Unpacking Engagement: Convergence and Divergence in Transportation and Identification

Abstract

This review proposes that transportation and identification are distinct forms of engaging with narratives, that they are enhanced by different factors and that they have distinct roles in narrative persuasion. By describing and analyzing 56 studies that explore the antecedents and consequences of transportation and identification, the ways in which these two processes are similar and different are highlighted. Following the review, new directions for research in this area are explicated. Finally, implications for both theory and message design are explored.