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Towards a Theory of Art- and Media-Based Communication of Knowledge

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12 September 2023

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13 September 2023

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Abstract
This paper applies conceptualization from Paulo Freire, Tracey Nicholls, and bell hooks to develop a framework to understand art- and media-based communication of knowledge. Increasing use of art and digital media in research and formal educational settings emphasize knowledge-communication intent, and the theory attempts to rationalize why individuals potentially devalue, discard, or misconstrue messaging. Drawing upon two case studies: children’s literature, and existing scholarship on true crime as a media genre, the framework proposes art and media consumption based on perceived task-applicability of art and media. Stemming from the complex nature of socially-imposed, self-determined, and art- & media-instated tasks that an individual may face throughout their lifetime, an individual may be drawn to Freirean power and privilege - even fictional depictions - as societal structures can grant power and privilege with universal task-applicability. Potential usage of this framework towards participatory, qualitative inquiries conclude the paper, in attempt to support future art and media designed with knowledge-communication intent.
Keywords: 
inequalities
;  
digital media
;  
communications
;  
pedagogy
;  
mental health
Subject: 
Social Sciences  -   Education

Introduction

Through the development of new digital technologies, art and media are increasingly used to communicate knowledge. In academia, this communication of knowledge can be educational, research-based, or discipline-specific: as an example, the use of art and media towards communicating health knowledge or promoting environmental literacy (Staples et al., 2019). Existing scholarship has documented multiple forms of art and media that have been mobilized towards communication of knowledge. Using the case study of art and media in professional medical education (Pfeiffer et al., 2016), existing research suggests utility of films, movie, cinema (Darbyshire & Baker, 2012); drama series, including television series; (Hoffman et al., 2018); animations (Tsao & Yu, 2016); comics or graphic novels (Babaian & Chalian, 2014); serious games or video games (Akl et al., 2008); and virtual reality technologies (Baniasadi et al., 2020) - noted in some literature as augmented reality (Tang et al., 2020). For the purposes of this paper, art and media is defined by the list above, with an important delineation in scope. Media with no emphasis on art-based intent, creativity, or literary qualities are removed for rigor. Massive literature also suggests use of out-of-scope, non-fictional or non arts-based media towards communication of knowledge. These can include instructional videos, digitized textbooks, recorded lectures in open-learning platforms, podcasts, social media (Cheston et al., 2013), which deserve inquiry on their own and separate attempts at theory-making.

