Exploring the Role of Me aningful Experiences in Users...

Projections Volume 4 Issue 2 Winter 2010 128ndash150 copy Berghahn Journalsdoi 103167proj2010040208 ISSN 1934-9688 (Print) ISSN 1934-9696 (Online)

Exploring the Role ofMeaningful Experiencesin Usersrsquo Appreciation of ldquoGood MoviesrdquoMary Beth Oliver and Tilo Hartmann

Abstract This article extends current theorizing in media psychology on audi-ence responses to cinema by examining individualsrsquo perceptions of meaning-fulness Specifically it presents the results of a study designed to expandupon research on psychological and subjective well-being to experiences andmemories of films that are perceived as particularly meaningful by viewersCharacteristics and themes of such films are examined and identified as wellas the specific emotional responses that accompany perceptions of meaning-ful cinema

Keywords elevation enjoyment versus appreciation meaningfulness eudai-monic and hedonic motivations life stories mixed affect

To characterize a movie as a ldquogood movierdquo can mean many thingsmdashthat themovie was of high quality that the movie was a ldquoclassicrdquo or that the moviewas memorable among other things However within the social scientificcommunity (eg Communication Sciences Media Psychology) the notion ofwhat makes for a ldquogood movierdquo has typically been understood from the per-spective of an audience that is assumed to be driven by hedonistic motiva-tions Yet this characterization obviously runs counter to many examples offilms that are widely celebrated as particularly valuable or noteworthy butthat may not be considered ldquopleasurablerdquo in the hedonic sense of the term(eg Schindlerrsquos List A Beautiful Mind) As a result more recent research hasconsidered additional characterizations of what makes for good films in termsof audiencesrsquo appreciation of meaningful cinematic experiences Howeverthis work in its early stages has yet to identify the specific types of por-trayals narrative ldquolessonsrdquo or audience perceptions of what is particularlymeaningful As a result the purpose of this article is to present findings rep-resenting our first steps at articulating a conceptualization of ldquomeaningfulrdquocinematic experiences

The Assumption of Hedonism in Entertainment PsychologyResearch in entertainment psychology is relatively new compared to other so-cial scientific theories in media and mass communication though it has en-joyed a blossoming interest over the last several decades that has produced anumber of widely cited (and generally supported) theoretical frameworks bywhich to understand individualsrsquo selection and enjoyment of entertainmentfare (Bryant 2004) For example one of the more influential theories in this re-gard is mood-management theory (Zillmann 2000) which suggests that indi-vidualsrsquo selection of media content (including films) is driven at least in partby the hedonistic desire to maintain (or enhance) positive moods and to di-minish (or alleviate) negative moods As a result individuals are predicted tochoose entertainment that disrupts rumination about negative affectivestates that produces the optimal level of arousal (eg not overly stressful orboring) and importantly that tends to feature positively valenced portrayals(Zillmann 1988)

Disposition theory of viewer enjoyment an additional influential theory inentertainment psychology is similar to mood management in terms of itsemphasis on positive affect (Zillmann 1991 Zillmann and Bryant 1986) Specif-ically disposition theory argues that viewersrsquo gratifications from consumingmedia entertainment are largely a function of the intersection between thefeelings that viewers have for the primary characters and the outcomes thatthe characters ultimately experience in the course of the narrative Simplyput enjoyment is predicted to be highest when liked or beloved protagonistsare shown experiencing positive outcomes and disliked characters are de-picted as experiencing negative outcomes In contrast dysphoria is expectedwhen liked characters suffer and antagonists triumph (for a review see Raney2003)

Although both of these perspectives have garnered empirical support overa variety of studies exploring a host of different types of entertainment theassumption of hedonism the focus on enjoyment and the emphasis placedon positive affect as a central element of ldquogoodrdquo entertainment have resultedin considerable puzzling about the seeming paradox that many viewerswatch and enjoy sad films (eg Oliver 1993) In this regard scholars have con-sidered a variety of potential explanations including the idea that sad contentmay be gratifying because it provides the opportunity to enact empathy (Mills1993) is ultimately cathartic (Cornelius 1997) allows viewers to enhance feel-ings of self-worth via comparison with others in more tragic situations (Maresand Cantor 1992) or helps individuals to cope with their problems (Grodal2007 Nabi et al 2006 Zillmann 2000) Most of these explanations point tothe idea that viewers retrieve something from sad movies that may not makethe actual exposure a joyful experience but that seems to be important andhelpful in the long run

U S E R S rsquo A P P R E C I A T I O N O F ldquo G O O D M O V I E S rdquo 1 2 9

The Appreciation of Meaningful Movie ExperiencesRather than assuming only hedonically based motivations and gratificationsto understanding the entertainment experience scholars have begun to sug-gest that additional gratifications are needed to more fully capture the enter-tainment landscape (including eg tragedy and somber films) Grodal (2007)for example argues that viewers of tragedies and melodramas work on theircapability to cope with failure and death through acceptance and submis-sion Oliver and Raney (in press) suggest that viewersrsquo selections may attimes reflect motivations akin to eudaimonic concernsmdashthat are character-ized in terms of greater insight deliberation and reflection on life purpose(Aristotle trans 1931 Waterman 1993) Through this lens then viewersrsquo selec-tions of sad films may not reflect a particular desire to experience sadness perse but may rather signify a desire to view entertainment that is more contem-

plative poignant or reflective on life mean-ings and questions regarding the humancondition

Sadness then should not be consideredthe only affective response associated withmeaningful or contemplative experiencesRather across a variety of samples and a diver-sity of age ranges films that appear to satisfyeudaimonic concerns appear to elicit mixed

affect that is better described by such terms as poignancy tenderness feelingmoved or being touched along with more cognitive descriptors such as con-templative introspective or meditative (Oliver and Raney in press Oliver et al2009) Although the experience of these ldquomeaningfulrdquo feelings frequently en-tails some tinges of sadness these feelings are also associated with the simul-taneous experience of positive emotions such as joy or happiness (seeErsner-Hershfield et al 2008 Larsen McGraw and Cacioppo 2001)

Accordingly it seems evident that the term ldquoenjoymentrdquo does not reallycapture viewersrsquo meaningful experiences that are accompanied by mixed af-fect Viewers may hardly say that they enjoyed a movie like Life Is BeautifulStill many viewers would think that this is a very good movie Rather than bythe term ldquoenjoymentrdquo viewersrsquo evaluation of the eudaimonic or meaningfulexperiences that they make when watching films like Life Is Beautiful may bebetter described as ldquoappreciationrdquo Recently Oliver and Bartsch (2010 76) con-ceptualized and operationalized appreciation as based on ldquothe perception ofdeeper meaning the feeling of being moved and the motivation to elaborateon thoughts and feelings inspired by the experiencerdquo

Appreciation seems to be associated with genres such as dramas sadfilms and even documentaries rather than comedies romances or thrillers

