information
from participants in a larger cross section. I was able to collect around 10 young female adults that
provided me with the necessary information, mainly non students.
For my final location, I travelled into Stockport town centre and approached young females asking them
for the required information. This area provided me with data from a sample of 20 participants that were
mainly unemployed and not students.
This method is slightly different as I wanted to collect information from a greater cross section. I
decided to collect the information through an online questionnaire via a social networking site. The
questionnaire was very simple, it basically asked for the same information that was displayed on the
table of results below. Asking the 5 simple questions, hometown, age, are you a student? Favourite TV
program and why. The contact list on the social networking website consisted of students from different
universities and young adults from other areas. The sample I sent the questionnaires onto is from areas
such as, Liverpool, Coventry, Huddersfield, Nottingham, Bolton, Dublin, London and Sheffield. I was
able to collect information from 12 participants through this method.
Chloe Jayne Price
3
Finally, for the rest of the participants I needed to collect information from people aged at 18-19 as most
of the information I collected was of university students and young adults in their 20’s. I went into a sixth
form college close to Stockport centre with permission from the Principal, and approached students to
complete a questionnaire. (See Appendix A for a copy of the Questionnaire.)
Chloe Jayne Price
4
Data – A Detailed table of results displaying the participants’ hometown, age, student, favourite
programme and why.
Information gathered from the opportunity sample and questionnaires on the 4th June 2011 –
10th June 2011
Hometown Age Student Favourite programme
Why?
Stockport 18 yes Dexter Likes serial killers and crime dramas
Manchester 20 no Sex and in the city Adores characters and lifestyles they lead
Manchester 22 yes Sex and the city The small amount of characters gives a family feel, like friends. great storylines, fashion, can relate to the topics that come up in the episodes.
Manchester 19 yes Gossip Girl It is a form of escapism as it is a sensationalised and heightened reality.
Liverpool 19 no Desperate Housewives
Storylines and powerful women characters.
Stockport 22 yes Doctor Who Good mix of genres. Its intelligent whilst still being fun
Stockport 20 yes The Inbetweeners It is funny, relates to humour our age use.
Coventry 19 yes Desperate Housewives
Cleverly written storylines and strong feminine characters.
Bristol 20 yes 90210 Attractive male and female cast, can relate to the girlie friendship group. Loves the fashion and lifestyle.
Chloe Jayne Price
5
Manchester 20 No Sex in the city Can relate to characters and its fun.
Manchester 20 yes Eastenders Relate to the cast and entertaining characters.
Manchester 20 yes Come dine with me
Narrator David Lamb creates witty remarks that make the show entertaining.
Bolton 19 Yes Only way is essex like watching reality shows as you can kind of relate and it it makes regular life look interesting and not out of reach like 90210
Leeds 19 Yes Being Human Interesting contrast to real life and completely absurd.
Stockport 20 No Friends It’s so funny! And all the characters are so loveable and you feel like you know them.
Chloe Jayne Price
6
Stockport 20 no Desperate Housewives
I love it because it's high drama there’s lies and secrets and you can watch how different family's cope with the same situation it makes me forget about my own problems
Stockport 20 yes 90210 Really attractive males and good storylines
Stockport 21 no Celebrity Juice puts me in a really good mood and makes me laugh.
Stockport 20 no Coronation Street Easy watching and amazing storylines this week.
Manchester 20 no Bargain Hunt I am addicted
Manchester 22 no Sex and the city Love the girlie characters, touch upon real problems, not over exaggerated.
Manchester 20 Yes Inbetweeners Never fails to make me laugh
Manchester 22 No Celebrity Juice Makes me laugh and puts me in a good mood.
Chloe Jayne Price
7
Stockport 21 No Celebrity Juice Hilarious
Manchester 20 Yes Friends Each character has a unique personality that makes me feel like I know them; as though they are my family.
Stockport 19 Yes Twin Peaks directed by David Lynch and it's very surreal and I think the characters are intriguing.
Stockport 20 Yes One tree hill especially in early days because you could relate to most of it, now just addicted.
Manchester 19 No 90210 Addictive and devious storylines, a real teen magnet for a show!
Manchester 20 Yes 90210 Each character has their own story but they always come back together as one.
Stockport 18 Yes Doctor Who Mix of genres makes this show exciting and full of action and suspense.
