The role of processing foregrounding in empathic reactions in literary reading

Abstract

A considerable body of research has examined the age-old assertion that reading literature enhances empathy, however, mixed results have been found. The present study attempts to clarify such disparities, investigating the role of foregrounding in possible differences in readers’ processing of literary texts and its connection with readers’ empathic reactions. We asked participants (N = 78) to mark parts of the text they considered as “foregrounding” (i.e., deviating from “normal” discourse), and we analyzed how they processed these stylistic aspects. Participants’ open responses to one of two selected texts were categorized as either Shallow, Failed, Partial, or Full Processing of Foregrounding. Full processing was associated with higher Comprehensive State Empathy Scale scores than Failed Processing. Stylistic analysis of word combinations that participants marked as “striking” suggests that, rather than stylistic devices per se, readers’ depth of processing may enhance state empathy.