1 3 0 P R O J E C T I O N S

viewersrsquo selections of sad films maynot reflect a particular desire toexperience sadness per se but may rathersignify a desire to view entertainmentthat is more contemplative poignant orreflective on life meanings and questionsregarding the human condition

(Oliver and Bartsch 2010) At the same time however Oliver and Bartschfound that individuals often reported both high levels of appreciation and en-joyment for many specific films pointing to the idea that these responses arenot opposite reactions but rather reflect different dimensions that can co-occur Interestingly both enjoyment and appreciation seem to uniquely con-tribute to a positive evaluation of the movie They also seem to profoundly influence whether a movie makes a lasting impression on its viewers

Not all people appear to equally appreciate movies that provide meaning-ful experiences and mixed affective states Some individuals harbor prefer-ences that are more closely aligned with the hedonic concerns that have beenassumed in much entertainment psychology whereas others may have amore general and enduring preference for entertainment that elicits feelingsof appreciation over feelings of mere enjoyment Consistent with this argu-ment eudaimonic motivations tend to be stronger among viewers who scorehigher on measures of need for cognition searching for meaning in life andreflectiveness In contrast hedonic motivations are predicted by personalitycharacteristics such as playfulness optimism and humor (Oliver and Raney in press)

To summarize recent research has begun to expand beyond the hedonicfocus assumed in extant research in entertainment psychology This newerapproach within media psychology suggests that in addition to viewing filmsfor purposes of pleasure individuals view films for purposes of experiencingmeaning The experience of eudaimonic feelings of appreciation is not con-ceptualized as being opposite to that of hedonic pleasure but rather as repre-senting an additional dimension of cinematic experience This dimensionappears to be more common for some genres over others to elicit poignantand tender responses that are associated with mixed affect and to be morecommon among viewers who have tendencies to greater reflection and intro-spection However the specific nature of what constitutes ldquomeaningfulnessrdquofor viewers has not been specifically addressed in this literature but is crucialto our understanding of this important and deeply gratifying audience response

The Present Approach A Closer Look at Meaningful User ExperiencesThe core argument that we suggest in the present approach is that moviego-ers undergo meaningful experiences if they gain an improved understandingof their lives We presume that most individuals share a basic need to gain asufficiently complex understanding and to develop a consistent story abouttheir lives (McAdams 2001) ldquoLives may be experienced as meaningful whenthey are felt to have significance beyond the trivial or momentary to have pur-pose or to have a coherence that transcends chaosrdquo (King et al 2006 180) For


example research on social-cognitive development and maturity suggeststhat many people tend to perceive their lives as good not because it is simplypleasurable but because they succeeded in developing cognitively rich andconsistent perspectives on their lives (Bauer McAdams and Sakaeda 2005King 2001 Loevinger 1976) Accordingly in contrast to hedonic pleasures andeven in the light of tragedy people may appreciate growing into wiser andmore mature persons because they improve their capacity to create ldquoconcep-tual abstractions about [their own] liferdquo (Bauer et al 2005 205)

In line with this reasoning we assume that movies that provide meaning-ful experiences may be touching and moving because they relate to peoplersquosprivate life stories and raise awareness about the core issues of viewersrsquo lifevalues Likewise movies that provide meaningful moments should bethought provoking because they imply a modification of peoplersquos life storiesmdashthey may add new relevant information to viewersrsquo self-narratives broadentheir horizons show them what is really important in their lives or provide re-lief from absurd or tragic episodes Accordingly moviegoers may experiencemeaningful moments if a movie helps them to look at their own lives in amore complex or in a clearer way and they may therefore evaluate suchmovies positively because they teach important lessons At the same time itis plausible that at least some viewers (eg people looking for a purpose in lifeor with a strong need for cognition) appreciate such eye-openers not only ifthey are about uplifting details of onersquos life but also if they build on painful orinconvenient insights

Gaining an improved perspective on onersquos life can be pleasurable but suchinsights can also be disturbing or distressing Consistent with this reasoning

moviegoersrsquo meaningful experiences appearto be strongly bound to seeing people in timesof crisis Yet the display of tragedies strugglesand flaws of human life may be highly inform-ative While going through meaningful expe-riences viewers may become aware of ratherdiscomforting facts of the human condition ortheir private lives They may understand thatlife is fleeting and imperfect destructive

chaotic and far from any theoretical ideal In other words people may gainclarity about some sobering facts about the human condition that likely in-duce negative affect Mixed affect like nostalgia (Sedikides Wildschut andBaden 2004) or poignancy (Ersner-Hershfield et al 2008) for example buildson an increased awareness that onersquos life is fleeting Similar discomfortingrecognitions may also accompany feelings of awe (Keltner and Haidt 2003Konecni 2005) Individuals may feel small and slightly terrified when facingpowerful leaders superior architecture vast landscapes or the power of na-


While going through meaningfulexperiences viewers may become awareof rather discomforting facts of thehuman condition or their private livesThey may understand that life is fleetingand imperfect destructive chaotic andfar from any theoretical ideal

ture in movies Accordingly meaningful experiences may entail negative af-fect because people are confronted with imperfections of human life in gen-eral and their lives in particular

Meaningful experiences appear to be accompanied by positive affect aswell We assume that meaningful experiences entail positive affect for tworeasons (see also King et al 2006) First while going though a meaningful ex-perience viewers may become aware of some fundamental aspects of humanlife This basic understanding of the human conditionmdashof life as it ismdashallowsthem to transcend their own lives and to put their personal life story into per-spective (Koltko-Rivera 2006) For example people may become aware thattheir lives are part of a greater universal system (Schwarz 1992 Williams andHarvey 2001) Such a transcendental awareness may be experienced posi-tively because it could provide relief and may help people to accept their flawsor inconsistencies in their life stories

Second viewers may also become aware of fundamentally positive aspectsof human life Dramatic or romantic movies for example usually feature pro-tagonists who succeed in their struggles and manage to overcome their crisesAccordingly viewers may gain a better understanding of typical virtues andpositive strengths of human beings People may change their views abouthumanity in a more optimistic or inspired way and this information may beelevating (Haidt 2003) At the same time viewers may gain a better under-standing of what really matters in (their) lives Both the relief from tragic orabsurd moments of a personrsquos life and a raised awareness of the good thingsof human life should be accompanied by positive affect

MethodTo explore the concept of audiencesrsquo understanding of meaningfulness in theexperience of cinema we conducted an online study that made heavy use ofopen-ended questions These questions allowed participants to freely expresstheir thoughts concerning meaning and pleasure in movies to provide morefully articulated reasons for their perceptions and to describe in detail thetypes of affective reactions that they have experienced while viewing pleasur-able or meaningful movies Specifically we anticipated that individualsrsquo per-ceptions of meaningful movie experiences would reflect themes that theyfound relevant to their own lives and our goal was to allow respondents tofreely articulate these themes and the specific lessons that they take awayfrom the movies that they appreciate We also tried to gain a richer under-standing of the positive and negative emotions that individuals experiencewhile viewing To those ends the primary data for our analysis were the open-ended descriptions of film themes and affective responses among partici-pants who named and described either a film that they found particularlypleasurable or a film that they found particularly meaningful