Chloe Jayne Price
8
Manchester 18 No Desperate Housewives
They’re individual characters with their own life but are still seen as a member of the group.
Dublin (Ireland) 20 Yes The only way is Essex
Ridiculous, over the top characters.. so funny that they keep me watching!
Manchester 22 Yes Supernatural I love fictional and supernatural dramas. It is an alternate Fantasy and escapism for me.
Manchester 21 Yes Coronation Street Love the drama created between the characters.
Manchester 20 Yes 90210 The girls are gorgeous and lead a wonderful rich lifestyle.
Huddersfield 20 Yes Gossip Girl Characters are different in their own way but still a close-knit circle.
Boston 20 Yes Gossip Girl Aspiring lifestyle, it is like escapism for me.
Huddersfield 20 No Desperate Housewives
Strong female characters with very dramatic storylines. Always funny (Gabby)
Chloe Jayne Price
9
Boston 21 No Friends Small cast, feel like I know every character. Easy to catch up with if I have missed any episodes. Very funny!
Manchester 21 Yes Friends Hilarious comedy, feel like they’re my family.
Manchester 21 No Desperate Housewives
I am so entertained and transfixed to the plot turns and deception amongst the characters.
Bristol 18 Yes 90210 I love the gossip, young and small cast, good lifestyle and settings, arguments, deceptions and fashion.
Hertford 18 No Family Guy Very funny and simple comedy.
Colchester 18 Yes Skins It relates to the issues that are involved. I love the music as it keeps it fresh and cool and the dramatic lifestyles keep me on my toes.
Chloe Jayne Price
10
Stockport 19 Yes Doctor Who I like how it is different everytime and how it will go on for a long time as the Doctor changes. The fact that its quite a small cast makes it a lot more personal because you get to know each character.
Manchester 18 Yes Misfits Very exciting
London 18 Yes My family Great character development as you get to know the family really well.
London 18 No True blood Interesting and loveable characters and mythology.
Manchester 19 Yes Family Guy Extremely funny
Manchester 18 No Misfits Smaller cast – easier to keep up with.
Nottingham 19 Yes Modern family The dynamic is great. Relationships are clear and very easy to follow and the storylines are very true to life.
Chloe Jayne Price
11
Oxford 18 Yes Heartland The cast is not big so it tends to stick to one main story line in each episode. This makes it easy to follow and to understand.
Nottingham 18 Yes Glee The cast is my age so I can relate to them, and the cast size is easy to follow. I like musicals and I love the sitcom drama as its focused on a high school.
Newbury 21 Yes Celebrity Juice I love a good comedy and Keith Lemon is extremely funny. It’s very modern and now.
Newbury 18 No Doctor Who Small cast size that you can become familiar with. I like that there is no limit to ideas and things that can be done in the show as it is very fictional. The music plays a big part in the show.
Chloe Jayne Price
12
Newbury 18 Yes Desperate Housewives
Storylines and characters are appealing and it is funny.
Evesham 18 Yes True Blood It is different and interesting, funny, action packed and sexy.
Northampton 19 No True Blood Small cast, Young age for the majority of the cast and it is action packed.
Manchester 18 Yes CSI It keeps you on the edge of your seat and keeps you guessing the mystery. The cast size is not big and is a variety of ages.
Manchester 18 Yes Sex and the city Girlie fashion and classy lifestyle.
Stockport 19 Yes Come dine with me
I love food, it’s funny and entertaining watching people fight or become friends.
Newcastle 19 No 90210 I love all the characters in it and just the whole drama of the programme. All the characters are uniquely different.
Chloe Jayne Price
13
Newcastle 19 No The only way is essex
They are all sexy and funny. Because of the small cast you can tune in any week and know what is going on.
Newcastle 21 Yes Desperate Housewives
So funny and very dramatic, true to life storylines. Small cast like friends.
Newcastle 19 Yes Eastenders Very dramatic, always more than one storyline going on at once.
Newcastle 19 Yes 90210 The drama, it is an American version of skins.
Newcastle 18 No Glee It is exciting, modern, happy, full of different people and explores different teenage issues. I also love the music.
Chloe Jayne Price
14
Liverpool 18 Yes Friends It’s a really bubbly programme. You can watch the same episode a hundred times and it never gets old. It’s always got really funny storylines and all the characters are great.
Birmingham 20 Yes Friends Hilarious, small and loveable cast. Great character development! They are all different personalities especially Phoebe – extremely dopey.
