Audience Theories

There are three main audience theories that are most related to the genre of horror, these are;

Reception Theory:
Reception theory is a version of reader response that emphasizes each particular reader's interpretation in making meaning from a literary text. Reception theory is generally referred to as audience reception in the analysis of communications models. The theory implies that: When a film maker produces a text it is included with a meaning or message that they then want the convey to the audience of the film/genre. The Audiences will detonate the message and understand what the producer was trying to inform, others will either reject or fail to correctly understand the message.

The Effects Model:
Media effects are used in media studies, to refer to the theories about the ways in which mass media and media culture affect how their audiences think and behave. For example, The Bobo Doll experiment, Albert Bandura which is a piece of research that apparently proved that children copy violent behaviour.

The Uses and Gratifications Model:
Uses and gratifications theory is an approach to understanding why and how people actively seek out specific media to satisfy specific needs,This theory is revealing and figuring out the reasons why people watch TV.