Basis of Using Art & Media

The advantages of art and media for purposes of knowledge-communication are numerous, with each related discipline arguably bringing its own perspective or rationale. The following section does not attempt a comprehensive outline of all scholarly rationale for using art and media for knowledge-communication purposes. Selected cases are mentioned to highlight a common objective across heterogeneous literature - the application of art and media towards successful communication of knowledge.
Communication towards behavior change, including health education and health promotion: a systematic review of 78 studies on health communication using the arts noted the use of “digital arts”, “mass media”, “photography/visual arts”, and “oral narrative arts” (Sonke et al., 2021). Photography, previously unlisted in the case study of medical education, illustrates the intersections between knowledge-communication with research methodology given increasing use of photovoice in recent years (Sutton-Brown, 2014). Sonke et al. borrows the definition of the arts from a report from the World Health Organization (Fancourt & Finn, 2019), which describes a knowledge-communication experience involving “aesthetic engagement…imagination, sensory activation, evocation of emotion, and cognitive stimulation.” Two prominent advantages of arts-based knowledge-communication are both relevant to concepts of equity, diversity, and inclusion (Dewidar et al., 2022), as Sonke et al. note 1) engagement of multicultural groups and 2) trust-building around sensitive health topics being facilitated by art-based processes.
Mental health and therapeutic application: stemming from the discipline of art therapy (Hogan, 2015), art and media have seen significant use in both community and clinical settings towards development of sub-disciplines such as cinematherapy (Berg-Cross et al., 1990). A case study of using comic books to teach senior medical residents suggests that the mental health benefits may naturally accompany knowledge-communication via art and media. Green’s (2013) investigation of a twelve-month, comics-centered medical curriculum to teach empathy also showed that engagement helped to reduce self-reported burnout from participants. Whereas non-fictional tools such as social media have highly-debatable impacts on mental health (Bottino et al., 2015; O’Reilly et al., 2018), the use of fictional, or, artistic tools in knowledge-communication may present inherent advantage in holistic wellbeing.
Respecting individuals living with communicative-, intellectual-, and developmental-, and learning-disabilities: diverse abilities and diverse learning needs are central to inquiry of what constitutes equitable access to information - and, equitable access to education (Wolbring & Lillywhite, 2021). The intersection between art and disability, especially in the field of special education, is rich in depth (Malley & Silverstein, 2014) and cannot be done justice in brief review. Regardless, art has been historically used to communicate to individuals with diverse abilities; complementing text with images, audio, movement, or even plot towards storytelling (Bishop, 1999; Suzuki et al., 2018) capitalizes on art as an alternative language, which is as a social construct intrinsically linked to power (Deacon, 2005). Notably, storytelling - also noted in the literature as oral tradition or oral history - has been the foundation of thousands of years of intergenerational communication of many indigenous nations around the world - and can be mobilized as research methodology (Iseke, 2013). Art is in itself a language (Cohen, 1995), and thus also lends itself to communicative exchange. In other words, art in knowledge-communication also presents the advantage of amplifying voices of individuals with diverse abilities (Temple Jones et al., 2022), respecting communication as a two-way process.
Art as research methodology: art and media knowledge-communication is promoted by the fact that increasingly, knowledge is being generated through a vast landscape of arts-based methods (Leavy, 2020). Examples include the aforementioned photovoice, participatory filmmaking (Benjamin-Thomas et al., 2019), which intersect with other research methods such as narrative inquiry (Connelly & Clandinin, 2006). Arts-based methodologies have notably also benefited from the systems of knowledge and communications from indigenous people around the world (Hammond et al., 2018). The products of this kind of research can often be artistic in themselves, which may in turn serve to provide greater accessibility to research-knowledge for diverse audiences. Sinding et al. (2006) employed the art form of video towards their qualitative methodology, with the resulting product being piloted for upscaling as mass media. The video, shown first at a national level conference, assisted to communicate patient lived-experience with significant audience interest - demonstrating the potential intersection between arts-based research dissemination and mass media. The important process of disseminating research - noted in the literature as knowledge translation (Mackintosh et al., 2018), knowledge mobilization (Gainforth et al., 2014) and a myriad of other terms (McKibbon et al., 2010) - can be facilitated through the arts, and integrated within the research process. Scholarship on this process of integrated knowledge translation (Bowen & Graham, 2013) suggests that generating knowledge and communicating knowledge can happen simultaneously with intentional design. Art, as both methodology and knowledge-communication tool, may aid in that objective.

