Development of story liking: Character identification, suspense, and outcome resolution.

Proposes a developmental model of story liking for suspense stories. The model predicts that (a) reader identification increases with greater perceived similarity between character and reader; (b) increased identification leads to greater suspense; (c) liking of outcome is a joint function of character valence (good or bad character) and outcome valence (positive or negative outcome); and (d) overall liking of story increases with greater identification, greater suspense, and greater liking of outcome. The model was tested by having 44 2nd, 64 4th, and 64 6th graders rate suspense stories on 10 affective scales. Results show that similarity to character increased reader identification, and this, in turn, produced more suspense. A strong developmental trend in evaluations of story endings was found: Young Ss preferred positive outcomes regardless of the valence of the character, but older Ss liked positive endings for good characters and negative endings for bad characters. This finding is interpreted as evidence for acquisition of the "just world" belief. Overall story liking was predicted by path analysis of independent contributions of character identification, suspense, and liking of outcome. Results support the proposed model of story appreciation. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)