Public release date: 27-Nov-2007
Is there any way to get a man to savour a melodramatic, so-called ‘chick flick”’ It’s possible, if he knows up front that the story is pure fiction, according to U of A School of Business Associate Professor Jennifer Argo.
“We looked at fact and fiction stories and found that if people have high empathy – usually women – they will enjoy a story more if it’s based on fact,” she said. “Conversely, people who are low in empathy, typically males, when you tell them in advance that it’s fiction they’ll enjoy it more. We think it’s because it gives them an excuse to enjoy it. They let down their guards.”