Uses and Gratifications Theory emerged as a response to media effects approaches that portrayed audiences as largely passive and vulnerable to manipulation. Early reflections appeared in the 1940s, but the theory was formally structured in the 1970s through the work of Katz, Blumler, and Gurevitch. The central shift introduced by this perspective lies in reversing the traditional causal question, focusing not on what media do to people, but on how and why individuals actively use media to satisfy specific needs (Katz et al., 1974).

The theory rests on several core assumptions. Media users are viewed as active agents whose behavior is goal-oriented rather than accidental. Media choices are motivated by psychological and social needs, and individuals are considered capable of identifying and reporting these motivations. Moreover, media compete with one another and with non-media alternatives to provide gratification (Katz et al., 1974). Gratifications are defined as subjective evaluations of the extent to which media consumption fulfills prior expectations and needs (Blumler, 1979).

A central analytical contribution of the theory is the distinction between gratifications sought and gratifications obtained, which emphasizes that satisfaction is not inherent to media use but depends on the match between expectations and outcomes (Palmgreen & Rubin, 1982). Classic research identifies five broad categories of needs: cognitive needs related to information acquisition, affective needs linked to emotional experience, personal integrative needs such as self-esteem and credibility, social integrative needs associated with interaction and belonging, and tension release needs involving escape and diversion (Katz et al., 1973).

Uses and Gratifications Theory has been extensively applied to digital marketing and social media research, where users’ motivations are central to understanding engagement with brands. In particular, social media platforms differ in the types of gratifications they offer, which in turn shapes users’ brand-related behaviors. Buzeta et al. (2020) demonstrate that motivations such as information seeking, entertainment, social interaction, and self-expression vary across social media types and have distinct effects on consumers’ online brand-related activities, including content consumption, contribution, and creation. Their findings highlight that active engagement with brands on social media is driven by users’ underlying needs rather than by platform features alone. From a marketing perspective, this reinforces the relevance of Uses and Gratifications Theory as a framework for designing brand communication strategies that align media formats with consumer motivations, thereby enhancing meaningful and sustained engagement.

References

Blumler, J. G. (1979). The role of theory in uses and gratifications studies of mass communication. Communication Research, 6(1), 9–36.

Buzeta, C., De Pelsmacker, P., & Dens, N. (2020). Motivations to use different social media types and their impact on consumers’ online brand-related activities (COBRAs). Journal of Interactive Marketing, 52(1), 79–98.

Katz, E., Blumler, J. G., & Gurevitch, M. (1974). Utilization of mass communication by the individual. In J. G. Blumler & E. Katz (Eds.), The uses of mass communications: Current perspectives on gratifications research (pp. 19–32). Sage.

Katz, E., Gurevitch, M., & Haas, H. (1973). On the use of the mass media for important things. American Sociological Review, 38(2), 164–181.

Palmgreen, P., & Rayburn, J. D. (1982). Gratifications sought and media exposure: an expectancy value model. Communication Research, 9(4), 561–580.