Theoretical Contemplations with Freire

Given the existing landscape of use of art and media for knowledge-communication across different disciplines and purposes, it is worthwhile to contemplate the validity of this use. Questions related to validity are not raised to reject or devalue the use of art and media, but instead considered to support future, fruitful applications. When is a piece of art or media effective in communicating knowledge to an individual, and when is it not? Why do different individuals interpret, or extract different meanings from the same piece of art and media - and how does this impact validity and successful knowledge-communication? These questions can also be more disciplinary-specific in nature. Using children’s literature as a method of communication employed around different cultures (Sell, 2002): if a significant portion of children’s literature is dedicated towards the teaching of morals, is morality in society always in direct positive correlation to consumption of children’s literature? If not, at what stage in life does an individual begin to reject the knowledge they have obtained from children’s literature? It can be tempting to default on the argument that regardless of validity or a conceptual “success-rate” of knowledge-communication via art and media, some attempt is better than no attempt. For example, if validity of children’s literature in promoting moral values is proven by research to be non-existent, this still does not suggest that children’s literature should therefore terminate discussion of morals in search of other themes. However, if a conceptual understanding of art and media knowledge-communication may help enhance any validity, there may be value in attempts at conceptualization.
This paper draws upon the writing of Paulo Freire, Tracey Nicholls, and bell hooks to attempt theorization of art- and media-based communication of knowledge. In situating the act of knowledge-communication as an exchange between two individuals, Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed (Freire, 2000) adds nuance that can inform conceptualization. Freire’s considerations of how privilege and oppression permeate human exchange are expanded by Tracey Nicholls in her paper Pedagogy of the Privileged (Nicholls, 2011), which highlights the importance of not just teaching the oppressed about their own oppression, but also including the privileged class in this discourse. In her writing, Nicholls also makes direct mention of art and media used towards knowledge-communication. Responding to the contemplations of Marilyn Nissim-Sabat, Nicholls brings up what she determines to be “an important insight” for her pedagogy: “introducing powerful narratives of film and literature into the classroom can help [privileged students] to develop a capacity for empathy that is otherwise stunted by the culture that directs them to become consumers instead of citizens” (2011). Film, noted previously for medical school education as well as mental health therapy thus emerges also as a tool for critical pedagogy - or, a platform to communicate the human condition. Nicholls’ mention of literature also adds to the rationale of this paper in emphasizing fictional art and media. This is demonstrated by massive increase in adapting stories to other digital forms in popular culture; as one example, the graphic novel has been academically studied as a tool to add imagery to literary classics (Tabachnick & Saltzman, 2015), teach literacy at an advanced level (Seelow, 2010), and lends itself to successful readaptation as television series, games, and films (Moulthrop, 2008). Nicholls’ thoughts are in direct connection to hooks’ considerations of portrayal of the oppressed class in popular media. Media representation and depiction of the oppressed is also intrinsically linked to class struggle, as hooks notes use of mass media position the lower class as deserving of their status, therefore justifying social oppression (Hooks, 2006). Combining the frameworks of Nicholls and hooks, it becomes evident that art and media may be an integral part of popular culture regardless of scholarship on whether this use is beneficial - and as such, art and media may be used to communicate messages which undermine human equality and critical pedagogy. In other words, if academia does not intervene in areas such as media representation of the oppressed (Zhang & Haller, 2013), these important tools may be conceded to be used exclusively for oppressive intent.
To better understand usage of art and media for knowledge-communication, the following sections describe a Freirean model emphasizing tasks. On tasks, Freire states: “This, then, is the great humanistic and historical task of the oppressed: to liberate themselves and their oppressors as well” (2000). The statement does not just speak on emancipatory ideology, but also exposes critical imposition: the task of liberation is not instated by Freire via his writing, but rather instated through societal oppression. In other words, the oppressed class are forced to accept the task of liberating themselves from oppression, both because they have been oppressed, and because the privileged are not interested in performing that liberation for them. The concept of tasks being imposed upon individuals across the lifespan and across society thus may serve to anchor theoretical discussion of art and media knowledge-communication, to be outlined below.

