Between Breaking Bad and Big Brother

Social Class and Television Preferences in Croatia

Bibliographic Data

ID2392358
AuthorsKrešimir Krolo (0000-0002-4556-7698, University of Zadar, Croatia, corresponding author), Željka Tonković (0000-0002-5972-9491, University of Zadar, Croatia), Dina Vozab (0000-0001-8718-2553, University of Zagreb, Croatia)
Year2024
Volume29
Issue4
Pages807-824
Publication date2024-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSociological Research Online (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1360-7804 • E-ISSN: 1360-7804
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/13607804231207253
OpenAlexW4388798369
LanguageEN
References cited46

This article addresses TV preferences as a marker of class divisions both as a type of embodied cultural capital and as a pattern of consumption within the local and global cultural structure in Croatia. Data analysis is extracted from the survey 'Social Stratification in Croatia: Structural and Subjective Aspects', conducted on a nationally probabilistic sample of adult Croatian citizens. Factor analysis discovered two main dimensions of television preferences: reality spectacle and foreign fiction preferences, which were recognised as indicators of localised and globalised culture preferences. Further analysis established that these factors are also structured along the class positions of the respondents. Using multiple regression analysis, data suggest the conclusion that the working class prefers TV content in the domestic language and heavy on popular entertainment programming (soap operas, talent, and reality shows). However, the dominant class repudiate 'lowbrow' TV content, which highlights class divisions in the cultural field. The analysis sheds light not only on how class positions structure these preferences but also on the important role of age, gender, and music taste play in the formation of television preferences

Advertising · Content analysis · Cultural capital · Entertainment · Media consumption · Media studies · Multiple correspondence analysis · Political science · Reality television · Social class · Social science · Social stratification · Sociology · Spectacle · Taste · Asian Culture and Media Studies · Cultural Industries and Urban Development · Law · Psychology · Social and Cultural Dynamics · Social Psychology

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