Mediatization of the social sphere: theoretical research approaches
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47475/2070-0695-2026-60-2-141-150Keywords:
mediatization, social sphere, digital media communications, institutional approach, technological approach, communicative approach, sociocultural approach, integrative approachAbstract
This article presents various interpretations of the concepts of "mediatization" and "the social sphere." Mediatization is characterized as a process through which society becomes subordinated to media or dependent upon them. The social sphere is examined as a set of social institutions and activities aimed at ensuring the livelihood of the population and satisfying its social needs. An attempt is made to systematize theoretical approaches to the study of the mediatization of the social sphere. The authors identify five theoretical approaches: institutional, technological, communicative, sociocultural, and synthetic (integrative), each considered in terms of its application to the study of the social sphere. The institutional approach to studying mediatization allows for interpreting media as an independent social institution that exerts significant influence on other social institutions. The technological approach views mediatization as a process driven by the development of media technologies, which determine the forms and methods of organizing social life. The communicative approach enables the study of mediatization as a process of changing forms of interaction, interpretation, and the production of meaning within the media environment. From the perspective of the sociocultural approach, mediatization is examined in terms of the transformation of the cultural foundations of social life, affecting the ways in which meanings are produced, disseminated, and interpreted. The "integrative framework" is presented as a meta‑approach encompassing institutional, technological, communicative, and sociocultural changes in society. The article notes that existing theoretical approaches to the study of mediatization operate in isolation from one another within scholarly discourse, which complicates their application to specific spheres of social life. The primary research method is considered to be the meta‑approach, which integrates other approaches. The article attempts to analyze the areas of application of the aforementioned approaches to the study of the social sphere, where media determine the parameters of the contemporary functioning and development of social institutions. In conclusion, it is noted that mediatization is a multi-level phenomenon whose study in relation to the social sphere requires an interdisciplinary approach.
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