A Freirean Model of Art- and media-based communication of knowledge

Task-Applicability is foundational to the proposed framework of art- and media-based communication of knowledge. Task-applicability is defined as the utility of knowledge towards resolving one’s tasks at hand. Art- and media-based communication of knowledge may be evaluated by the perceived task-applicability of the knowledge. An individual accepts, rejects, and judges a piece of art & media based on their perceived task-applicability of the knowledge presented. Upon unfavorable evaluation, an individual negates or trivializes art- and media-based communication of knowledge from specific works based on perceived lack of task-applicability.
Categories of Tasks : Tasks, therefore, determine task-applicability of knowledge contained in a piece of art or media, which in turn determines both if art- and media-based communication of knowledge will be accepted by the individual, as well as the degree of what may be conceptualized as knowledge-retention (Lindsey et al., 2014). It is thus of value to consider the origin and nature of tasks, which this framework positions into the following three categories.
First, Socially-Imposed Tasks, which are linked to the various duties of an individual across their lifespan, as well as their position of power or privilege in their immediate environment. Examples include the following:
  • Assignments under the education system. Freire discusses the banking model of education, in which students are tasked with accepting and memorizing knowledge deposited by teachers - and to regurgitate such knowledge when requested. Despite growing trends towards problem-based learning (Dalsgaard & Godsk, 2007), assignments may still significantly dominate the landscape of tasks for many student-aged individuals in society (Laffan et al., 2023). Art and media may possibly be viewed as tools to help resolve an individual’s class assignments (Alexander et al., 2005) as socially-imposed tasks, and in such cases, art- and media-based communication of knowledge will likely be accepted in this framework.
  • The need to blend-in with peers. Nicholls provides exposition of this socially-imposed task in her writing, particularly in relation to the lived experience of the oppressed. She suggests that society often requires the oppressed to pass as privileged, in order to exist in the same space as the privileged and avoid classification as “outsiders”. This imposed task does not concern itself with merely external image, as Nicholls determines that “adopting the values of the privileged class they hope to enter” is often required as a strategy. As a simplistic example, television series or animations representing fictional teenagers may be consumed by individuals to understand how to dress, act, talk like figures who are perceived to possess privilege - so much that this longing can affect body-image and medical conditions like eating disorders (Thompson & Heinberg, 1999).
  • Essential livelihood: Freire’s work is founded upon what could be considered as community-based research with peasant farmers in the colonial context of South America (Jason & Glenwick, 2016). Deprived of opportunity for literacy and the means for basic survival, the community members which inform Freire’s work brings an important lens of communities who are so marginalized that they can be deemed as invisibilized (Barongo-Muweke, 2016; Borderon et al., 2021; Soroka et al., 2003). For some individuals, survival is not granted by society but rather imposed as a task. Discussion on scholarly examples of art and media being consumed to resolve survival as a socially-imposed task may be precluded by the fact that high-needs individuals often lack access to art and media (Kenny, 2000). In other words, high-needs or invisilbilized communities may be stripped of further opportunities to engagement with knowledge, as art and media are not present in their lives as viable channels.
  • Social mobility: Nicholls presents nuanced discussion on social mobility, also noted in the literature as upward mobility. Individuals in poverty, positioned as “lazy” and “dysfunctional” via media presentation (Hooks, 2006), may often be viewed as deserving of oppression due to their own choices. Yet, once the oppressed seek to self-help through attaining education and other channels towards financial stability, hooks exposes how oppressed individuals are then seen as “consumed with longing to be rich”. In a dilemma where both choices of the oppressed can be seen as lacking “integrity and dignity” in the words of hooks, individuals facing the socially-imposed task of self-helping towards financial stability can face tremendous pressure. As an example of oppressed individuals turning to art and media for social mobility, learning a new language is often a challenging task that first needs to be resolved before one gains opportunity to leave impoverished communities. Aspirations of study-abroad or immigration can lead to consumption of media for language learning, which has been documented in decades of english-as-foreign language or english-as-second language scholarship (Vanderplank, 2010).
  • Freeing oneself from oppressive forces such as poverty, racism, and colonialism: this forms the central inquiry of Freire, and consideration of oppressive forces in society is expanded by hooks through her concept of intersectionality (hooks, 2014). Hooks writes that these oppressive forces often intersect and reinforce each other, ultimately placing individuals within multiple statuses of disadvantage. The task of freeing oneself from oppression cannot be interpreted as mere hunger for social status, but rather, presents an important consideration of the privileged. While defining what Freire means by “privileged” can be an issue of contention, it is nonetheless clear that there are individuals in society who do not need to worry about being victimized by poverty, racism, colonialism, sexism, ableism, among other forces - rather, certain individuals possess choice to engage as contributors to oppression. This privilege is not granted to many other individuals in society, and for this group who face oppression, accessing knowledge via art and media for self-liberation can further be hindered. Freire dedicates discussion towards critical consciousness to illustrate that for many of the oppressed, they are unable to take action against oppression because they cannot see their oppression (2021). This is not mere self-comforting delusion, but rather, a designed state of sightlessness strategized by the privileged to prevent the oppressed from resisting. “Awareness of hegemony” is not a given, but rather depends upon effective communication (David H. Kahl, 2013).
