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Abstract
Morality plays an integral role in perceiving and judging fictional characters since liking morally good characters leads to a general enjoyment of the narrative if the outcomes of actions are favorable for the liked character. However, some fictional characters frequently violate moral standards but are still popular at the same time. To explain this paradox, the present study offers a two-process model on the appeal of morally ambiguous characters, proposing psychological mechanisms leading to either enjoyment or appreciation. These mechanisms were tested based on an online survey (N = 429) examining four different television series which featured morally ambiguous protagonists. Findings largely supported the notion that while liking the character leads to enjoyment, social comparison processes (based on moral principles) were associated with appreciation. This study extends findings of previous investigations by offering a more comprehensive understanding of how morally complex narratives can lead to entertainment experiences.
Acknowledgment
We would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers who provided very helpful ideas which clearly improved our work.
SUPPLEMENTAL DATA
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Additional information
Notes on contributors
Yannic Meier
Yannic Meier (M.Sc., University of Duisburg-Essen, 2017) is a Ph.D. student and research associate in the Team Social Psychology: Media and Communication at the University of Duisburg-Essen. He is a member of the research project “Forum Privacy” that works on an interdisciplinary understanding of the role of privacy. His research interests include online privacy, online self-disclosure, and entertainment research.
German Neubaum
German Neubaum (Ph.D., University of Duisburg-Essen, 2016) is the head of the junior research group “Digital Citizenship in Network Technologies” (funded by the Ministry of Culture and Science of the German State of North Rhine-Westphalia) at the University of Duisburg-Essen. His research interests include how the use of emerging media formats and technologies influence users` cognitions, emotions, and actions.