Participants and ProceduresParticipants in this research consisted of 271 undergraduate students (384male) ranging in age from 17 to 26 enrolled in large-lecture courses at a uni-versity in the northeastern United States This study employed an experimen-tal design in which participants were randomly assigned to a condition inwhich they were asked to name and write about a movie that they found par-ticularly meaningful or to a condition in which they named and wrote abouta movie that they found particularly pleasurable Participants were given theURL for the questionnaire during class and via e-mail and were given approx-imately two weeks to complete it in exchange for a nominal amount of extracredit Participants could complete the questionnaire at the time-of-day andlocale of their choosing

MeasuresThe first part of the questionnaire presented participants with a series ofquantitative background measures assessing a host of individual-differencevariables that are not the focus of this article Of primary interest in this studywas the section of the questionnaire pertaining to participantsrsquo responses tofilm In this section half of the participants were asked to name a movie thatthey found particularly meaningful and the other half were asked to name amovie that they found particularly pleasurable Participants were asked toname the title of the film and to indicate the genre(s) that described the filmthat they selected A list of genres was provided including drama sadfilmtear jerker classic documentary comedy romance action film thrillerhorror and science fiction

Subsequent to naming and identifying their chosen film participantswere asked a series of open-ended questions that represent the focus of ouranalysis To prime a vivid recall of the movie the first question asked partici-pants to try to remember the movie in as much detail as possible and to de-scribe at least one scene from the film that they thought was particularlysignificant The next two questions were designed to assess participantsrsquo ra-tionale for choosing their named film as one that they considered meaning-fulpleasurable Participants were asked to explain why they named themovie as particularly meaningfulpleasurable again providing as much detailas possible and referring to any specific scenes that they may have found es-pecially significant To encourage further elaboration participants were alsoasked to describe the argument they would use if trying to convince a friendto see the film

In addition to these general questions tapping into the basic motivationsfor naming the film additional questions were employed to gain further in-sight into specific portrayals and audience responses associated with mean-ingfulpleasurable cinematic experiences First participants were asked to


reflect on their named movie and to describe the overall theme or lessons thatthey learned while viewing Next participants were asked to describe all of thefeelings or emotions that they experienced while watching the named movieFinally participants were asked to reflect upon and describe why they believedthey experienced the emotions that they described in the previous question

PreliminaryDescriptive AnalysesPrior to analyzing open-ended responses more general descriptive analyseswere first conducted to examine the sample of films named by participants andto note any broad differences in the types of films identified by participantsnaming a film that they found particularly meaningful versus pleasurable

In terms of the general films named by the sample as a whole perhaps itis not surprising that participants tended to name films that were currently orrecently popular and therefore more likely to be salient Across all participantsThe Notebook (N = 13) and Avatar (N = 10) were most frequently named fol-lowed by The Blind Side (N = 9) The Hangover (N = 9) and Dear John (N = 8)Despite some consistency reflecting popular offerings however it is impor-tant to note that across sample of 271 participants 152 different titles werenamed suggesting considerable variation in terms of individualsrsquo perceptionsof what they regard as meaningfulpleasurable

The analysis of the genres that described the film titles showed that dra-mas (443) and comedies (406) were the most frequent descriptors fol-lowed by romance (343) and sad films (295) The remaining genres wereidentified as descriptive of fewer than 30 of the film titles with horror films(1) the least frequently used descriptor As one might predict a larger per-centage of participants naming meaningful films identified their title as adrama (605) or a sad film (468) compared to participants naming a plea-surable film (dramamdash306 sad filmmdash150) Likewise comedies were iden-tified more frequently in the pleasurable (599) than the meaningful (177)condition Interestingly however approximately equal numbers of partici-pants in the meaningful (290) and pleasurable (388) film conditions iden-tified their film as a romance Together these results suggest that althoughthere is some tendency to experience some film genres as more meaningfulor pleasurable than others there is not a perfect correspondence betweengenres and usersrsquo experienced gratifications as a given genre such as comedyor drama may be experienced as pleasurable or meaningful or both Indeedsome specific film titles such as The Notebook were frequently named by par-ticipants in both conditions

Film Themes and Lessons LearnedThe overarching expectation of our research was that individuals would de-scribe films as particularly meaningful to the extent to which they perceived


the film as providing them with insight into life purposemdashserving as a meansto highlight important aspects of the human experience to underscore anddifferentiate what is and is not valuable about human existence and to assistin increasing understanding or insight concerning what may seem inexplica-ble troubling even absurd about the human condition To those ends thesteps of the analysis began by examining the open-ended descriptions for re-current themes found in the participantsrsquo responses to their stated rationalesfor naming the specific film title to their hypothetical rationale given to con-vince a friend to see the film and to their perceptions of the major lesson(s)of the named film Themes most closely aligned with meaningful (versuspleasurable) films were identified

Perhaps the broadest meaningful theme that emerged was the tendencyto perceive films as providing insight with regard to general lessons of lifevalue Here participants described meaningful films as providing them with agreater understanding of both what is fundamentally important in life andalso the aspects of life that are ultimately insignificant For example

bull Meet Joe BlackmdashldquoThis movie made me really think about the essence oflife and just how trivial certain things arerdquo

bull Seven PoundsmdashldquoLife is more than going through your everyday routineIt is important to step back and take other peoplersquos lives into perspectiveand make a difference in the life of another personrdquo

Although this theme was generally more prevalent in the meaningful ver-sus pleasurable condition some participants in the pleasurable condition alsoprovided responses that reflected this broad theme

bull Leap YearmdashldquoThe primary lesson that I learned from this movie was thatitrsquos the little things in life that actually matter All the materialisticthings in the world canrsquot compare to one little thing that means a lot tosomeonerdquo

In contrast it is interesting to note that one unique theme for participantsin the pleasurable-film condition was the recognition of the lack of any lessonor theme or the identification of a theme pertaining to ordinary mundane orpractical situations That is when asked to discuss the general lesson of thefilm that they named many participants simply noted that there was nothememdashthat the ldquopurposerdquo of the film was to simply have fun Similarlymany participants noted that rather than encouraging them to reflect aboutlife pleasurable films provided them with the means of escaping or forgettingabout their lives

bull The HangovermdashldquoIt didnrsquot have any particular meaning in my life or makeme reflect on my own life but was a pleasurable experiencerdquo


bull Old SchoolmdashldquoIrsquom not really sure what the lesson of this movie is And Ithink thatrsquos the point This movie doesnrsquot require a serious thoughtprocess It doesnrsquot want you to be inspired or motivated It just wantsyou to be entertainedrdquo

