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Depictions of Donation: A Thematic Analysis of Organ Donation Storylines in Television Medical Dramas

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dc.contributor.authorBaumgardner, Emma Kathrynen
dc.contributor.committeechairIvory, Adrienne Holzen
dc.contributor.committeememberTedesco, John C.en
dc.contributor.committeememberEvia Puerto, Carlosen
dc.contributor.departmentCommunicationen
dc.date.accessioned2021-06-15T08:00:35Zen
dc.date.available2021-06-15T08:00:35Zen
dc.date.issued2021-06-14en
dc.description.abstractWith a global and national shortage in the number of registered organ donors, this study employed a qualitative thematic analysis of thirteen episodes from popular medical dramas that aired between 2016-2020. The aim of this study was to allow for a better understanding of how the media utilizes entertainment television to portray storylines related to organ donation. The analyzed shows included in this study were: Grey's Anatomy, The Good Doctor, New Amsterdam, Chicago Med, and The Resident. From the analysis, six major themes emerged: Urgency of Transplant, Ethical Decision-Making, Emotional Impacts of Organ Donation on Patient and Families, Familial Relationships Impacting Donation, Viewer Education via Vicarious Learning, and Excitement Surrounding Surgery. In addition to these themes, both favorable and unfavorable cues related to organ donation were present throughout the analysis. These findings have implications for audience members via social cognitive theory. This study illuminated the ongoing efforts made by the entertainment television industry to portray organ donation in a factual manner and to provide the viewing public with potential opportunities for organ donation education.en
dc.description.abstractgeneralWith a global and national shortage in the number of registered organ donors, this study analyzed thirteen episodes from popular medical dramas that aired between 2016-2020 to determine what themes were present amongst the analyzed shows. The analyzed shows included in this study were: Grey's Anatomy, The Good Doctor, New Amsterdam, Chicago Med, and The Resident. The aim of this study was to allow for a better understanding of how the media utilized entertainment television to portray storylines related to organ donation. From the analysis, six major themes emerged: Urgency of Transplant, Ethical Decision-Making, Emotional Impacts of Organ Donation on Patient and Families, Familial Relationships Impacting Donation, Viewer Education via Vicarious Learning, and Excitement Surrounding Surgery. In addition to the emergence of these themes, the analysis revealed both favorable and unfavorable cues related to organ donation were present in these entertainment storylines. This study illuminated the ongoing efforts made by the entertainment television industry to portray organ donation in a factual manner and to provide the viewing public with opportunities for organ donation education.en
dc.description.degreeMaster of Artsen
dc.format.mediumETDen
dc.identifier.othervt_gsexam:30665en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/103858en
dc.publisherVirginia Techen
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectOrgan Donationen
dc.subjectSocial Cognitive Theoryen
dc.subjectThematic Analysisen
dc.subjectEntertainment Televisionen
dc.titleDepictions of Donation: A Thematic Analysis of Organ Donation Storylines in Television Medical Dramasen
dc.typeThesisen
thesis.degree.disciplineCommunicationen
thesis.degree.grantorVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State Universityen
thesis.degree.levelmastersen
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Artsen

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