Birmingham 21 Yes 90210 Gorgeous women that I am jealous of! Dramatic and interesting lifestyles.
Leeds 21 Yes Friends I want each character to be my best friend!
Huddersfield 20 No Skins Funny and very bad ass storylines.
Manchester 21 No Desperate Housewives
Amazing female characters, each uniquely different and are all like a family like friends.
Stockport 18 Yes Gossip Girl Dramatic and a much classier and aspiring characters than 90210.
Stockport 21 No Gossip Girl It is like mean girls made into a television series.
Chloe Jayne Price
15
Stockport 18 Yes Friends Old time classic, will always live on. Individual, comedy, family unit of characters.
Huddersfield 20 No Friends Each character works well together as they are all a piece of the puzzle. Does not work on their own e.g. Joey
Manchester 19 No 90210 It is more realistic than Gossip girl but yet still as aspiring.
Sheffield 18 No Desperate Housewives
Dramatic and scheming storylines.
Sheffield 20 No Gossip Girl The storylines are fantastic, the clever thought out schemes between each character keeps me hooked.
Stockport 19 Yes Doctor Who Really imaginative and is great to watch as my mind can just escape into another world.
Coventry 18 Yes 90210 Beautiful cast – a small cast – very mean girls.
Manchester 20 No The only way is essex
Hilarious at how false the characters are but yet it gets me hooked.
Dublin 18 No 90210 Good eye candy and great storylines.
Chloe Jayne Price
16
Stockport 19 Yes Friends Adorable characters and their close nit relationship.
Chester 18 Yes Friends Interesting how many storylines are created between the same set of cast.
Chester 19 No Friends makes me see them as my own best friends. They are part of a puzzle like Snow White’s dwarfs – they all have their own different personalities.
Birmingham 18 No Sex in the city Displays young independent women!
Manchester 19 Yes Gossip Girl Beautiful rich lifestyle makes me escape from my poor lifestyle!
Manchester 20 No 90210 Storylines and cast are similar to Gossip girl but more realistic and relatable.
Stockport 18 No Come dine with me
I am so interested in cooking and I love the bitchiness between the characters.
Stockport 19 Yes The only way is Essex
Because the characters are so ridiculous it makes me want to watch more.
Manchester 19 Yes 90210 Such beautiful lifestyles and characters.
Chloe Jayne Price
17
A Table displaying the number of participants that chose their favourite TV programme.
Name of TV programme Number of participants that listed the programme as their favourite (out of 100 participants)
90210 15 Bargain Hunt 1
Being Human 1 Celebrity Juice 4
Come dine with me 3
Coronation Street 2 CSI 1
Desperate Housewives 10 Dexter 1
Doctor Who 6 Eastenders 2
Family Guy 2
Friends 14 Glee 3
Gossip Girl 8 Heartland 1
Misfits 2 Modern Family 1
My Family 1
One Tree Hill 1 Sex & the city 6
Skins 2 Supernatural 1
The Inbetweeners 2 The only way is Essex 5
True Blood 4
Twin Peaks 1
Dublin 21 No True Blood Mysterious. Liverpool 21 No Friends Each character is
stereotyped e.g. Joey is the womaniser and Ross is dopey
Manchester 18 Yes Gossip Girl Gossip!
Oxford 19 No Glee Music!
Stockport 20 No 90210 Small cast!
Stockport 19 Yes Friends So funny and easy to watch. Each character is so different but connect so well.
Stockport 19 Yes Doctor Who Escapism.
