The TEDx talk I listened to was by our very own Dr. Jennifer Barnes! She's a professor in the psychology department here at OU. I can't say that I've had her as a professor, but I know a handful of friends who have.
Right off the bat, Dr. Barnes hits us with the fact that she lives a double life. She's a professor of psychology by day and a fiction writer by night! So, because of her two areas of interest, she decided to meld the two and give a presentation on both!
Dr. Barnes based her talk on why we care so much about fiction, the characters therein, and what all we ultimately receive from it. She goes on to argue that these fictional relationships that we have with these manmade characters have psychosocial benefits similar to those received from human to human interactions and relationships! This was one of the more astounding bits of her talk that stuck with me. I didn't think such a comparison could be made, as fictional characters are seemingly two-dimensional and bound by the pages of a book, whereas humans are living and breathing. Thinking about it more abstractly now, I realize that so many people connect with and appreciate the emotions and struggles dealt with by these fictional characters. And oftentimes, those can be struggles and emotions not felt by others around them.
Overall, Dr. Barnes did a great job in her TEDx talk. I would recommend it to anyone who has any sort of inclination towards psychology. She presents in a very upbeat, optimistic way without letting the audience get bogged down by statistics and intimidating wording. She definitely represented our university well.
Bibliography:
Imaginary friends and real-world consequences: parasocial relationships, Jennifer Barnes, Source
Right off the bat, Dr. Barnes hits us with the fact that she lives a double life. She's a professor of psychology by day and a fiction writer by night! So, because of her two areas of interest, she decided to meld the two and give a presentation on both!
Dr. Barnes based her talk on why we care so much about fiction, the characters therein, and what all we ultimately receive from it. She goes on to argue that these fictional relationships that we have with these manmade characters have psychosocial benefits similar to those received from human to human interactions and relationships! This was one of the more astounding bits of her talk that stuck with me. I didn't think such a comparison could be made, as fictional characters are seemingly two-dimensional and bound by the pages of a book, whereas humans are living and breathing. Thinking about it more abstractly now, I realize that so many people connect with and appreciate the emotions and struggles dealt with by these fictional characters. And oftentimes, those can be struggles and emotions not felt by others around them.
Overall, Dr. Barnes did a great job in her TEDx talk. I would recommend it to anyone who has any sort of inclination towards psychology. She presents in a very upbeat, optimistic way without letting the audience get bogged down by statistics and intimidating wording. She definitely represented our university well.
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| Dr. Barnes calculates that humans have spent 235,000....... YEARS watching and reading Harry Potter! The true number is most likely much higher; she used a very conservative approach in getting that estimate. Image by Dmitry Abramov from Pixabay |
Bibliography:
Imaginary friends and real-world consequences: parasocial relationships, Jennifer Barnes, Source
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