Story Perspective and Character Similarity as Drivers of Identification and Narrative Persuasion |
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| Authors: | Hans Hoeken Matthijs Kolthoff José Sanders |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Languages, Literature & Communication, Utrecht Institute of Linguistics OTS, Utrecht University, The Netherlands;2. Department of Communication & Information Studies, Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands |
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| Abstract: | Identification with a character is an important mechanism of narrative persuasion. In 2 studies, the impact of character similarity on identification was pitted against that of story perspective. Participants read stories in which a lawyer (Study 1) and a general practitioner (GP; Study 2) had a conflict with another character. Perspective was manipulated by describing the events as experienced and narrated by the lawyer (GP) or their opponent. In Study 1 (N = 120), 60 participants were law students, in Study 2 (N = 120) 60 were medical students. Both perspective and program of study influenced identification, which mediated the impact of perspective on attitude. If participants felt highly similar to the professional's opponent, the mediating effect of identification was blocked. |
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| Keywords: | Narrative Persuasion Identification Perceived Similarity Storytelling Techniques Story Perspective |
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