The use of fiction as a source of information about interpersonal communication: A critical view

Abstract

In several recent articles, communication scholars have used fictional accounts of human behavior as data in studies examining how individuals behave. This essay examines potential problems with such an approach to interpersonal communication. While fiction can provide useful information concerning interpersonal behavior, there are limitations to its usefulness. Fiction has only a limited relationship to natural communicative behavior. While fiction may influence behavior, the nature of this influence is not clear enough to conclude that most works of fiction will reflect actual communicative behavior.

Key concepts:

• Fiction
• reality
• romance
• mimeses
• myth
• novels
• interpersonal communication
• social reality