The paradox of fiction: Emotional response toward fiction and the modulatory role of self-relevance

Sperduti, Marco; Arcangeli, Margherita; Makowski, Dominique; Wantzen, Prany; Zalla, Tiziana; Lemaire, Stéphane; Dokic, Jérôme; Pelletier, Jérôme; Piolino, Pascale

doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2016.02.003

Cited by 33 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Contrary to heart rate, the SCR amplitude was lower in the simulation condition. Although being in line with previous studies on cognitive reappraisal (Wolgast, Lundh, & Viborg, 2011), it contradicts the findings done by our own research team, which did not report EDA modulations by fictional reappraisal (Sperduti et al, 2016a;Sperduti et al, 2017). This could be due to methodological limitations.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…While this network related to the Self modulates the emotional reactivity (Eippert et al, 2007;Herbert, Herbert, & Pauli, 2011;Yoshimura et al, 2009), it is unclear how the relationship between emotions and self-relevance interacts with simulation monitoring. For instance, Sperduti, Arcangeli, et al, (2016a) showed that high self-relevance increased the intensity of the emotional response, but also that this effect was independent of the reality (fictional or real) condition. However, self-reference was exclusively operationalized as the amount of autobiographical memory linked to the stimulus.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The latter holds a particular place in the nebula of ER strategies, as it aims at changing the intrinsic nature of the mental representation of an event, appraising it as more or less real . Although the term "reappraisal" usually refers to a change occurring after the stimulus presentation, it can also takes the form of a prior information that will bias its evaluation (Sperduti et al, 2016a). This strategy is at stake whenever engaging into fictional experiences, such as movies, books, video games, virtual environments, and possibly extending to memories and thoughts, to help us manage our emotional reaction ("it's just a movie, it's not for real"; "this video depicting a dramatic car crash must be a fake").…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Regarding emotions, we expect that presenting an emotional stimulus as simulation will have a down-regulatory effect on emotion (Mocaiber, Perkakis, et al, 2011a;Mocaiber et al, 2010;Sperduti, Arcangeli, et al, 2016a;Sperduti et al, 2017). However, the existing literature is unclear regarding the domain of action of fictional reappraisal.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the existing literature is unclear regarding the domain of action of fictional reappraisal. Indeed, while several studies have reported that presenting a stimulus as a simulation would decrease the subjective emotion experience (Sperduti, Arcangeli, et al, 2016a;Sperduti et al, 2017) and the LPP (Mocaiber et al, 2009(Mocaiber et al, , 2010, a neural marker of emotional arousal (see Schupp et al, 2000), its effect on bodily signals remains controversial. Indeed, studies monitoring autonomic changes did not directly compare the simulation and reality conditions (Mocaiber et al, 2011a, b;Oliveira et al, 2009), and our own research group did not report any differences in electrodermal activity (Sperduti, Arcangel, et al, 2016a;Sperduti et al, 2017).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Phenomenal, bodily and brain correlates of fictional reappraisal as an implicit emotion regulation strategy

Makowski

Sperduti

Pelletier

et al. 2019

Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci

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The ability to modulate our emotional experience, depending on our current goal and context, is of critical importance for adaptive behavior. This ability encompasses various emotion regulation strategies, such as fictional reappraisal, at stake whenever one engages in fictional works (e.g., movies, books, video games, virtual environments). Neuroscientific studies investigating the distinction between the processing of real and fictional entities have reported the involvement of brain structures related to selfrelevance and emotion regulation, suggesting a threefold interaction between the appraisal of reality, aspects of the Self, and emotions. The main aim of this study is to investigate the effect of implicit fictional reappraisal on different components of emotion, as well as on the modulatory role of autobiographical and conceptual self-relevance. While recording electrodermal, cardiac, and brain activity (EEG), we presented negative and neutral pictures to 33 participants, describing them as either real or fictional. After each stimulus, the participants reported their subjective emotional experience, self-relevance of the stimuli, as well as their agreement with their description. Using the Bayesian mixed-modeling framework, we showed that stimuli presented as fictional, compared with real, were subjectively appraised as less intense and less negative, and elicited lower skin conductance response, stronger heart-rate deceleration, and lower late positive potential amplitudes. Finally, these phenomenal and physiological changes did, to a moderate extent, rely on variations of specific aspects of self-relevance. Implications for the neuroscientific study of implicit emotion regulation are discussed.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Phenomenal, bodily and brain correlates of fictional reappraisal as an implicit emotion regulation strategy

Makowski

Sperduti

Pelletier

et al. 2019

Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci

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The update of self‐identity: Importance of assessing autobiographical memory in major depressive disorder

Bulteau

Malo

Holland³

et al. 2023

WIRES Cognitive Science

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Major depressive disorder is a leading global cause of disability. There is a growing interest for memory in mood disorders since it might constitute an original tool for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. MDD is associated with impaired autobiographical memory characterized by a tendency to overgeneral memory, rather than vivid episodic self-defining memory, which is mandatory for problem-solving and projection in the future. This memory bias is maintained by three mechanisms: ruminations, avoidance, and impaired executive control. If we adopt a broader and comprehensive perspective, we can hypothesize that all those alterations have the potential to impair self-identity updating. We posit that this update requires a double referencing process: (1) to internalized self-representation and (2) to an externalized framework dealing with the representation of the consequence of actions. Diagnostic and therapeutic implications are discussed in the light of this model and the importance of assessing autobiographical memory in MDD is highlighted.

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The distinctive role of executive functions in implicit emotion regulation

et al. 2017

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The paradox of fiction: Emotional response toward fiction and the modulatory role of self-relevance

Cited by 33 publications

References 42 publications

Phenomenal, bodily and brain correlates of fictional reappraisal as an implicit emotion regulation strategy

Phenomenal, bodily and brain correlates of fictional reappraisal as an implicit emotion regulation strategy

The update of self‐identity: Importance of assessing autobiographical memory in major depressive disorder

The distinctive role of executive functions in implicit emotion regulation

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