Chloe Jayne Price
18
Bar chart displaying the favourable TV programmes from the 100 female participants (18-22yrs)
Bar Chart A
Pie chart displaying the top three popular TV programmes chosen by 100 female participants
(18-22yrs)
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
90
210
Ba
rgai
n H
un
t
Be
ing
Hu
ma
n
Ce
leb
rity
Ju
ice
Co
me
din
e…
Co
ron
atio
n…
CSI
De
spe
rate
…
De
xte
r
Do
cto
r W
ho
Eas
ten
de
rs
Fam
ily G
uy
Frie
nd
s
Gle
e
Go
ssip
Gir
l
He
artl
and
Mis
fits
Mo
de
rn F
amily
My
fam
ily
On
e T
ree
Hill
Sex
& t
he
cit
y
Skin
s
Sup
ern
atu
ral
Th
e…
Th
e O
nly
Way
…
Tru
e B
loo
d
Tw
ins
Pe
aks
10
15
14
Desperate Housewives
90210
Friends
Name of TV programme
Number of
participants
that chose
the
following
TV
programme
as their
favourite
Name of TV programme
The number
of
Participants
(out of 100)
that listed
the
following
programme
to be their
favourite
(out of 27
shows)
Chloe Jayne Price
19
Results
From the information gathered, it’s evident to see that out of the 27 favourable TV programmes, ‘90210,
Friends and Desperate Housewives’ were the most popular. However, Gossip Girl was just two
participants down from equalising for third place, therefore concluding that this TV programme is also
very popular amongst the female sample. Sex and the city and The Only Way Is Essex also proved to
be quite popular within the female sample as 6 out of 100 participants chose Sex and the city to be their
favourite TV programme along with 5 participants choosing The Only Way Is Essex.
Although the results have clearly defined the top three popular TV programmes amongst the female
sample, there were still many extraneous variables within the results. For example, the re were 10 TV
programmes that received a favourable response of just 1 participant. These programmes were,
Supernatural, One tree hill, Twin Peaks, Bargain Hunt, Dexter, True Blood and Modern Family.
Discussion
As the results were gathered above, they clearly state that 90210 received the largest numerical
participants that delivered a favourable response, this would therefore, claim to be a TV programme
that meets the demands and pursuits of the female demographic audience. 90210 were most popular
with the participants from Manchester and from the Social Net-working site, 10 out of 15 favourable
responses from these locations commenting favourably on young and attractive characters .
Furthermore, there are many factors that were discussed in the participants’ comments that make this
programme so popular. The first reason that was suggested by many participants within the sample is
that the appearance of each character male and female is young and attractive which therefore,
immediately catches the eye of the teenage/young adult market and as some participants say, they
aspire to be them and that they are ‘jealous’ of the characters look and lifestyle.
Basing some significant conclusions from the analysis of the data gathered, participants provided
positive feedback on being able to relate to the show. The TV show is highly relatable in terms of the
situation young adults are faced with in today’s society. 90210 displays the young characters’ journey
into adulthood, displaying their choices and sacrifices in choosing their own path as they try to keep the
same closeness that worked so well for them in high school. The show displays the tight-knit circle of
friends meeting new people, resulting in friendships, relationships and loyalties being tested. Some
attend college, while others start their careers. The basis of the background story in itself is relatable to
the entire demographic audience as it reaches out to students and those who are not or no longer
students. From the participants’ comments, it is ev ident that they prefer a smaller cast that are close
and family orientated because they feel they have a connection with the characters as they feel that
they “can get to know them more”.
Each character within 90210 is stereotyped to create an instant unde rstanding and connection between
the audience and the character. For example, Ivy is the tomboy surfer chick, Naomi is the fashionable
leader (similar to Blair from Gossip Girl) and Annie is the girl next door learning to fit in and do what is
right by people, but stumbling on her way. Because each character has their own individual stereotype,
it gives each character a purpose as though they are part of the puzzle to enable an entertaining TV
programme.
Chloe Jayne Price
20
Another popular TV show within the female sample was Desperate Housewives.
“A Dark comedy drama exploring the complicated reality behind the apparent domestic bliss of a group
of housewives in a fictitious American suburb.”
Alike 90210, Desperate Housewives also have their own tight-knit circle of friends but they are not
going through the stages of adulthood. These characters are women in their mid to late 30’s+ dealing
with similar relationship and friendship problems as characters do on 90210 i.e. love interests and
friendships.
However, Desperate Housewives displays an extra element to the TV industry as they provide light
hearted humour. For example, Gabby played by Eva Longoria displays the funny side to married life
such as getting out of trouble from her husband or apologising for a parking ticket be cause she classed
getting her nails done as an emergency. This suggestion is backed up by a large similarity upon the
participants’ comments that they enjoy the show because of its humour as well as the characters and
lifestyle.
Furthermore, after discussing this programme with members of the opportunity sample, a lot of people
stated that they liked to watch characters of their own age if not older and never younger. They
suggested that watching characters younger than them looses their interest because they feel that they
have “been there, done that” in their lives. Whether this suggestion applies to other young female adults
is a different matter, but it is certainly an interesting view to point out.