Second, Self-Determined Tasks recognize the fact that not all tasks can be fairly conceptualized as an imposition or violation against autonomy. Individuals themselves may develop aspirations related to personal fulfillment or self-actualization. Examples of self-determined tasks include:
  • Romantic relationships: beyond her contributions to feminist, anti-racist, and educational scholarship, hooks has also written extensively on relationships (Hooks, 1994) as a part of the human experience. Her thoughts, however, also help to position romantic relationships in real-life contexts of oppression and privilege, recognizing that in various historical, cultural, and social contexts, women may be tasked with being loved by a man in order to find livelihood. Art and media are not just consumed by individuals to better understand how to navigate their romantic relationships, but also designed as clinical therapy by health professionals towards this aim (Dermer & Hutchings, 2000).
  • Additional social mobility: Nicholls openly notes that in certain cases, the quest of social mobility is not intrinsically tied to the will to survive, but rather achieving personal goals. In her Pedagogy of the Privileged, she opens up her own life for scrutiny, describing her academic career to acknowledge how that process may have been much more challenging for an individual who is not white. Additional social mobility opens up greater opportunities and more leverage points through which an individual can reach a wide variety of specialized, predetermined objectives. The massive number of self-determined tasks that can be accessible via additional social mobility makes raising any specific example somewhat lacking in value; however, this perceived universal task-applicability is important to note and will become focus of subsequent discussion.
  • Social-change missions, such as emancipation: Freire’s conceptualizations support the notion that not all self-determined tasks are self-serving. Liberating both the oppressed class and privileged class from the human condition of oppression is a task Freire implores, but not imposes. Therefore, the task of liberating others from oppressive structures can become a self-determined task which individuals may take on based on their own choosing. Towards resisting against inherent power differentials, these individuals may be drawn to a variety of media that is linked to critical pedagogy (Daspit & Weaver, 2012).
  • Having one’s visibility or voice being accepted by others: hooks’ writing on media and classroom instruction shed light on the fact that acceptance is not freely-granted. Acceptance, or the lack thereof, is not openly named but often censored in discourse, as hooks notes a paradox in which: “nowhere is there a more intense silence about the reality of class differences than in educational settings” (Hooks, 2014). The task of feeling accepted is compounded by the socially-imposed task of needing to appear privileged as noted by Nicholls. Thus, oppressed individuals may find themselves unable to seek society’s acceptance for who they are, as they face barriers even in presenting themselves as oppressed in group settings. With regards to art- and media-use towards this purpose, an individual may consume media that presents knowledge on how to be accepted by others. This consumption is not always beneficial, and is linked in the scholarship to issues such as depression and low self-esteem (Dohnt & Tiggemann, 2006).
Third, Art & Media-Instated Tasks recognize the fact that art and media can be used to create artificial tasks. As one educational example, medical-schools increasingly use virtual reality to teach a variety of surgery skills, often via artificial tasks presented as games (Nicola et al., 2017). The tasks that art and media can present are numerous, and can be manipulated to perfect precision through “gamification” (Dieva, 2020; Gentry et al., 2019). Further discussion on this third category of tasks will follow. >
Individual’s Changing Landscape of Tasks . This is proposed as a major contributor to failed retention of knowledge from art and media consumed. Even after successful art- and media-based communication of knowledge, an individual can choose to disengage with the knowledge obtained based on changing landscape of tasks with three options:
First, Art & Media Devaluing. The individual retains alignment and attachment to the piece of art or media, but de-prioritizes it to be replaced by another piece of art/media deemed to hold knowledge with greater task-applicability to the new tasks at hand.
Second, Art & Media Discardment. The individual rejects alignment and attachment to the piece of art or media based on lack of task-applicability to their new tasks at hand.
Third, Art & Media Disorientation . The individual unintentionally or intentionally misconstrues the messaging in the piece of art or media, in order to extract task-applicability for their new tasks at hand.
