Deeper engagement with live theater increases middle school students’ empathy and social perspective taking

Figures & data

Figure 1. Full Conceptual Model.

Note: Dashed lines represent moderation analyses that were conducted for each moderator (Reading Preparation, Class Preparation, and Theater Experience) on each treatment to outcome relationship. Only three of these lines are included to aid in readability of the figure.

Table 1. Treatment Group Sample Sizes.

Treatment Group	Pre N	Post N	Pre + Post N
Control (A)	958	902	876
Performance Only (B)	275	258	229
Performance + Performance Guide (C)	386	366	354
Performance + Facilitated Discussion (D)	402	375	359
Performance + Performance Guide + Facilitated Discussion (E)	368	331	312
All Treatment	1,431	1,330	1,254
Grand Total	2,389	2,232	2,130

Table 2. Summary of Models.

Model	Groups Compared	Effect Tested	Significant Results
1.1	B/C/D/E to A	Main: each treatment group vs. control group	None
1.2	B + C + D + E to A	Main: theater performance vs. no theater performance	None
1.3	C + E to A + B + D	Main: Performance Guide vs. no Performance Guide	None
1.4	D + E to A + B + C	Main: Facilitated Discussion vs. no Facilitated Discussion	Facilitated Discussion students higher in Affective Empathy. Results on pg. 21.
2.1	B/C/D/E to A	Interaction: treatment group X moderator¹	Yes; results outlined on pg. 22-23
2.2	C + E to A + B + D	Interaction: Performance Guide X moderator	Yes; results outlined on pg. 22-23
2.3	D + E to A + B + C	Interaction: Facilitated Discussion X moderator	Yes; results outlined on pg. 22-23
3.1	n/a²	Class and Reading Preparation on in-show student engagement	Students with more Preparation reported higher in-show engagement. Results on pg. 23
4.1	n/a	Prior and Current Theater Experience on in-show student engagement	Students with Theater Experience reported higher in-show engagement. Results on pg. 24
5.1	n/a	In-show student engagement on SPT and empathy	Students with higher in-show engagement higher in SPT and empathy. Results on pg. 24

Note: ¹Moderators were Reading Preparation, Class Preparation, and Theater Experience. ²Models 3-5 used the combined treatment group and did not include group comparisons or the control group sample.

Table 3. Beta Coefficients for Impact and Student Engagement Analyses by Research Question.

RQ1: Do participants who attend a live theater performance show significant growth in SPT and empathy, as measured before and after the show, compared to controls?
	Social Perspective Taking: Importance	Social Perspective Taking: Propensity	Affective Empathy	Cognitive Empathy
RQ2: Do pre/post-performance preparation and experiences systematically moderate growth in SPT and empathy?
	Social Perspective Taking: Importance	Social Perspective Taking: Propensity	Affective Empathy	Cognitive Empathy
Performance (B)	.020	.010	-.058	-.033
Performance + Performance Guide (C)	.034	.012	.028	-.044
Performance + Facilitated Discussion (D)	.009	.015	.056* For all students in a Facilitated Discussion group	-.019
Performance + Performance Guide + Facilitated Discussion (E)	.056	.036		.012
Reading Preparation X Performance (B)	.148	.271	-.314	-.258
Reading Preparation X Performance + Performance Guide (C)	.261	.144	.238* For all students in a Performance Guide group	.441** For all students in a Performance Guide group
Reading Preparation X Performance + Facilitated Discussion (D)	.210	.040	-.176	.204* For all students in a Facilitated Discussion group
Reading Preparation X Performance + Performance Guide + Facilitated Discussion (E)	.268	.397*	.238* For all students in a Performance Guide group	.411*
Class Preparation X Performance (B)	-.153	.064	-.548**	-.233
Class Preparation X Performance + Performance Guide (C)	.016	-.122	-.165	.238* For all students in a Performance Guide group
Class Preparation X Performance + Facilitated Discussion (D)	-.108	−.435*	-.311	-.166
Class Preparation X Performance + Performance Guide + Facilitated Discussion (E)	.103	-.133	-.285	.238* For all students in a Performance Guide group
Theater Experience X Performance (B)	-.178	-.254	−.272* For students with some prior theater experience	.117
Theater Experience X Performance + Performance Guide (C)	.016	.056	.033	.190
Theater Experience X Performance + Facilitated Discussion (D)	.137	.339	-.094	.039
Theater Experience X Performance + Performance Guide + Facilitated Discussion (E)	-.408	-.189	.240* For students with low prior theater experience	.267
RQ3: Do participants who engage in in-class or reading preparation before the performance have higher levels of in-show audience engagement? RQ4: a) Do participants who have prior theater experience have higher levels of in-show audience engagement? b) Is this effect stronger for those currently participating in theater experiences?
	In-Show Audience Engagement
Reading Preparation	β = .134**
Class Preparation	β = .167**
Prior Theater Experience	β = .109**
Current Theater Experience	β = .364**
RQ5: Do higher levels of in-show audience engagement predict significant change in SPT and empathy?
	Social Perspective Taking: Importance	Social Perspective Taking: Propensity	Affective Empathy	Cognitive Empathy
In-Show Audience Engagement	β = .189**	β = .205**	β = .138**	β = .090*

Note: * indicates significance at the p<.05 level and **indicates significance at the p<.01 level.

Data Availability Statement

Due to MOAs with the participating school districts, research data are not available.