I remember this study, but I do question the solid conclusions, as there are a lot of caveats - these are about generic, short books, not long ones, not ones that take more than one sitting to finish, nor are they classics, nor movies, the study isn't double-blind, they cover only three very similar genres, the sample size seems tiny (4?) and given that, I wonder if the results are even statistically significant.
I also wonder if 'enjoyment of story' is the be-all and end-all metric when it comes to the value of a story, narratives are about invoking a whole range of emotions and mental journeys, not just enjoyment. Some of the best works I've experienced, I would struggle to rate as 'highly enjoyed', because I sobbed for half of it.
I don't think it's right to make sweeping statements about humanity over some studies where a few hundred college students read a short story. Even in those studies, the difference in enjoyment between spoiled/not spoiled isn't much.
Like, it's really douchey to upset people and then point to a research paper as if that proves you know more about their feelings than them. Real reddit energy :smuglord:
Ah fair, I didn't mean to come off that way. It's just that I've seen those studies used as justification for being rude and I'm seeing a lot of that attitude in this thread. Y'know the "ackshually I'm scientifically making your life better by spoiling everything" kind of people.
I want to clarify that I'm not saying you do that, but that people do do that. Sorry egon
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some people are masochists and enjoy the stress though
Not all stress is bad! There's a reason thriller is a genre.
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I remember this study, but I do question the solid conclusions, as there are a lot of caveats - these are about generic, short books, not long ones, not ones that take more than one sitting to finish, nor are they classics, nor movies, the study isn't double-blind, they cover only three very similar genres, the sample size seems tiny (4?) and given that, I wonder if the results are even statistically significant.
I also wonder if 'enjoyment of story' is the be-all and end-all metric when it comes to the value of a story, narratives are about invoking a whole range of emotions and mental journeys, not just enjoyment. Some of the best works I've experienced, I would struggle to rate as 'highly enjoyed', because I sobbed for half of it.
It's an interesting study, whatever the case.
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Very fair. I absolutely also concede to enjoying some movies more when I know the plot, or even moreso when I know the film intimately well.
I don't think it's right to make sweeping statements about humanity over some studies where a few hundred college students read a short story. Even in those studies, the difference in enjoyment between spoiled/not spoiled isn't much.
Like, it's really douchey to upset people and then point to a research paper as if that proves you know more about their feelings than them. Real reddit energy :smuglord:
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Ah fair, I didn't mean to come off that way. It's just that I've seen those studies used as justification for being rude and I'm seeing a lot of that attitude in this thread. Y'know the "ackshually I'm scientifically making your life better by spoiling everything" kind of people.
I want to clarify that I'm not saying you do that, but that people do do that. Sorry egon
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