Interior Music: an Examination of the Sociocognitive Abilities of Fiction Writers
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INTERIOR MUSIC: AN EXAMINATION OF THE SOCIOCOGNITIVE ABILITIES OF FICTION WRITERS by Theanna Frances Bischoff A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Human Development and Applied Psychology Ontario Institute for Studies in Education University of Toronto © Copyright by Theanna Frances Bischoff (2013) INTERIOR MUSIC: AN EXAMINATION OF THE SOCIOCOGNITIVE ABILITIES OF FICTION WRITERS Doctor of Philosophy 2013 Theanna Frances Bischoff Department of Human Development and Applied Psychology University of Toronto Abstract A two-part study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between fiction writing and social cognition: the ability to make inferences about the mental states of others. First, an online survey was administered that assessed beliefs held by the general public about the social cognition of fiction writers compared to a variety of other professions. The findings revealed that the general public believes fiction writers demonstrate above average sociocognitive abilities. Next, the possibility of an empirical relationship between social cognition and fiction writing was explored by comparing two groups of fiction writers (established/published and intermediate writers) and a control group on measures directly assessing different facets of social cognition (e.g., social perception, interpreting body language, and making inferences about interpersonal interactions on video and in written vignettes). Participants were also asked to self-report their own sociocognitive abilities via a questionnaire assessing perspective taking. Related variables to social cognition were also tested, including self-reported interpersonal/social reactivity and cognitive complexity/differentiation. Potential confounding variables, including age, level of depression, verbal IQ, and tendency to read fiction were also measured and accounted for. All participants provided a short story writing sample which was scored by three experts for quality, as well as potential textual determinants of social cognition: character transparency and point of view. The results of the study consistently revealed a lack of between-group differences on measures of social cognition as well as the related measure of cognitive complexity/differentiation. Fiction writing quality and character transparency correlated only with cognitive complexity/differentiation, but not with any variables directly assessing social cognition. Taken together, the results of the study suggest that, contrary to public perceptions, and contrary to the hypotheses of many theorists in the literature, fiction writers do not demonstrate superior sociocognitive abilities. ii Acknowledgements I would like to thank the following people for supporting me along the journey to my PhD: my supervisor, Dr. Joan Peskin; my committee members, Dr. Joseph Ducharme and Dr. Kang Lee; my internal and external examiners, Dr. Keith Oatley and Dr. Marjorie Taylor; my parents, Carol Adair and Francis Bischoff; my partner, David Gishler; those who helped along the way with the piloting, design, coding, editing, and analyzing of the study, especially Andrew Wilmot, Alexis Kienlen, Roberta Rees, Chelsea Vainio, Shelby Dewhirst, Raymond Mar, and Michael Grossman; those who helped with recruiting participants, especially Susan McDermott, Lucille and John Gishler, and the Alexandra Writers’ Centre; and, finally, my participants for donating their valuable time. iii Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................. iii List of Appendices ............................................................................................................................. vii List of Tables ..................................................................................................................................... viii List of Figures ...................................................................................................................................... ix Prologue................................................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1: Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 3 Chapter 2: Social Cognition ................................................................................................................ 4 2.1 Social Cognition: Concept and Definition ................................................................... 4 2.2 Development of Social Cognition ................................................................................. 7 2.3 Benefits of Strong Sociocognitive Abilities ................................................................ 10 2.4 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 12 Chapter 3: The Relationship Between Social Cognition and Fiction Writing ........................... 13 3.1 Audience Awareness ...................................................................................................... 15 3.2 Characterization.............................................................................................................. 22 3.3 Understanding Incremental Mental States in Written Texts ................................... 26 3.4 Comparisons Between Fiction Writers and Other Populations.............................. 32 3.4.1 Psychological and Emotional Disorders .................................................... 33 3.4.2 Autism Spectrum Disorders ........................................................................ 38 3.4.3 Actors and Actresses ..................................................................................... 41 3.4.4 Fiction Readers .............................................................................................. 46 3.5 Empirical Evidence in Support of a Relationship Between Social Cognition and Fiction Writing ...................................................................................................................... 51 3.6 Generalizability to Real Life Scenarios ....................................................................... 57 3.7 Exploring Causality and Directionality ....................................................................... 59 3.7.1 Does the Act of Writing Fiction Foster Social Cognition? ..................... 59 3.7.2 Pilot Study ...................................................................................................... 65 3.7.3 Is Fiction Writing Skill Related to Sociocognitive Skill? .......................... 72 3.7.3.1 The Road to Fiction Writing Expertise: Talent, Practice, or Instruction? ................................................................................................ 76 3.8 Textual Determinants .................................................................................................... 79 iv Chapter 4: Study Purpose and Rationale ........................................................................................ 83 4.1 Potential Implications and Importance ...................................................................... 83 4.2 Objectives ........................................................................................................................ 84 Chapter 5: Research Questions and Hypotheses ........................................................................... 86 Chapter 6: Part 1: Public Perceptions of the Sociocognitive Abilities of Fiction Writers Compared to the General Public ..................................................................................................... 90 6.1 Methods ........................................................................................................................... 90 6.1.1 Participants ..................................................................................................... 90 6.1.2 Procedure ........................................................................................................ 90 6.2 Results .............................................................................................................................. 92 Chapter 7: Part 2: Empirical Tests of the Social Cognition of Fiction Writers ........................ 96 7.1 Methods ........................................................................................................................... 96 7.1.1 Participants ..................................................................................................... 96 7.1.2 Measures ....................................................................................................... 101 7.1.2.1 Demographic Information ........................................................ 101 7.1.2.2 Test Measures .............................................................................. 101 7.1.2.2.1 Self-Report Measure: The Interpersonal Reactivity Index ............................................................................................ 102 7.1.2.2.2 Performance-Based Measures .................................. 103 7.1.2.2.2.1 The Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test ................................................................................