Cognitivism, Psychology, and Neuroscience: Movies as Attentional Engines

Carroll, Noël; Seeley, William P.

doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199862139.003.0003

Cited by 61 publications

(27 citation statements)

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“…Shot-scale, defined as the apparent distance of characters from the camera, is one of the most effective visual devices in regulating the relative size of characters’ faces, the relative proportion of the human figure to the background (Salt, 1992; Bowen and Thompson, 2013), and arranging film content according to its saliency (Carroll and Seeley, 2013). It has an impact on self-reported arousal (Canini et al, 2011), prosocial behavior (Cao, 2013), and character liking (Mutz, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Watching More Closely: Shot Scale Affects Film Viewers’ Theory of Mind Tendency But Not Ability

Rooney

Bálint

2018

Front. Psychol.

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Recent research debates the effects of exposure to narrative fiction on recognition of mental states in others and self, referred to as Theory of Mind. The current study explores the mechanisms by which such effects could occur in fictional film. Using manipulated film scenes, we conducted a between subject experiment (N = 136) exploring how film shot-scale affects viewers’ Theory of Mind. Specifically, in our methods we distinguish between the trait Theory of Mind abilities (ToM ability), and the state-like tendency to recognize mental states in others and self (ToM tendency). Results showed that close-up shots (compared to long shots) of a character was associated with higher levels of Theory of Mind tendency, when the facial expression was sad but not when it was neutral. And this effect did not transfer to other characters in the film. There was also no observable effect of character depiction on viewers’ general Theory of Mind ability. Together the findings suggest that formal and content features of shot scale can elicit Theory of Mind responses by directing attention toward character mental states rather than improving viewers’ general Theory of Mind ability.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Watching More Closely: Shot Scale Affects Film Viewers’ Theory of Mind Tendency But Not Ability

Rooney

Bálint

2018

Front. Psychol.

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“…Varying shot scale is an effective tool to arrange film content according to its saliency (Carroll and Seeley, 2013), and regulate the relative size and visibility of characters' faces.…”

Section: Spatial Distancementioning

confidence: 99%

Watching Closely

Bálint

Klausch

Pólya

2018

Journal of Media Psychology

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Shot scale in film, that is the apparent spatial distance of characters from the camera, is one of the most important compositional elements in a film shot guiding media audiences' attention. The primary aim of the present study was to investigate the extent to which apparent spatial distance of fictional characters can evoke theory of mind responding in film viewers. Theory of mind, referring to the capacity of attributing mental states to others, is considered fundamental in audiences' character involvement and narrative understanding, and it presumably mediates narrative effects. Four short animated movies were annotated for shot scale distribution and presented to participants (N = 52) in a within-subject design.Participants were asked to retell the story of the films and fill in questionnaires on narrative experience. Skin conductance was also measured during exposure. Story-descriptions were content analysed for theory of mind responses. In a Poisson-regression model average spatial

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“…Research from these scientific fields can contribute information to help confirm existing theories, adjudicate standing debates, and in some cases resolve long-standing questions about the nature of art and associated artistic practices (Seeley 2011). For example, research from the psychology and neuroscience of dance supports the notion that metakinesis, or a form of kinesthetic understanding, underwrites audience engagement with choreographed dance works (Montero 2006(Montero , 2013Carroll and Seeley 2013b). And Margaret Livingstone (2002) has shown that Leonardo manipulated spatial frequency information in the surface of the Mona Lisa to produce her enigmatic expression, both confirming and modifying Gombrich's (1950) account of the painting by providing a mechanism to explain the dynamics of our perceptual interactions with its depicted subject.…”

Section: The Dependence Of Artistic Creativity On Scientific Innmentioning

confidence: 97%

Art and Science: A Philosophical Sketch of Their Historical Complexity and Codependence

Bullot

Seeley

Davies

2017

The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism

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To analyze the relations between art and science, philosophers and historians have developed different lines of inquiry. A first type of inquiry considers how artistic and scientific practices have interacted over human history. Another project aims to determine the contributions (if any) that scientific research can make to our understanding of art, including the contributions that cognitive science can make to philosophical questions about the nature of art. We rely on contributions made to these projects in order to demonstrate that art and science are codependent phenomena. Specifically, we explore the codependence of art and science in the context of a historical analysis of their interactions and in the context of contemporary debates on the cognitive science of art.

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Cognitivism, Psychology, and Neuroscience: Movies as Attentional Engines

Cited by 61 publications

References 0 publications

Watching More Closely: Shot Scale Affects Film Viewers’ Theory of Mind Tendency But Not Ability

Watching More Closely: Shot Scale Affects Film Viewers’ Theory of Mind Tendency But Not Ability

Watching Closely

Art and Science: A Philosophical Sketch of Their Historical Complexity and Codependence

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