FROM MEDIA EXPOSURE TO USES AND GRATIFICATION: UNDERSTANDING CHINESE FEMALE AUDIENCES’ PERCEPTION OF THE THAI Y SERIES
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This study aimed to study the media exposure, psychological gratification, and perception of Chinese female audiences when they engaged with Thai Y series content. It also explored the way it influenced their perception of gender, sexuality, and the LGBTQ+ community presented in the Thai Y series. This study adopted media exposure, uses and gratifications theory, and audience perception as the primary analytical framework. It also applied the concept of female gaze and queer as supporting perspectives.
This study adopted a qualitative research method of in-depth interview with ten key Chinese informants. They were female audiences who had watched at least one Thai Y series and participated in online interaction and discussion. The research used semi-structured in-depth interviews, and thematic analysis was used.
The findings showed the following points, 1) The exposure of Chinese female audiences to the Thai Y series did not constitute incidental or passive encounters, but selective exposure characterized by agency, continuity, and cross-platform uses, 2) The sustained engagement of Chinese females with the Thai Y series was not merely based on entertainment but was related to diverse gratification, 3) The influence of the Thai Y series on Chinese female audiences’ perception of gender, sexual orientation, and the LGBTQ+ community differed, but the key informants did not deny the meaning of these issues encoded in the series and tended to accept all or part of them.
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