TY - JOUR
T1 - Present, empathetic, and persuaded
T2 - a meta-analytic comparison of storytelling in high versus low immersive mediated environments
AU - Ma, Zexin
AU - Ma, Rong
AU - Chen, Meng
AU - Walter, Nathan
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of International Communication Association. All rights reserved.
PY - 2024/1/1
Y1 - 2024/1/1
N2 - Immersive narratives - narratives viewed in immersive mediated environments - are a promising tool for increasing empathy and persuasion due to their presumed capacity to place viewers inside a story world. Empirical studies, however, have produced mixed findings. This meta-analysis synthesized findings on the effects of narratives viewed in high (vs. low) immersive environments on empathy and persuasion (k = 25). It also examined the impact of narratives viewed in high (vs. low) immersive environments on presence and narrative transportation, psychological constructs associated with two key mechanisms identified in immersive narrative research. Results showed that narratives viewed in high (vs. low) immersive environments had small positive effects on empathy and persuasion. The effect of immersion level on presence was significant, positive, and strong, but the effect on transportation was not significant, perhaps due to the limited sample size (k = 4). This study contributes to further understanding the potential of immersive narratives.
AB - Immersive narratives - narratives viewed in immersive mediated environments - are a promising tool for increasing empathy and persuasion due to their presumed capacity to place viewers inside a story world. Empirical studies, however, have produced mixed findings. This meta-analysis synthesized findings on the effects of narratives viewed in high (vs. low) immersive environments on empathy and persuasion (k = 25). It also examined the impact of narratives viewed in high (vs. low) immersive environments on presence and narrative transportation, psychological constructs associated with two key mechanisms identified in immersive narrative research. Results showed that narratives viewed in high (vs. low) immersive environments had small positive effects on empathy and persuasion. The effect of immersion level on presence was significant, positive, and strong, but the effect on transportation was not significant, perhaps due to the limited sample size (k = 4). This study contributes to further understanding the potential of immersive narratives.
KW - empathy
KW - immersive narratives
KW - narrative transportation
KW - persuasion
KW - presence
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85183160540&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/hcr/hqad030
DO - 10.1093/hcr/hqad030
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85183160540
SN - 0360-3989
VL - 50
SP - 27
EP - 38
JO - Human Communication Research
JF - Human Communication Research
IS - 1
ER -