An example of a body of literature which reflects these notions is the study of youth’s parasocial relationships, defined in communications literature as “interpersonal relationship on the part of a television viewer with a mass media persona” (Perse & Rubin, 1989). Notably, the types of media that modern society accesses on a daily basis are far beyond the realm of television. Some studies also do not make the delineation between fictional characters and media persona who present themselves as real, such as social media influencers (Bond, 2016). Perse & Rubin, however, would dedicate their study exclusively to relationships with soap opera characters, suggesting that the development of parasocial relationships is not limited exclusively to early life. When considered in totality, the literature surrounding parasocial relationships document a population-level phenomena of art and media devaluing as well as art and media discardment. Throughout an individual’s lifespan, their favorite pieces of art and media can experience several changes, and some favorite characters will be inevitably replaced or rejected in this process.
Art-devaluing and discardment can also be viewed as a universal phenomenon, in which the majority of children are expected by society to outgrow children’s literature for young-adult genres. An individual who rejects to follow this devaluing and discardment may be labeled by their own peers as juvenile, or even risk being judged as an individual in arrested development. Yet, these views pose very little threat for a new parent who begins purchasing and enjoying children’s books. This suggests that society inherently expects consumption of art and media to be linked to tasks: new parents are not judged for their interest in children’s books, because it is commonly expected that the books provide task-applicability to the obligation of parenting.
For academics with interest in knowledge-communication through the use of art and media, devaluing and discardment by the target audience are outcomes which can severely affect intended impact. More troubling is the third option an individual has access to: art and media disorientation, in which an individual misinterprets or misconstrues the message. In other words, positive reception cannot be automatically interpreted as successful knowledge-communication if rigor is of concern. While a myriad of factors can lead to an individual’s misunderstanding of a piece of art or media, the Freirean model suggests that one such factor is linked to the desire to extract task-applicability. As a result, attempting to understand the nature of tasks that a target-audience is focused on resolving may support the development of more effective art- and media-based communication of knowledge. In certain cases, this attempt at understanding can be critical as knowledge-communication may not lead to just skewed knowledge, but also knowledge that defeats the original intent. A demonstrative example can be found in true crime as a genre gaining significant traction in contemporary popular media. Across America, a sizable population self-access true crime content depicting real-life cases of humans being violated or dehumanized. This inherent draw to what could be considered as “sensationalism” (Wiltenburg, 2004), however, can be broken down for further analysis based on the concept of tasks. Vicary & Fraley (2010) dedicate a gendered-lens to study the psychology of women who are drawn to consuming true crime media, and conclude that women extract task-applicability towards the task of self protection:
“...characteristics that make these books appealing to women are all highly relevant in terms of preventing or surviving a crime. For example, by understanding why an individual decides to kill, a woman can learn the warning signs to watch for in a jealous lover or stranger. By learning escape tips, women learn survival strategies they can use if actually kid-napped or held captive.”
In other words, sensationalism only captures part of the media consumption experience for these women; additionally, the search for applicable knowledge is central to women’s attraction to this genre of media. In this light, academic efforts to disseminate true crime stories can be seen as beneficial in terms of protecting women towards greater public safety. At the same time, this perspective fails to acknowledge other scholarly evidence which suggest potential harms in this dissemination. For some individuals, consuming media which depicts violence is linked to biological responses indicating pleasure (Porges & Decety, 2013), while other individuals directly emulate criminal behavior upon consuming crime-related media (Surette, 2016).
Two important considerations arise when assessing the example of true crime media. First, true crime media does not apply artistic nor fictional elements. However, true crime illustrates how even knowledge-communication via factual information can lead to contradictory outcomes, and thus, consideration on knowledge-communication via the intentionally fictional should be concerned with exercising care. Second, with art and media as creative tools, academics can arguably mobilize greater flexibility in the presentation of knowledge, which can significantly impact the outcomes of communication (Cooke, 1998). With regards to the previous example of true crime, it is understandable that no matter what precautions are taken, a portion of the population will extract knowledge in a way that is detrimental to society. This, however, should not signify immediate surrender to the phenomenon, but rather suggest increased value in attempts to optimize - or at least tailor - the presentation of knowledge via optimal use of art and media.
Beyond considering art and media as tools to affect presentation of knowledge, it is also worthwhile to consider the inherent tasks that may be presented within art and media, and the characteristics of art- and media-instated tasks.