The general meta-theme of ldquolessons of life valuerdquo prevalent in descriptionsof meaningful films was also reflected in related narrower themes that artic-ulated more specifically the life values that were particularly worthy Perhapsthe most common articulated theme in this regard was an emphasis on hu-man connection focusing on themes related to love caring and enduring in-terpersonal ties Often this theme was connected to the importance ofhelping or caring for other people

bull Forrest GumpmdashldquoI would say that the overall theme is that you donrsquothave to be smart rich or famous to have an important life If you have agood heart and live to do good for others you can find reward in every-thing you dordquo

bull Into the WildmdashldquoLife without family and love is no life at allrdquobull Blind SidemdashldquoThe lesson in this movie is to look deep into your heart and

help others around yourdquobull The Breakfast ClubmdashldquoHumans different as they may be in the end all

need love and carerdquo

It is important to note that participants in the pleasurable-film conditionalso described themes related to human connection though a recurrent topicfor these participants typically pertained to romantic love rather than moreenduring or serious connections

bull Valentinersquos DaymdashldquoI learned that not everyone has the picture perfectlove life but true love can happen so donrsquot give up You just have to laughat the bad stuff and move onrdquo

bull How to Lose a Guy in 10 DaysmdashldquoThe primary lesson I learned from thismovie is that anyone can fall in love anytime you never knowrdquo

Related to the importance of human connections were themes pertainingto human virtueinner beauty Here respondents described themes pertain-ing to virtues such as courage honesty and generosity often discussing thedistinction between these virtues and more trivial outward appearances ormaterial possessions

bull Legend of Bagger VancemdashldquoHonesty and integrityrdquobull The Elephant ManmdashldquoIt is a movie of inner beauty and courage teaching

how the soul is unique and indestructible no matter what onersquos facelooks like or what pain their life has been throughrdquo


Related to this theme was an additional virtue named very frequently byparticipants in both meaningful and pleasurable conditions pertaining to thevalue of human endurance and the importance of keeping faith Across oursample this theme often reflected achievement hard work and fighting foronersquos beliefs In addition themes of human endurance and the importance ofkeeping faith were often described in connection with oppressive situationssuch as poverty prejudice or even war

bull PreciousmdashldquoThe primary lesson was that even in unfortunate circum-stances you must believe in yourself and rise above those that are try-ing to bring you down or are toxic in your liferdquo

bull Life Is BeautifulmdashldquoNo matter how much strife and hardship you arefaced with stay positive do the best you can and you will prevailrdquo

bull Slumdog MillionairemdashldquoThe lesson that I learned from this movie is thateven when things are really hard in life I know that if I work hard to-wards getting what I want things will turn out for the better I just needto have faith in everything I dordquo

Although meaningful and pleasurable films reflected some similarities interms of human connection and endurance meaningful films were unique inhighlighting issues of pain sorrow or even tragedy That is whereas themesin the pleasurable condition at times made reference to human struggles themore prominent theme appeared to rest on ultimate achievement or triumphIn contrast meaningful films were more likely to identify themes recognizingtragedy as part of the human condition

bull Cinema ParadisomdashldquoThe primary lesson or theme of the movie is a demon-stration that life isnrsquot perfect and that life has its tragedies and triumphs inthe long journey that we all take Although we all hope for the best in ourlives we will all endure sadness and will be forced to take a road that wedidnrsquot plan formdashbut thatrsquos why life is so interesting and complicatedrdquo

bull Dead Poets SocietymdashldquoLife can be so beautiful once you have found some-thing you love to do and share it with people around you But on theother hand life is so cruelrdquo

bull Where the Wild Things AremdashldquoHumans are flawed Those flaws are whatmake us so extraordinary Love is something that is beautiful even in themost disjointed and broken situations There is always some kind ofhope that comes from a sad timerdquo

bull Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless MindmdashldquoThe lesson I learned from this isthat memories shape people and even if a memory is painful itrsquos betterto live with it because it allows you to learn and grow as a person Itrsquoskind of like a lsquoitrsquos better to have loved and lost than never to have lovedat allrsquo kind of thing where itrsquos better to live and learn from painful things


than to live totally pain-free If you only have happy memories then younever change and grow as a person because there is no reason tordquo

An additional similar theme that was more unique to participants in themeaningful condition concerned an awareness of life as fleeting For manyparticipants this theme was often entangled with motivations to live morefully in the present including both its joys and its sorrows

bull Garden StatemdashldquoLife is meant to experience the good and bad thingsthat happen Being able to feel is a part of living Yoursquore given one lifeand [that is] all you pretty much have in the endrdquo

bull The Bucket ListmdashldquoThe primary lesson I learned is to live life to the fullestand do it now before it is too laterdquo

For other participants the awareness of life as singular and finite was reflectedin a more hopeful theme reflecting the notion of life is a precious good

bull Slumdog MillionairemdashldquoI learned to not take my life for granted andimagine how much harder everything could berdquo

bull John QmdashldquoDo not take life for granted and always be true to your wordrdquo

Affective Responses to Meaningful and Pleasurable FilmsThe analysis of participantsrsquo open-ended description of their affective re-sponses to viewing the film were analyzed using simple quantitative textualanalysis to examine basic discrete emotions experienced by participants inthe two conditions We also examined how viewing meaningful films was de-scribed as eliciting mixed affective reactions and compassionate or tender re-actions Both of these responses were of interest since they may beparticularly relevant to contemplations of human poignancies

In developing the categories of emotions that were identified we first em-ployed Eckman and Friesenrsquos research (1969) to identify the types of basicemotions that we thought most relevant including happiness (eg happyjoyful humorous) sadness (eg painful sorrowful sad) fear (eg afraid fear-ful scared) and anger (eg frustrated angry mad) However a number ofscholars who have assessed viewersrsquo responses to media depictions haveidentified an additional affective state distinct from basic emotions such assadness They used such words as ldquowarmthrdquo (eg Burke and Edell 1989) ldquoten-dernessrdquo (Oliver 2008 Schaefer et al 2007) or ldquoelevationrdquo (eg Algoe andHaidt 2009) to describe the experience of compassion poignancy or feelingsof being moved or touched typically in response to othersrsquo experiences andtraits (eg overcoming hardship demonstrating virtue) In addition to em-ploying categories pertaining to basic emotions we also included a categorythat we labeled ldquocompassionrdquo to try to capture these additional feeling states(eg empathy tenderness sympathy inspiration) Finally we noted that al-


though many films may tend to primarily elicit affective reactions focused onone specific valence (eg a film that elicits primary positive affective re-sponses) research also suggests that films that are particularly meaningfulmay elicit both positive and negative affect (Larsen et al 2001) Consequentlyusing a modification of Ersner-Hershfield et alrsquos (2008) procedures to assessmixed affect we created a category to reflect the experience of both happi-ness and sadness in response to the film

In coding each of the categories search words representing examples ofthe category were used to count the presence of the word in participantsrsquo de-scriptions of their affective responses to the film named For example both aparticipant who reported feeling sorrow and a participant who reported cry-ing would be coded as having experienced sadness in response to the film

