Herta Herzog
Encyclopedia
Herta Herzog-Massing was an Austria
n-American social scientist
specializing in communication studies
. Her most prominent contribution to the field, an article entitled "What Do We Really Know About Daytime Serial Listeners?", is considered a pioneering work of the uses-and-gratifications
approach and the cognitive revolution
in media research. She was married to both Paul Lazarsfeld
and later Paul Massing
and was stepmother to Lazarsfeld's daughter, MIT professor Lotte Bailyn.
, Herzog elected to do her dissertation under Paul Lazarsfeld
, a survey about the then-new medium of radio. She received her Ph. D. in psychology
in 1932 despite developing a crippling case of polio, from which her right arm never fully recovered.
In 1935, she followed Lazarsfeld to the United States and married him there shortly after Lazarsfeld's divorce
from Marie Jahoda
. After a brief period as research assistant to Robert Staughton Lynd
, Herzog joined the Radio Project
, which Lazarsfeld headed. At the Radio Project, she was part of the team who conducted the groundbreaking research on Orson Welles
' 1938 broadcast of The War of the Worlds
in the study The Invasion from Mars. In her most famous work, "What Do We Really Know About Daytime Serial Listeners?", she surveyed housewives about their motivation
s for listening to radio soap opera
s, suggesting a conscious selection process on the part of the listener in a move away from the still dominant behaviorism
theories of media effects of the time. While Herzog was a specialist of qualitative pilot studies and is even credited with developing modern focus group
methodology, her work is characterized throughout by a pragmatic mix of qualitative
and quantitative
methods.
In 1943, Herzog left the Radio Project and joined the market research department of McCann Erickson
in New York City
, where she eventually became chairwoman of the McCann market research
unit, Marplan. She divorced Lazarsfeld in 1945 and married Rutgers University
professor Paul Massing
in 1954. In 1964, she joined Jack Tinker Partners, a creative think tank
set up by McCann. She retired from full-time market research in 1970 to spend more time with her husband, who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease
. They returned to Europe
in 1976.
After Massing's death in 1979, Herzog returned to academia
, teaching at Tübingen and Vienna, and publishing scholarly articles, most famously about the reception of American prime-time television soap operas (primarily Dallas
and Dynasty
) in Germany
as well as one study about anti-semitism
in Austria.
She continued to do research work well into the 1990s, based in Leutasch
, Tyrol, near her sister's family. She died there in 2010 at the age of 99, the last survivor of the founders' generation of market research.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n-American social scientist
Social Scientist
Social Scientist is a New Delhi based journal in social sciences and humanities published since 1972....
specializing in communication studies
Communication studies
Communication Studies is an academic field that deals with processes of communication, commonly defined as the sharing of symbols over distances in space and time. Hence, communication studies encompasses a wide range of topics and contexts ranging from face-to-face conversation to speeches to mass...
. Her most prominent contribution to the field, an article entitled "What Do We Really Know About Daytime Serial Listeners?", is considered a pioneering work of the uses-and-gratifications
Uses and gratifications
Uses and gratifications theory is an approach to understanding mass media and mass communication. The theory discusses how users proactively search for media that will not only meet a given need but enhance knowledge, social interactions and diversion It assumes that members of the audience are...
approach and the cognitive revolution
Cognitive revolution
The cognitive revolution is the name for an intellectual movement in the 1950s that began what are known collectively as the cognitive sciences. It began in the modern context of greater interdisciplinary communication and research...
in media research. She was married to both Paul Lazarsfeld
Paul Lazarsfeld
Paul Felix Lazarsfeld was one of the major figures in 20th-century American sociology. The founder of Columbia University's Bureau of Applied Social Research, he exerted a tremendous influence over the techniques and the organization of social research...
and later Paul Massing
Paul Massing
Paul Wilhelm Massing was a German sociologist.-Biography:Born in Grumbach in the Rhine Province, he attended school in Cologne, and later studied economics and social sciences at Frankfurt University, when Franz Neumann was there and at Cologne Handelshochschule . He graduated in 1926 as a...
and was stepmother to Lazarsfeld's daughter, MIT professor Lotte Bailyn.
Biography
Originally a student of Karl Bühler at university in ViennaVienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Herzog elected to do her dissertation under Paul Lazarsfeld
Paul Lazarsfeld
Paul Felix Lazarsfeld was one of the major figures in 20th-century American sociology. The founder of Columbia University's Bureau of Applied Social Research, he exerted a tremendous influence over the techniques and the organization of social research...
, a survey about the then-new medium of radio. She received her Ph. D. in psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
in 1932 despite developing a crippling case of polio, from which her right arm never fully recovered.
