What Is The Lasswell Communication Model? The Lasswell Communication Model In A Nutshell

The Lasswell communication model is a linear framework for explaining the communication process through segmentation. Lasswell proposed media propaganda performs three social functions: surveillance, correlation, transmission. Lasswell believed the media could impact what viewers believed about the information presented.

Understanding the Lasswell communication model

The Lasswell communication model is named after American political scientist and communication theorist Harold Lasswell.

Lasswell, a former Yale University professor, developed the model in 1948 to analyze mass communication and the effect of media propaganda in various countries and businesses. To that end, he proposed media propaganda performs three social functions:

Surveillance – which gives those consuming media insight into what is transpiring around them.Correlation – this refers to the media’s interpretation and explanation of specific news events.Transmission – where the media conveys social ideas and cultural heritage to subsequent generations of media consumers.

In general terms, Lasswell believed the media could impact what viewers believed about the information presented. This notion can be extended to any communicator, whether it be a person, group, or business.

Regardless of the context, however, the communicating entity has some intention to influence the receiver through messaging. This means Lasswell’s model treats communication as a tool for persuasion.

The five components of the Lasswell communication model

Five components can be used to predict the effect a message has on a person or group of people, with each having its own analysis method.

Let’s take a look at the five components below:

1 – Who  

The communicator, sender, or source of the message. This may be a person or an organized institution like a newspaper, radio station, website, or television station. 

Here, Lasswell argued that a control analysis should be used to critique the sender on how they exercise control and power over the message being disseminated. Do they have authority on the topic? Do they have a political agenda or some other bias? How have they reported on similar events in the past?

2 – Says what

Put simply, the message being communicated. This may include a news story, fairy-tale, biblical story, political story, or story with an important take-home message.

In this case, Lasswell favored a content analysis where a transcription of the message is scrutinized. This enables the receiver to identify recurring themes, highlight important passages, and identify how the message distorts the truth. 

More specifically:

How does the message depict someone as a hero while depicting someone else as a villain? How does it frame the battle between good and evil?How are minority groups portrayed? This is an increasingly important factor.What are the concepts being reinforced as the ideal or truth?3 – In which channel

This describes the medium or media used to disseminate the message, such as social media, photography, books, blogs, television, radio, letters, and magazines.

When Lasswell developed his theory in 1948, he had access to a very small number of media. But the premise remains the same today, with a media analysis determining the medium most suitable for sending a message to a particular audience.

4 – To Whom

This is the receiver of the message, which may be an individual or an audience. In the context of mass communication, the audience may constitute:

The citizens of a nation.The readership of a blog, magazine, or newspaper.Children – if messages are being sent on television before and after school and on weekends.Adults – for products such as alcohol and gambling.Women – for the promotion of women’s fashion and related social issues.

In the fourth component, audience analysis is key. This categorizes the preferences of audiences according to:

Demography – age, income level, ethnicity, location, and marital status.Status – political or social affiliations, job titles, and professions.Behaviors – needs, wants, values, hobbies, personalities.5 – With what effect

What effect will the message have on the intended target audience?

In marketing, the effect the business wants to institute is consumers spending money. However, other effects may also include influencing voter preferences, increased brand awareness, or public awareness of a health issue.

To measure the impact of a message, an effects analysis is undertaken. For modern businesses, results can be attained almost instantaneously. An eCommerce business will know how long a consumer spends on their site before purchasing. Similarly, it will also be able to determine the success of a recent advertising campaign and be able to make important strategic adjustments.

Advantages and disadvantages of the Lasswell model of communicationAdvantagesVersatility

Lasswell’s model is useful to describe almost any type of communication, irrespective of the context, message content, sender and receiver, and medium in which the communication occurs.

Simplicity

While it does not have the nuance of some other models, many enjoy Lasswell’s interpretation because it is simple, easy to understand, and contains only five components.

DisadvantagesFeedback

The main criticism of Lasswell’s model is that it does not account for feedback. While the effect a message has on the receiver could be construed as feedback, Lasswell’s model was intended to study mass media communication. As a result, it does not consider that the receiver may want to transmit a message back to the sender.

Noise

Furthermore, Lasswell’s model does not consider the impact of noise. This can be defined as any internal or external factor that disrupts the communication process. In general, noise may be physiological (hunger, fatigue), physical (interference, static, a passing train), psychological (preoccupation, inattentiveness), and semantic – where words or concepts are not mutually understood because of age, culture, experience, or some other factor.

Common misconceptions of Lasswell’s model

Lasswell’s model has existed for over 70 years. During that time, several misconceptions have arisen and cast doubt over Lasswell’s contribution to the field of mass communication. 

Let’s take a brief look at these misconceptions below.

The model is static with fixed categories

Many assume Lasswell’s model is a product of its time. Post-World War Two, communication was mechanistic and consisted of one sender, a broadcast message, and many receivers.

However, in the years after his model was released, Lasswell stressed that his model could be adapted to a range of contexts. In 1968, for example, he noted that it could be used to analyze political discourse and added several more components. In the late 1990s, several scholars also equated “effect” with “feedback” and used it in various social, economic, and cultural contexts.

Lasswell created a graphical model

There is also an assumption that Lasswell created the graphical model behind his theory. However, it was first mentioned by Denis Mcquail and Sven Windahl in their 1981 book Communication Models for the Study of Mass Communications.

Further analysis of the model and how it was applied to Lasswell’s theory has discovered potential inconsistencies. Perhaps the most salient is that Mcquail and Windahl used arrows pointing from left to right to give the impression of linear communication. However, experts argue that Lasswell’s categories of questions are just that. There is nothing in the theory suggesting communication must progress through the categories linearly.

Lasswell’s model is outdated

Some also consider Lasswell’s model outdated for obvious reasons. But when the theory is perceived as more than a simple linear model and instead as a general concept, we discover that it has more utility and relevance today.

This can be demonstrated by the way in which Lasswell’s concept has been cited in literature over the past few decades. Indeed, it has been adapted as a maxim, index, model, formula, paradigm, and dictum, among other uses.

Key takeaways:The Lasswell communication model is a linear framework for explaining the communication process through segmentation. It was developed by American political scientist and communication theorist Harold Lasswell in 1948.The Lasswell communication model was based on a study of media propaganda across various countries and businesses and the role it played in mass communication.The Lasswell communication model is comprised of five components, with each component asking the receiver to critically analyze various aspects of the message. 

Main Free Guides:

Business ModelsBusiness StrategyBusiness DevelopmentDigital Business ModelsDistribution ChannelsMarketing StrategyPlatform Business ModelsTech Business Model

The post What Is The Lasswell Communication Model? The Lasswell Communication Model In A Nutshell appeared first on FourWeekMBA.