The analysis of responses in the pleasurable-film condition showed thatfeelings of happiness were named by the vast majority of participants(769) Sadness though much less frequent was also named by a large per-centage (395) The remaining affective responses were named by less than20 percent of participants responding to a pleasurable film In contrast forparticipants naming a meaningful film the most commonly described affectwas sadness (726) though happiness was also named by an almost equallylarge percentage (661) The other two affective reactions that were men-tioned with equal frequency were anger and compassion (each named by 25of respondents in the meaningful condition)

One of the most notable patterns discernable from these results asidefrom the expected differences in patterns of happiness and sadness for thetwo films conditions is the extent to which both happiness and sadness werefrequently mentioned by respondents naming meaningful films To furtherexplore the idea that these findings may reflect mixed affect additional vari-ables were created to reflect four combinations of happiness and sadness theexperience of 1) neither of these reactions 2) sadness only no experience ofhappiness 3) happiness only or 4) mixed affect both happiness and sadnesssimultaneously Figure 1 shows the frequencies of these combinations forboth film conditions illustrating that meaningful films rather than beingcharacterized in terms of particularly sad or melancholic responses specifi-cally are best characterized in terms of both positive and negative valence In-deed mixed affective responses were spontaneously described by almost half(492) of the respondents

bull The NotebookmdashldquoHeartwarming loved inspired heartbroken joy sweet-ness and meaning in love and liferdquo

bull Shawshank RedemptionmdashldquoWhile watching the movie I experienced hap-piness sadness frustration anger and disgustrdquo

bull Hotel RwandamdashldquoThrill excitement joy disgust anger sadness fearrdquo


The other notable pattern was the more frequent mention of compassionand anger among participants naming meaningful films In many respectsthese responses appear to reflect in part the previously mentioned theme ofhuman endurance as these narratives appeared to elicit compassion for theprotagonistsrsquo suffering from injustice as well as anger toward the sources ofoppression

bull The PianistmdashldquoI was very emotional watching this movie At points I feltuncomfortable while at moments I criedmdashcried out of sadness andguilt (for the fact that I never had to experience something as horribleas these people went through) I felt relief when the main character sur-vived I felt patriotic watching the film as well and I also felt anger see-ing what was done to the people and the countryrdquo

DiscussionThis analysis of participantsrsquo open-ended responses revealed a number ofthemes that highlight the role of cinema in providing viewersrsquo insights and di-rection concerning the question of meaningfulness At the broadest level filmsthat are perceived as particularly meaningful appear to encourage a greaterawareness of or sensitivity to aspects of life that are ultimately valuable anda better understanding of the trivial aspects of life that should be contextual-ized as such (general lessons of life value) Similarly meaningful films are fre-quently discussed in terms of the extent to which they highlight theinterrelated notions that human life is ultimately limited (life as fleeting) andtherefore should be not be taken for granted (life as a precious gift) In addi-tion to providing the broadmdashand admittedly somewhat abstractmdashlessons onlife values these responses also identify a number of more specific character-istics of meaningful cinematic experiences Many of these characteristics


Figure 1 Frequency ofSad Happy andMixed AffectiveResponses

have decidedly positive or uplifting connotations including the value of hu-man virtueinner beauty the significance of human connection and the mes-sage that human endurance often prevails thereby highlighting theimportance of having faith in onersquos hopes and convictions At the same timehowever meaningful films also appeared to touch on more somber lessonsregarding tragedy as part of the human condition including its sadness cru-elty and pain

The focus of meaningful films on issues regarding life valuesmdashincludingboth their positive and hopeful aspects as well as their tragic and somber as-pectsmdashmay help explain participantsrsquo affective reactions to meaningful cin-ema Specifically although meaningful films undoubtedly appear to elicit sadaffective reactions sadness per se does not appear to be the best descriptorIn contrast and consistent with prior research the most typical response tomovies considered as meaningful is a mixed affective reaction reflecting bothsad and happy emotions

The idea that meaningful films elicit both happy and sad affect has impor-tant implications in terms of prior theorizing of seemingly paradoxical enter-tainment Namely entertainment such as somber movies or even mournfullove songs has been characterized primarily in terms of negative affect withphrases such as ldquotear-jerkersrdquo and ldquosad filmsrdquo highlighting this focus at theexclusion of positive emotions that may be present Likewise within the socialscientific community researchers often operationalize positive and negativevalence as opposite ends of a bi-polar dimension using scales with endpointssuch as ldquosad versus happyrdquo or ldquopositive versus negativerdquo to record partici-pantsrsquo responses Unfortunately such practices have likely prevented scholarsfrom being able to detect that although tear-jerkers may well evoke sadnessas their label implies they also appear to elicit feelings of happiness joy oreven hopefulness

Avenues for Future Research on Meaningful CinemaIn delving more deeply into the types of themes and affective reactions thataccompany perceptions of films as meaningful we chose to contrast mean-ingful movies with those that viewers find pleasurable largely based on ex-tant research that has assumed that hedonic motivations govern manyentertainment experiences At the same time meaningful experiences couldalso be compared to alternative audience gratifications not examined in thisresearch For example recent scholarship based on self-determination theory(Ryan and Deci 2000a) has acknowledged that the enjoyment of media maynot depend on viewersrsquo positive affective experiences but may reflect the ex-tent to which media addresses intrinsic or higher-order needs such as auton-omy relatedness or competence (Tamborini et al in press)

Given the apparent similarities between some of the higher-order needs


identified by self-determination theory and the themes identified in this re-search it is plausible that the perception of meaningfulness as we have dis-cussed in this article is but one example or variant of the needs that havealready been identified For example cinematic portrayals of human connec-tion may serve to fulfill relatedness needs and messages concerning humanendurance and the importance of having faith may address needs for compe-tence Indeed this interpretation is consistent with Ryan and Decirsquos (2000b)general argument that eudaimonic fulfillment (as opposed to hedonic happi-ness) is a reflection of a more holistic integration and internalization of valuedintrinsic needs

Existing research that has applied self-determination to the experience ofmedia entertainment has focused very specifically on more narrowly definedneeds rather than on the broader more transcendent experiences that weidentify such as questions regarding life meaning and purpose For examplescholars have employed self-determination theory to examine such questionsas how motion controllers in video games enhance feelings of autonomy orhow playing games with a competitor can enhance feelings of relatedness(see Ryan Rigby and Przybylski 2006 Tamborini et al in press) Although weagree that the fulfillment of such needs may ultimately be perceived as grat-ifying on some level we also suggest that these feelings of gratification fallshort of the experiences of meaningfulness that are the focus of our researchFurther we believe that the affective responses to meaningful cinema ob-served in our research differ qualitatively from the feelings of satisfaction thataccrued in media scholarship that has employed self-determination theorythus far Whereas we believe that the experience of meaningful cinema as wehave studied it may ultimately address higher order needs and therefore eu-daimonic concerns we simultaneously suggest that existing research in me-dia psychology needs to expand its current conceptualization andoperationalization to accommodate needs related to the contemplation ofhuman meaningfulness (see Ryff and Singer 2003)