Similarly, the third popular show Friends displays male and female characters that try to resolve their
various love, career, family and sports quandaries. These relationships are further complicated by
constant inter-mingling. However, within the sample used for the study, participants have praised the
shows use of humour, displaying each character funny in their own way. For example, a concurring
relationship from the comments emerged that Joey was seen to be funny through his view on women
and of his lack of intelligence and Ross was seen as the Dopy and clumsy one of the group.
This show has been able to run successfully for 10 seasons by displaying a small close circle of friends
as the cast, good quality humour and individuality of each character (they all had their own role, like the
seven dwarfs) Not only was this show seen to make the audience laugh, it also made the audience
sympathise with the characters as they struggled with real life issues within their career and
relationships. It is important to emphasise the importance of characters having the ir own part to play in
the show because, Joey went to do his own TV programme without the other characters. Joey was
unsuccessful as it did not display the right amount of diversity between different characters.
Discussing in the light of the data, Gossip Girl was also a popular TV programme choice within the
sample, with comments concurring between Gossip Girl, 90210, Friends and Desperate Housewives.
For example, many females stated that they enjoyed the drama, small cast of a tight circle of friends,
the lifestyle and the humour that is generated between characters. This is running theme to note here
as It appears that the TV programmes with aspiring lifestyles, good looks and humour appeal to a large
majority of the demographic.
Chloe Jayne Price
21
Conclusion
Overall, the cast size is always an important factor to note here; noticeably there has been a concurring
relationship stated between the cast sizes and of the popularity of the show. For example, 90210,
Friends and Desperate Housewives all generate a family unit o r a tight-knit circle of friends, creating a
bond between the characters. From the collected data, the sample has suggested that they tend to
connect to the characters and see them as their family or best friends. To support this suggestion,
many of the comments claimed that the smaller the cast size was, the more you can focus and connect
with each character.
To base a conclusion on the analysed data, each of the most popular TV programmes share a similarity
that proves to appeal to the demographic audience. This similarity is that each show displays
friendships, relationships and loyalties being tested in ways that audiences can relate to and
sympathize with as well as displaying a touch on humour. These themes were mentioned numerous
times within the participants’ comments upon their favourite TV programme.
Furthermore, another similarity to be noted is that each character within these TV programmes has their
own storyline but they always end up connecting back to each other. For example, if something
happens to one of the characters within the tight-knit circle it affects them all; it is as though each
storyline ends up bleeding into one. A number of participants back this suggestion by claiming that they
“are individual characters with their own life but are still seen as a member of the group.”
Many participants have raised the issue of the cast size in regards to Hollyoaks, they have stated that
the larger the cast and the more storylines going on at once can enable difficulty in catching up if an
episode is missed.
In order to overcome these issues within Hollyoaks, the following can be suggested.
- Create a tight knit circle of characters so that audiences can connect better to them (together
the characters are more powerful, Friends is a good examp le because the show Joey was a
failure without the other characters.)
- Display true to life issues within high school such as issues of depression or coping with exams
during the time of a death within the family. Or maybe, even display a young girls first love and
how their vulnerable mind can be shaped into believing they are not good enough. Avoid the
cliché bullying tactics such as writing letters to others.
- Create characters as individuals, which can be stereotyped as the ‘clumsy one’ or the
‘attractive one’ or the ‘dopy one’ (Desperate Housewives is a good example here, Gabby is the
attractive one, Lynette is the business mother and Bree is the mothering one of the group.)
Stereotyping characters enables a quick connection between the character and the audience.
- Add some fresh humour that young people find funny, a lot of the participants made references
to The Inbetweeners, Celebrity Juice and Family guy in regards to what they found amusing.
Chloe Jayne Price
22
Appendix A
HOLLYOAKS RESEARCH QUESTIONAIRE
Please fill in the following questions in as much detail as you possibly can in
regards to your favourite TV programme.
A few themes I would like you to think about when describing why your chosen
program is your favourite is as follows:
- Cast size (do you prefer a smaller cast size or larger? – why?)
- Cast ages (do you prefer the cast to be younger/older than you?)
- Discuss the genre – how does this genre appeal to you?
- What stylistic themes run throughout the program? E.g. gossip girl –
concentrates highly on fashion and the rich aspiring life style.
- The style of music used in the programme
Name:
Age:
Favourite TV program:
Briefly explain why this is your favourite TV programme:
