Hooked? What’s the real story?
Tales can change people, but beware the effect
Every holiday season, you have new worlds at your fingertips. Reading books, listening to podcasts, and watching films and TV shows can help you break away from the frenzy of everyday life, and journey into other worlds.
As with any travel, the journey affects you. The degree to which you become engaged with a story is known as narrative transportation. This effect causes feelings and thoughts consistent with the narrative world. The more a story transports you, the more likely you are persuaded to adopt the beliefs espoused within it.
Deeper changes occur, too. Previous research shows changes of attitudes and intentions are part of the narrative transportation effect. My colleagues Stephanie Feiereisen, Luca Visconti and I were interested in what factors predict a greater narrative transportation effect, so we used meta-analysis to measure the power of stories to engage and change people.
Meta-analyses aggregate the results of a large number of published empirical studies, which can greatly increase confidence in a phenomenon. No meta-analysis had been performed on narrative transportation for five years, so we investigated all the published research since.
We averaged the results of 64 papers, reporting 138 effects, based on results from more than 20,000 participants.
We discovered three factors reliably influence the narrative transportation effect: whether a story is commercial or noncommercial, whether it is user-generated or created by professionals, and whether there are other people present while you are engaging with the story.
A transporting story is 16% more likely to affect you if it has commercial profit, rather than an artistic or other value, as its primary aim.
Many films and TV series are primarily made for commercial purposes with the intention of making a profit. If you are not aware of this motive, the effect of narrative transportation is strengthened and you will be inclined to buy products – even animals – featured in films and TV series.
101 Dalmatians made families want spotty dogs. Likewise, Finding Nemo led to a rapid growth in the trade of clownfish as pets – which contributed to the decline of wild populations.
A transporting story is 11% more likely to change you if it is made publicly available, reflects creative effort, and is created outside of professional routines and practices.
Many books and podcasts are user-generated, meaning they are self-published at their authors’ expense. A creator’s emotional participation in the story strengthens the narrative transportation effect.
Take Andy Weir’s book, The Martian. In 2011, after searching for a professional agent, he posted the book to Amazon. It climbed the charts and he attracted a worldwide following. It was later made into a feature film, starring Matt Damon, hailed for its attention to scientific detail.
Other examples of creator influence include teenagers like Charlotte D'Alessio, who became an overnight Instagram fashion sensation. Stand-up comedians are further examples of nonprofessional creators telling impactful stories.
A transporting story is 10% less likely to influence you if you are with others.
The more you are transported by a narrative, the more likely your beliefs, attitudes and intentions will converge with the story’s. This is neither good nor bad. Yet being aware of this effect – and the factors that increase it – could help you think critically about your desire to get a new pet after watching a movie.
A transporting story is 16% more likely to affect you if it has commercial profit . . . as its primary aim. Tom van Laer
Tom van Laer is an associate professor of marketing at the University of London.