Terror-management theory is an additional related framework that schol-ars may fruitfully explore in relation to the experience of meaningfulness Thistheory suggests that when people are reminded of their mortality they at-tempt to buffer their anxiety through a host of different means includingclinging to their cultural worldviews and attempting to find meaning and or-der in their environments as an avenue for making sense of their mortal exis-tence in the world (Greenberg et al 1995) Although the application of thistheory to films that prominently feature depictions of death and othertragedy seems self-evident to date very few studies have employed this spe-cific theoretical framework in the context of entertainment psychology How-ever Goldenberg et al (1999) did find that mortality salience enhancedindividualsrsquo emotional responses while reading narrative fiction featuring


tragic depictions Perhaps this finding signifies that when entertainment re-minds viewers of the idea that life is fleeting the value of additional virtuessuch as endurance inner beauty and human relationships become moresalient and therefore meaningful If this interpretation is correct then the in-terplay between death and value-themes may be a particularly powerful com-bination in enhancing perceived meaningfulness

In addition to situating the meaningful themes into existing theoreticalmodels such as self-determination theory or terror management additionalresearch on the nature of the affective experience of meaningfulness is clearlywarranted For example although our study found that during the course of agiven film the experience of both happiness and sadness was common it isunclear if these affective reactions occurred simultaneously or if they oc-curred at different times during the course of the narrative (Larsen et al 2001)Consequently greater research in this area would help to elucidate whethermixed affect is a sequential event occurring in response to different portray-als at different points over the course of a film or if it tends to co-occur in response to specific scenes that viewers may find particularly power-ful or moving

Future research on mixed affect could also provide greater insight into whyfilms that provide generally uplifting or inspiring themes (eg importance ofhaving faith human endurance) can also elicit feelings of sorrow or pain Forexample perhaps the focus on life values necessarily primes thoughts of life-as-fleeting as the identification of worthy human values causes greater re-flection on the entire course of onersquos life including its ending Alternativelyperhaps the portrayal of virtues such as endurance courage or caring for oth-ers necessarily entails the simultaneous focus on tragedy or suffering thatmust be confronted by protagonists in the demonstration of the virtues Ifthis interpretation is correct then cinema that focuses on meaningful por-trayals must feature depictions that elicit both feelings of joys and sorrowswith the experience of both affective reactions becoming identified as theldquofeeling of meaningfulnessrdquo

Finally future research should explore the outcomes of the experience ofmeaningfulness and the mixed affect that accompanies it For example pop-ular discussions of films as providing therapeutic benefits (eg cinema-therapy) imply that meaningful movies may have beneficial effects in termsof the enhancement of emotional and psychological well-being Prior re-search showing positive correlations between self-reflectiveness and search-ing for life meanings with eudaimonic entertainment preferences seems tosuggest that viewers in search of meaning have an intuitive understanding ofthis potential function (Oliver and Raney in press) In addition to exploringpossible benefits to the viewers themselves however research may also con-sider exploring how the experience of meaningful films may serve to


heighten other-directed motivational goals For example Algoeand Haidtrsquos (2009) research on the experience of elevationmdashanaffective state similar to our characterization of meaningful-nessmdashshows that the experience of this specific other-praisingemotion results in a desire to help people and to embody virtuessuch as generosity and kindness If this motivation also accom-panies the experience of meaningful movies then film viewingmay have the potential to do much more than provide viewerswith feelings of gratification but may also serve as a means forinstigating positive social change

LimitationsThe breadth and abstractness of the experience of meaningfulness requiresgreater work in terms of theorizing and measurement Likewise we would beremiss were we not to acknowledge the limitations of our current study thatwe hope will also be addressed by future research in this area

First as is frequently the case with social-scientific studies we are limitedin the extent to which we can generalize these findings beyond the bound-aries of the characteristics of the sample we employed Most importantyounger people almost certainly have different concerns and life experiencesthat are reflected in what they perceive as meaningful For example giventhat students are generally healthier than older populations and have likelyexperienced fewer instances of personal tragedy such as the death of lovedones portrayals related to mortality may be less salient and therefore lessmeaningful for them than for other audiences Likewise movies focused onquestions of human connection (and particularly romance) and human en-durance (as related to life goals) may be especially relevant for this populationsegment that is at a stage in life where future aspirations including romanticinterests and career-related concerns are particularly salient At the sametime existing research examining hedonic and eudaimonic motivations forentertainment consumption has revealed very similar patterns amongyounger and older viewers (Oliver and Raney in press) Further some researchon socio-emotional development suggests that as people age they becomeless interested in partaking in activities or interactions that may elicit nega-tive affect including (presumably) ruminations about death (CarstensenIsaacowitz and Charles 1999) Consequently it remains unclear at this point ifthe specific themes that individuals find meaningful show substantive differ-ences across the life span though it is an area of research that is clearly de-serving of greater attention

In addition to the limitations associated with the sample aspects of themethodologies also warrant further attention First the use of an online ques-tionnaire is potentially problematic given the general lack of researcher con-


film viewing mayhave the potential to domuch more than provideviewers with feelings ofgratification but mayalso serve as a means forinstigating positive socialchange

trol Participants could write for as much time as they wanted they couldcomplete the questionnaire at any time or at any locale This approach likelyintroduced a great deal of variance into participantsrsquo levels of engagement Atthe same time it likely allowed participants to describe their reactions and re-sponses in a relaxed more naturalistic setting that may have been more com-fortable and conducive to self-disclosure

Finally we note that the way participants were asked to describe their per-ceptions of the films may have resulted in greater similarities between mean-ingful and pleasurable conditions than may be ordinarily warranted Namelyin asking participants to discuss the themes that they perceived in the moviethat they named we urged them to describe the lessons learned and providedthem with a space to write their answers suggesting that answers to ourquestion were forthcoming Accordingly we may have triggered ex-post ra-tionalization processes particularly in the pleasurable condition with par-ticipants trying to retrieve any meaning or lesson that they could describeeven for silly or shallow films for which meaningful lessons were not readilyapparent

SummaryWe opened the article by noting that cinematic experiences are obviously ap-preciated for more than providing audiences with mirthful laughter and slap-stick comedy By exploring how participants describe meaningful films in theirown words we have begun to get a clearer understanding of how cinema canprovide viewers with valuable insights into questions regarding purpose inlife and human virtue Although such experiences are associated with mixedaffect (and are therefore not devoid of feelings of tragedy) these experiencesare also ones associated with contemplations that are deeply gratifying andultimately meaningful

Mary Beth Oliver is a distinguished professor in FilmVideo amp Media Studiesat Penn State University Her research interest is in media effects with an em-phasis on emotion and social cognition

Tilo Hartmann is assistant professor of Communication Sciences at the Uni-versity of Amsterdam His research interests include media choice media useand entertainment