In 1935, she followed Lazarsfeld to the United States and married him there shortly after Lazarsfeld's divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
from Marie Jahoda
Marie Jahoda
Marie Jahoda was an Austrian- British social psychologist.-Biography:Jahoda was born in Vienna, Austria to a Jewish family, and like many other psychologists of her time, grew up in Austria where political oppression against socialists was rampant henceforward Dollfuß claimed power...
. After a brief period as research assistant to Robert Staughton Lynd
Robert Staughton Lynd
Robert Staughton Lynd was an American sociologist born in New Albany, Indiana...
, Herzog joined the Radio Project
Radio Project
The Radio Project was a social research project funded by the Rockefeller Foundation to look into the effects of mass media on society.In 1937, the Rockefeller Foundation started funding research to find the effects of new forms of mass media on society, especially radio...
, which Lazarsfeld headed. At the Radio Project, she was part of the team who conducted the groundbreaking research on Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
' 1938 broadcast of The War of the Worlds
The War of the Worlds (radio)
The War of the Worlds was an episode of the American radio drama anthology series Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was performed as a Halloween episode of the series on October 30, 1938, and aired over the Columbia Broadcasting System radio network. Directed and narrated by actor and future filmmaker...
in the study The Invasion from Mars. In her most famous work, "What Do We Really Know About Daytime Serial Listeners?", she surveyed housewives about their motivation
Motivation
Motivation is the driving force by which humans achieve their goals. Motivation is said to be intrinsic or extrinsic. The term is generally used for humans but it can also be used to describe the causes for animal behavior as well. This article refers to human motivation...
s for listening to radio soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
s, suggesting a conscious selection process on the part of the listener in a move away from the still dominant behaviorism
Behaviorism
Behaviorism , also called the learning perspective , is a philosophy of psychology based on the proposition that all things that organisms do—including acting, thinking, and feeling—can and should be regarded as behaviors, and that psychological disorders are best treated by altering behavior...
theories of media effects of the time. While Herzog was a specialist of qualitative pilot studies and is even credited with developing modern focus group
Focus group
A focus group is a form of qualitative research in which a group of people are asked about their perceptions, opinions, beliefs and attitudes towards a product, service, concept, advertisement, idea, or packaging...
methodology, her work is characterized throughout by a pragmatic mix of qualitative
Qualitative research
Qualitative research is a method of inquiry employed in many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, but also in market research and further contexts. Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such...
and quantitative
Quantitative research
In the social sciences, quantitative research refers to the systematic empirical investigation of social phenomena via statistical, mathematical or computational techniques. The objective of quantitative research is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to...
methods.
In 1943, Herzog left the Radio Project and joined the market research department of McCann Erickson
McCann Erickson
McCann Erickson is a global advertising agency network, with offices in more than 130 countries. McCann is a subsidiary of the Interpublic Group of Companies, one of the four large holding companies in the advertising industry....
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where she eventually became chairwoman of the McCann market research
Market research
Market research is any organized effort to gather information about markets or customers. It is a very important component of business strategy...
unit, Marplan. She divorced Lazarsfeld in 1945 and married Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
professor Paul Massing
Paul Massing
Paul Wilhelm Massing was a German sociologist.-Biography:Born in Grumbach in the Rhine Province, he attended school in Cologne, and later studied economics and social sciences at Frankfurt University, when Franz Neumann was there and at Cologne Handelshochschule . He graduated in 1926 as a...
in 1954. In 1964, she joined Jack Tinker Partners, a creative think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
set up by McCann. She retired from full-time market research in 1970 to spend more time with her husband, who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
. They returned to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in 1976.
After Massing's death in 1979, Herzog returned to academia
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
, teaching at Tübingen and Vienna, and publishing scholarly articles, most famously about the reception of American prime-time television soap operas (primarily Dallas
Dallas (TV series)
Dallas is an American serial drama/prime time soap opera that revolves around the Ewings, a wealthy Texas family in the oil and cattle-ranching industries. Throughout the series, Larry Hagman stars as greedy, scheming oil baron J. R. Ewing...
and Dynasty
Dynasty (TV series)
Dynasty is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981 to May 11, 1989. It was created by Richard & Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, and revolved around the Carringtons, a wealthy oil family living in Denver, Colorado...
) in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
as well as one study about anti-semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
in Austria.
She continued to do research work well into the 1990s, based in Leutasch
Leutasch
Leutasch is a municipality in the northern part of the district Innsbruck-Land and is located approximately 30 km northwest of Innsbruck. The beautiful valley lies within a 16 km long high-lying valley and possesses 2073 inhabitants and 26 hamlets....
, Tyrol, near her sister's family. She died there in 2010 at the age of 99, the last survivor of the founders' generation of market research.
External links
- "Madison Avenue"], Adam CurtisAdam CurtisAdam Curtis is a British BAFTA winning documentarian and a writer, television producer, director and narrator. He works for BBC Current Affairs.-Early life and education:Curtis was born in 1955...
' BBC blog article features recorded interview with Herta Herzog.