Section: Gender and Communication
INFLUENCE OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION IN THE IDENTIFICATION WITH CHARACTERS AND ENJOYMENT OF LESBIAN NARRATIVES
Maria T. SOTO-SANFIEL, Departament de Comunicació Audiovisual i Publicitat. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Adriana IBITI, Departament de Comunicació Audiovisual i Publicitat. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Rosa M. PALENCIA, Departament de Comunicació Audiovisual i Publicitat. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Luis Felipe VELÁZQUEZ, Departament de Comunicació Audiovisual i Publicitat. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
This study observed the effects of explicit sexual orientation in Identification with characters (ID) and Enjoyment (E) in lesbian world based narratives, depending on whether audiences were homosexuals or heterosexuals. ID is a key concept for explaining the E of fictional stories. It has been defined as the affinity with the character that receivers experiment. It’s being also conceived as an empathic understanding of the feelings, motivations and goals of the characters. ID is defined by: emotional empathy, cognitive empathy, becoming the character, and liking or attraction towards the character. It’s also moderated by the affective, cognitive, or behavioral similarities with fictional characters. In spite of its relevance, there is still lack of theoretical knowledge about the concept. It’s been recommended observing it in varied empirical settings and with different methodologies (Igartua & Muñiz, 2008).
The research used a hybrid but complementary methodology: the quantitative study provided information about general magnitudes of the influence, and the qualitative one confirmed and explained those observed effects. Both shared the same stimulus materials: two 15 minute complete stories created from scenes of the TV lesbian world based show The L-Word. Quantitative: there were created two online applications containing instructions, the movie itself (1 or 2), and a questionnaire. Participants were randomly assigned to one of the two movies. After watching it, they filled the questionnaire. ID was measured by Igartua, Barrios and Piñeiro (2011)’s scale: 11 items upon Likert scales of 5 grades. E was a single item. Female participants were 166 heterosexuals and 29 homosexuals; males 76 heterosexuals and 43 homosexuals. Qualitative: data was obtained from in-depth interviews (recorded, transcribed and qualitatively content analyzed). Participants were 30 homosexuals and 30 heterosexuals of both sexes equally represented. They watched two lesbian narratives. They were interviewed after watching each movie. Questions included open-free opinions about E and aspects that define ID. Quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed separately. They were later confronted.
Main results show that homosexuals of both sexes expressed stronger ID than heterosexuals. They felt the emotions of the main character (F= 9,22 /p= .003/t= - 4,098) and have the capacity of placing themselves in the character’s emotional situation (t=- 2,690/p= 0.08) in greater proportions. They also experienced the capacity of imagining the future of the character more than heterosexuals (F= 9,089/p= .003/t= -2,988). ID was stronger in homosexuals than in heterosexuals (t= -3,278/p= >.001). There were differences in E between homosexuals and heterosexuals (t=-2,913/p=.004). Homosexuals enjoyed narratives in greater extent. E positively correlated with ID. Qualitative analysis revealed that the stories elicited ID and E on the majority of participants (homosexuals and heterosexuals). It also showed that ID was not specifically related to the homosexual world represented by the narratives but to general human value and concerns. Explanations for the quantitative results were also founded.