ReferencesAlgoe Sara B and Jonathan Haidt 2009 ldquoWitnessing Excellence in Action The lsquoOther-

Praisingrsquo Emotions of Elevation Gratitude and Admirationrdquo The Journal of Positive Psy-chology 4 105ndash127

Aristotle 1931 Nicomachean Ethics Trans W D Ross London Oxford University PressBauer Jack J Dan P McAdams and April R Sakaeda 2005 ldquoInterpreting the Good Life

Growth Memories in the Lives of Mature Happy Peoplerdquo Journal of Personality and So-cial Psychology 88 203ndash217

Bryant Jennings 2004 ldquoCritical Communication Challenges for the New Centuryrdquo Journalof Communication 54 389ndash401

Burke Marian Chapman and Julie A Edell 1989 ldquoThe Impact of Feelings on Ad-based Af-fect and Cognitionrdquo Journal of Marketing Research 26 69ndash83

Carstensen Laura L Derek M Isaacowitz and Susan T Charles 1999 ldquoTaking Time Seri-ously A Theory of Socioemotional Selectivityrdquo American Psychologist 54 165ndash181

Cornelius Randolph R 1997 ldquoToward a New Understanding of Weeping and Catharsisrdquo Pp303ndash321 in The (Non) Expression of Emotions in Health and Disease ed Ad J J M Vinger-hoets Frans J Van Bussell and A Jan W Boelhouwer Tilburg Tilburg University Press

Ekman Paul and Wallace V Friesen 1969 ldquoThe Repertoire of Nonverbal Behavior Cate-gories Origins Usage and Codingrdquo Semiotica 1 49ndash98

Ersner-Hershfield Hal Joseph A Mikels Sarah J Sullivan and Laura L Carstensen 2008ldquoPoignancy Mixed Emotional Experience in the Face of Meaningful Endingsrdquo Journal ofPersonality and Social Psychology 94 158ndash167

Goldenberg Jamie L Tom Pyszczynski Kerri D Johnson Jeff Greenberg and SheldonSolomon 1999 ldquoThe Appeal of Tragedy A Terror Management Perspectiverdquo Media Psy-chology 1 313ndash329

Greenberg Jeff Jonathan Porteus Linda Simon Tom Pyszczynski and Sheldon Solomon1995 ldquoEvidence of a Terror Management Function of Cultural Icons The Effects of Mor-tality Salience on the Inappropriate Use of Cherished Cultural Symbolsrdquo Personality andSocial Psychology Bulletin 21 1221ndash1228

Grodal Torben 2007 ldquoPain Sadness Aggression and Joy An Evolutionary Approach to FilmEmotionsrdquo Projections The Journal for Movies and Mind 1 91ndash107

Haidt Jonathan 2003 ldquoElevation and the Positive Psychology of Moralityrdquo Pp 275ndash289 inFlourishing Positive Psychology and the Life Well-lived ed Corey L M Keyes and JonathanHaidt Washington DC American Psychological Association

Keltner Dacher and Jonathan Haidt 2003 ldquoApproaching Awe a Moral Spiritual and Aes-thetic Emotionrdquo Cognition and Emotion 17 297ndash314

King Laura A 2001 ldquoThe Hard Road to the Good Life The Happy Mature Personrdquo Journal ofHumanistic Psychology 41 51ndash72

King Laura A Joshua A Hicks Jennifer L Krull and Amber K Del Gaiso 2006 ldquoPositive Af-fect and the Experience of Meaning in Liferdquo Journal of Personality and Social Psychology90 179ndash196

Koltko-Rivera Mark E 2006 ldquoRediscovering the Later Version of Maslowrsquos Hierarchy ofNeeds Self-transcendence and Opportunities for Theory Research and Unificationrdquo Re-view of General Psychology 10 302ndash317

Konecni Vladimir J 2005 ldquoThe Aesthetic Trinity Awe Being moved Thrillsrdquo Bulletin of Psy-chology and the Arts 5 27ndash44

Larsen Jeff T A Peter McGraw and John T Cacioppo 2001 ldquoCan People Feel Happy and Sadat The Same Timerdquo Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 81 684ndash696


Loevinger Jane 1976 Ego Development San Francisco Jossey-BassMares Marie Louise and Joanne Cantor 1992 ldquoElderly Viewersrsquo Responses to Televised Por-

trayals of Old Age Empathy and Mood Management versus Social Comparisonrdquo Com-munication Research 19 459ndash478

McAdams Dan P 2001 ldquoThe psychology of life storiesrdquo Review of General Psychology 5100ndash122

Mills Judson 1993 ldquoThe Appeal of Tragedy An Attitude Interpretationrdquo Basic and AppliedSocial Psychology 14 255ndash271

Nabi Robin L Keli Finnerty Tricia Domschke and Shawnika Hull 2006 ldquoDoes Misery LoveCompany Exploring the Therapeutic Effects of TV Viewing on Regretted ExperiencesrdquoJournal of Communication 56 689ndash706

Oliver Mary Beth 1993 ldquoExploring the Paradox of the Enjoyment of Sad Filmsrdquo Human Com-munication Research 19 315ndash342

Oliver Mary Beth 2008 ldquoTender Affective States as Predictors of Entertainment PreferencerdquoJournal of Communication 58 40ndash61

Oliver Mary Beth and Anne Bartsch 2010 ldquoAppreciation as Audience Response ExploringEntertainment Gratifications Beyond Hedonismrdquo Human Communication Research 3653ndash81

Oliver Mary Beth Anthony Limperos Daniel Tamul and Julia Woolley 2009 ldquoThe Role ofMixed Affect in the Experience of Meaningful Entertainmentrdquo Paper presented at theannual meeting of the International Communication Association 21 May

Oliver Mary Beth and Arthur A Raney in press ldquoEntertainment as Pleasurable and Mean-ingful Differentiating Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motivations for Entertainment Con-sumptionrdquo Journal of Communication

Raney Arthur A 2003 ldquoDisposition-Based Theories of Enjoymentrdquo Pp 61ndash84 in Communica-tion and Emotion Essays in Honor of Dolf Zillmann ed Jennings Bryant David Roskos-Ewoldsen and Joanne Cantor Mahwah NJ Lawrence Erlbaum

Ryan Richard M C Scott Rigby and Andrew Przybylski 2006 ldquoThe Motivational Pull ofVideo Games A Self-Determination Theory Approachrdquo Motivation and Emotion 30344ndash360

Ryan Richard M and Edward L Deci 2000a ldquoSelf-Determination Theory and the Facilita-tion of Intrinsic Motivation Social Development and Well-Beingrdquo American Psychologist55 68ndash78

mdashmdashmdash 2000b ldquoThe Darker and Brighter Sides of Human Existence Basic PsychologicalNeeds as a Unifying Conceptrdquo Psychological Inquiry 11 319ndash338

