TDNet Discover

The purpose of this correlational quantitative study was to investigate the relationship between age and media literacy for postsecondary civics students in the northeastern United States. This study was significant by the methodological, theoretical, and practical implications it presents for educational approaches in teaching media literacy to adult populations in postsecondary classes. The sample population (n = 221) are online, postsecondary students from an open-enrollment public college. Students’ media literacy was assessed by their use of lateral reading to verify given information in a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental research design. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was used to determine the correlation between age and media literacy. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to compare media literacy across different age groups. The findings indicated a statistically significant weak to moderate positive correlation between age and media literacy, suggesting that older students tend to demonstrate higher levels of media literacy compared to their younger counterparts. Although the study did not find a significant difference in media literacy across different age groups, it underscores the need to consider age as a crucial factor when designing media literacy interventions and instruction. Younger students may require additional support to develop critical media literacy skills. These results align with the existing cognitive theory of media literacy, emphasizing the influence of personal factors such as age, beliefs, and motivations on individuals' interpretation of media messages. They contribute to the discourse on truth decay and the spread of misinformation by highlighting the role of age in individuals' ability to navigate and critically evaluate media messages. The insights from this research study may inform the development of media literacy interventions, educational strategies, and policies to enhance media literacy skills among postsecondary students.