Art & Media Task-Reliability . Among the three categories of tasks, art & media-instated tasks are tasks of rightful promise. This can be illustrated by a simplified example of a video game which asks its users to find x number of coins to reach the next level. The task is clearly delineated, and the reward is guaranteed. In comparison, Nicholls suggests that students from poverty can be taught that successful completion of school will result in a career, which in turn provides financial livelihood. Yet this is not always a rightful promise, as unemployment is affected by issues such as race, gender, and geography - all of which are considered in Nicholls’ self-reflection of privilege. In contrast, a video game is pre-programmed to provide a guaranteed experience of task-resolution if one abides by all its rules. Guaranteed task-resolution rarely exists in socially-imposed and self-determined tasks; regardless of how much an individual is committed to conforming to societal rules (Nicholls, 2011), and regardless of the amount of labor an individual commits to resolve their tasks, society does not always offer the reward of task-resolution.
Art & Media Task-Predictability. Task-resolution is not an experience limited to interactive games nor virtual reality technology. Non-interactive art & media such as films, graphic novels, and animations can likewise present individuals with feelings of task-resolution. Through art & media, an individual can resonate with the tasks faced by a fictional character, and together with the character, reach an ending that never changes even upon re-consumption. This flawless level of task-predictability in art & media, like task-reliability, is also absent in socially-imposed or self-determined tasks. The implication of this for academic art- and media-based communication of knowledge is that even fictional characters may be perceived as resolving their own socially-imposed and self-determined tasks. As such, almost all forms of storytelling involving characters have potential to offer vicarious experience of task-resolution.
In combination, reliability and predictability can result in art & media task-priority over an individual’s socially-imposed and self-determined tasks. A conceptual model that emphasizes individuals applying knowledge towards successful task-resolution can contribute to understanding the following behavior:
Therapeutic-Escapist Use , promoted by reliability and predictability of art &media-instated tasks, and leads to both clinical therapeutic engagements (Yazici et al., 2014), as well as potential escapist or addictive engagement (Carmona & Whiting, 2021). Art & media instated-tasks only present virtual task-resolution, yet this experience can be prioritized by an individual due to low rates of task-resolution and lack of autonomy in society.
Art & Media Sharing . Individuals may wish to share the feelings of task-resolution they have extracted through a work of art or media, either via their own interaction, or by developing a parasocial relationship with a character who excels at a task. Alternatively, the individual may wish to share the knowledge they received from a work of art or media based on their evaluation of high task-applicability and vicarious feelings of task-resolution.
Art & Media Seeking . Individuals may wish to replicate similar experiences of task-resolution they have felt through consuming a previous work of art or media; or, they may wish to locate knowledge that can be applied to their tasks at hand through searching for new works of art or media.
Art & Media Creation . Individuals may wish to create content, to resolve a previously-unresolved socially-imposed task or self-determined task (Allison et al., 2006). They may also create content to resolve a previously-unresolved fictional task that is art or media-instated; this may in part contribute to the observed global interest in creating not original content, but re-writes and re-imaginations of already-published work (Jamison, 2013).
Pursuit of Power and Privilege in Art & Media brings the discussion to the aforementioned point of universal applicability of social mobility. The education system, designed by the privileged class (Freire, 2000), inoculates individuals with the belief that power and privilege have utmost, universal task-applicability. Further, systematic structures in society may also grant task-resolution only to individuals who have existing power and privilege (Nicholls, 2011). Under these structures, oppressed individuals may be innately drawn to art & media representations - and experiences - of power and privilege, no matter how exaggerated or incredible, until the assumed task-applicability of fictional power and privilege is disproven by outcomes of their socially-imposed and self-determined tasks.
Life-Task Complexity . Given the basis of three categories of tasks, an individual may face multiple tasks simultaneously, including: tasks which they are not aware of (ie. tasks which require critical pedagogy); tasks which are not presented along with clear instructions towards guaranteed success; and tasks which are morphing over time. The inherent complexity of all tasks in combination leads to life-task complexity, which reinforces pursuit of power and privilege in art & media. An individual may be drawn to portrayals, or vicarious experiences of power and privilege, as power and privilege are presented as being capable of resolving all tasks no matter how numerous, how difficult, how poorly-defined, and how invisible. This perceived universal task-applicability of power and privilege may be accessed to circumvent the labor of thinking through an individual’s life-task complexity.
Life-task complexity may contribute to an individual’s attraction towards media portrayals of universally-applicable power and privilege, such as: superhero narratives (Flanagan et al., 2016); narratives with a fantasy power-system, also noted in the scholarship as a magic system (Hunt, 2022); media emphasizing appearance-of-privilege and social popularly, such as idols (Alexandra-Elissa, 2017); and depictions of luxury and glamor (Jensen, 2021) as evidence of privilege. Under a Freirean model, the youth terminology of cool (Dar-Nimrod et al., 2012) may explain this attraction to anything with perceived universal task-applicability. With age, the illusion of universal task-applicability fades, and the pursuit of the cool is likely replaced by the pursuit of real power and privilege in society - a pursuit that is central to Freire’s educational philosophy.