Ryff Carol D 1989 ldquoHappiness is Everything Or Is It Explorations on the Meaning of Psy-chological Well-beingrdquo Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 57 1069ndash1081

Ryff Carol D and Burton Singer 2003 ldquoIronies of the Human Condition Well-Being andHealth on the Way to Mortalityrdquo Pp 271ndash287 in A Psychology of Human Strengths ed Lisa GAspinwall and Ursula M Stadinger Washington DC American Psychological Association

Schaefer Alexandre Freacutedeacuteric Nils Xavier Sanchez and Pierre Philippot 2007 ldquoA Multi-Criteria Assessment of Emotional Filmsrdquo Unpublished manuscript

Schwartz S H 1992 ldquoUniversals in the Content and Structure of Values Theoretical Ad-vances and Empirical Tests in 20 Countriesrdquo Advances in Experimental Social Psychology25 1ndash65

Sedikides Constantine Tim Wildschut and Denise Baden 2004 ldquoNostalgia Conceptual is-sues and existential functionsrdquo Pp 200ndash213 in Handbook of Experimental Existential Psy-chology ed Jeff Greenberg Sander Koole and Tom Pyszczynsky New York GuilfordPress


Tamborini Ron Nicholas D Bowman Allison L Eden and Matthew Grizzard In pressldquoDefining Media Enjoyment as the Satisfaction of Intrinsic Needsrdquo Journal of Communi-cation

Waterman Alan S 1993 ldquoTwo Conceptions of Happiness Contrasts of Personal Expressive-ness (Eudaimonia) and Hedonic Enjoymentrdquo Journal of Personality and Social Psychology64 678ndash691

Williams Kathrin and David Harvey 2001 ldquoTranscendent Experience in Forest Environ-mentsrdquo Journal of Environmental Psychology 21 249ndash260

Zillmann Dolf 1988 ldquoMood Management Through Communication Choicesrdquo American Be-havioral Scientist 31 327ndash340

mdashmdashmdash 1991 ldquoEmpathy Affect From Bearing Witness to the Emotions of Othersrdquo Pp 135ndash167in Responding to the Screen Reception and Reaction Processes ed Jennings Bryant andDolf Zillmann Hillsdale NJ Lawrence Erlbaum

mdashmdashmdash 2000 ldquoMood Management in the Context of Selective Exposure Theoryrdquo Pp 103ndash123in Communication Yearbook eds Michael E Roloff Thousand Oaks CA Sage

Zillmann Dolf and J Bryant 1986 ldquoExploring the Entertainment Experiencerdquo Pp 303ndash324 inPerspectives on Media Effects ed J Bryant and Dolf Zillmann Hillsdale NJ Lawrence Erlbaum

FilmographyBenigni Roberto 1997 Life Is Beautiful (La vita egrave bella) ItalyBoyle Danny and Loveleen Tandan 2008 Slumdog Millionaire UKBraff Zach 2004 Garden State USABrest Martin 1998 Meet Joe Black USACameron James 2009 Avatar USACassavetes Nick 2004 The Notebook USACassavetes Nick 2002 John Q USADaniels Lee 2009 Precious USADarabont Frank 1994 Shawshank Redemption USAGeorge Terry 2004 Hotel Rwanda UK USA Italy South AfricaGondry Michel 2004 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind USAHallstroumlm Lasse 2010 Dear John USAHancock John Lee 2009 Blind Side USAHoward Ron 2001 A Beautiful Mind USAHughes John 1985 The Breakfast Club USAJonze Spike 2009 Where the Wild Things Are USALynch David The Elephant Man USAMarshall Garry 2010 Valentinersquos Day USAMuccino Gabriele 2008 Seven Pounds USAPenn Sean 2007 Into the Wild USAPetrie Donald 2003 How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days USAPhillips Todd 2003 Old School USAPhillips Todd 2009 The Hangover USAPolanski Roman 2002 The Pianist France Poland Germany UKPrince-Bythewood Gina 2000 Love and Basketball USARedford Robert 2000 Legend of Bagger Vance USAReiner Rob 2007 The Bucket List USASpielberg Steven 1993 Schindlerrsquos List USA


Tornatore Giuseppe 1988 Cinema Paradiso ItalyTucker Anand 2010 Leap Year USAVaughan Tom 2008 What Happens in Vegas USAWeir Peter 1989 Dead Poets Society USAZemeckis Robert 1994 Forrest Gump USA

The Assumption of Hedonism in Entertainment PsychologyResearch in entertainment psychology is relatively new compared to other so-cial scientific theories in media and mass communication though it has en-joyed a blossoming interest over the last several decades that has produced anumber of widely cited (and generally supported) theoretical frameworks bywhich to understand individualsrsquo selection and enjoyment of entertainmentfare (Bryant 2004) For example one of the more influential theories in this re-gard is mood-management theory (Zillmann 2000) which suggests that indi-vidualsrsquo selection of media content (including films) is driven at least in partby the hedonistic desire to maintain (or enhance) positive moods and to di-minish (or alleviate) negative moods As a result individuals are predicted tochoose entertainment that disrupts rumination about negative affectivestates that produces the optimal level of arousal (eg not overly stressful orboring) and importantly that tends to feature positively valenced portrayals(Zillmann 1988)

Disposition theory of viewer enjoyment an additional influential theory inentertainment psychology is similar to mood management in terms of itsemphasis on positive affect (Zillmann 1991 Zillmann and Bryant 1986) Specif-ically disposition theory argues that viewersrsquo gratifications from consumingmedia entertainment are largely a function of the intersection between thefeelings that viewers have for the primary characters and the outcomes thatthe characters ultimately experience in the course of the narrative Simplyput enjoyment is predicted to be highest when liked or beloved protagonistsare shown experiencing positive outcomes and disliked characters are de-picted as experiencing negative outcomes In contrast dysphoria is expectedwhen liked characters suffer and antagonists triumph (for a review see Raney2003)

Although both of these perspectives have garnered empirical support overa variety of studies exploring a host of different types of entertainment theassumption of hedonism the focus on enjoyment and the emphasis placedon positive affect as a central element of ldquogoodrdquo entertainment have resultedin considerable puzzling about the seeming paradox that many viewerswatch and enjoy sad films (eg Oliver 1993) In this regard scholars have con-sidered a variety of potential explanations including the idea that sad contentmay be gratifying because it provides the opportunity to enact empathy (Mills1993) is ultimately cathartic (Cornelius 1997) allows viewers to enhance feel-ings of self-worth via comparison with others in more tragic situations (Maresand Cantor 1992) or helps individuals to cope with their problems (Grodal2007 Nabi et al 2006 Zillmann 2000) Most of these explanations point tothe idea that viewers retrieve something from sad movies that may not makethe actual exposure a joyful experience but that seems to be important andhelpful in the long run








































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































Date post:	12-Jul-2020
Category:	Documents
Upload:	others
View:	0 times
Download:	0 times

Exploring the Role of Me aningful Experiences in Users...

Documents