Reception Theory

Reception Theory addresses how texts are ENCODED by a producer and then DECODED by the audience.

The theory suggests that when a producer constructs a text that it is ENCODED with a message or meaning and this is received and understood by the audience upon its use.

However, sometimes the audience may misunderstand or reject the message given by the text and its producer.

Stuart Hall (the theory's creator) identified three types of Audience Readings (or decoding) of a text:

1. Dominant or Preferred
2. Negotiated
3. Oppositional

Dominant is where the audience decodes the message as the producer wants them to and broadly agrees with it.

E.g. Watching a political speech and agreeing with it.

Negotiated is where the audience accepts, rejects or refines elements of the text in light of previously held views.

E.g Neither agreeing or disagreeing with the political speech or being disinterested.

Oppositional is where the dominant meaning is rejected because of cultural, political or idealogical reasons.

E.g. Total rejection of the political speech and active opposition.