Considering Freirean Design & Evaluation

Design of art- and media-based communication of knowledge is inseparable from participatory methods in a Freirean model. Successful knowledge-communication rests upon some understanding of the tasks which occupy the minds of the target audience, which in turn determines perceived task-applicability, and how the individual will receive the art and media. It is important to note that terminology which aid in research and theory may not be conducive to participant engagement nor clear communications. Prior to this theoretical conceptualization, a pilot study was conducted to understand art- and media-based communication of knowledge from the perspective of eight marginalized youth. The term “digital media” was selected in favor of the more research-focused terminology of “digital humanities” in the interview guide. Nonetheless, a vast number of participants did not provide their views on films, series, animations, games from when asked about “digital media”, but instead immediately interpreted the term as synonymous with social media (Author, 2023). To acknowledge everyday connotations of the word “task”, all mentions of the term are removed in the following discussions.
In order to assess how an individual may receive and retain the knowledge to be communicated, the following qualitative inquiries may be of potential value under a Freirean framework:
  • What are some things that your life currently forces you to do? To say? Does your life currently force you to behave in a certain way? (indicator of socially-imposed tasks of more abstract natures)
  • In this research setting, do you feel somewhat pressured to do certain things? Say certain things? Behave in certain ways? (indicator of socially-imposed tasks from the researcher, other research participants, or the research design itself)
  • What are some pressing things you must get done day-to-day? (indicator of socially-imposed tasks of more concrete natures)
  • What are some long-term goals you wish to achieve? (indicator of self-determined tasks)
  • Do you sometimes feel lost about what you need to do or say to get through in life? Could you tell me how severe that experience is right now in your life? (indicator of life-task complexity)
  • In this specific favorite film/series/graphic novel/game/etc. of yours, could you tell me about what you find to be the most satisfying or interesting parts? (indicator of art & media-instated tasks that the individual chooses to experience)
This set of inquiries attempts to gain a base-level understanding of the tasks that an individual is focused on, which in turn determines perceived task-applicability of the art and media knowledge-communication to be performed. In the process of designing art and media for knowledge-communication, it may be helpful to respond to those tasks with these considerations:
  • How can the art and media project be restructured to minimize individuals’ perceived socially-imposed tasks from the researcher, other participants, and the research design?
  • Based on the available data on tasks the audience is concerned with, how can the art and media project support audiences by providing task-applicability to their tasks?
  • How can the art and media project liberate audiences from certain tasks which may undermine their lived experience? (as example, the aforementioned socially-imposed task of losing weight resulting in eating-disorders)
  • How can the art and media project provide similar mental health respite by emulating the art & media-instated tasks the individual reports finding satisfaction in?
  • How can the art and media project minimize risk of communicating knowledge with task-applicability to a detrimental task? (as an example, portraying a fairly underweight character in a position of privilege - which may reinforce an individual’s desires to proceed with unhealthy weight loss)
  • How can the art and media project inspire new self-determined tasks which can contribute to their overall wellbeing and/or lived experience?
Participatory methods may also help evaluate an academic project aiming to perform art- or media-based communication of knowledge. After an individual engages with a piece of art or media, it may be helpful to conduct qualitative investigation into the experience based on the following:
  • Do you feel your view on life has changed in any way? (indicator of potential changes - both positive and negative - in socially-imposed tasks of abstract natures)
  • Do you feel more pressured to do certain things, say certain things, or behave in certain ways? Do you feel less pressured to do things, say certain things, or behave in certain ways? (indicator of potential changes - both positive and negative - in socially-imposed tasks of abstract natures)
  • Do you feel there’s any knowledge in there to make your everyday life a bit easier? (indicator of potential positive changes in socially-imposed tasks of concrete natures)
  • Do you think anything in there was inspiring? Could you tell me more about what this inspires you to do in the future? (indication of potential positive changes in self-determined tasks)
  • Do you feel anything in there is depressing or triggering? Could you tell me more? (indication of potential negative changes in self-determined tasks)
  • Was there anything in there that was interesting to you? Could you tell me more? (general indicator of perceived task-applicability)
  • Was there anything in there that was satisfying to experience? Could you tell me more? (general indicator of impacts on mental wellbeing)
  • Do you think you would share this piece with anyone? (indicator of perceived task-applicability)
  • How do you think this piece could have been improved? Could you tell me about all the things you would do differently? (general indicator of art & media-instated tasks)
  • What are your suggestions for (us as) the researchers to make this research experience easier and less stressful (general indicator of socially-imposed tasks from research engagement)
Where possible, considerations of evaluation under this framework emphasizes the fact that art and media can bring about negative influences. Using eating disorders as an example, an individual may positively report a new self-determined goal of losing excess weight in a positive light, which may contradict original knowledge-communication intent. Given these possibilities, allowing room for both positive and negative responses from participants will support rigor in evaluation.

Concluding Thoughts

Art and media, in all their creative and flexible applications towards knowledge-communication, have generated massive multidisciplinary scholarship. This paper attempts to provide a theory nested within critical pedagogy not as an attempt to integrate existing scholarship, but only to view knowledge-communication as inseparable from structures leading to oppression and privilege. The model considers what society imposes upon individuals, particularly disadvantaged and marginalized groups in relation to the value of knowledge in terms of task-applicability. While self-determined tasks have been primarily discussed in relation to self-achievement, it is also worthwhile to note that self-determined tasks can be inspired and shaped by society, as well as by art and media itself as influences. The resulting totality of socially-imposed and self-determined tasks an individual faces might not just be complex, but also oppressive or dehumanizing. Given this imperfect nature of socially-imposed and self-determined tasks, how art and media instate fictional tasks becomes a worthy consideration.
Most importantly, a Freirean model calls for increased reflection and attention on life-task complexity. Imposing multiple tasks; changing tasks; unclearly-defined tasks; partially-disclosed tasks; and tasks without any rightful promise to acknowledge effort can lead individuals to search for universal task-applicability. Power and privilege, in both the fictional and real-world, are often presented as capable of resolving all tasks. Aside from driving individuals towards an anti-Freirean objective of obtaining power and privilege regardless of the resulting oppression on others, this may also lead individuals to consume art and media only in search of fictional experiences of power and privilege. The individual may be well aware that fictional power and privilege have little applicability in real life, but may recognize that vicarious experiences can help resolve the emotional toils associated with life-task complexity. Art and media created by knowledge-communication intent, therefore, may be reduced and positively-evaluated by the audience only as fictional experiences of power and privilege. Like Freire would suggest, power and privilege permeate many facets of the human experience, including the act of communicating knowledge through art and media. Societal structures which engage citizens in the act of increasing life-task complexity for other people therefore can reduce art, media, and knowledge only as means for privilege.

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