Movies as equipment for living: A developmental analysis of the importance of film in everyday life

Abstract

The use of movies as “equipment for living”; is considered in the context of several scholarly traditions: textual analysis, viewer‐effects research, cultural studies, and gratifications research. In light of these traditions, a developmental approach to symbolization is advanced as one means toward understanding how viewers apply their interpretations of films to their everyday lives. An open‐ended interview methodology was utilized that encouraged twelve participants to examine their autobiographical recollections of their film viewing experiences and to generate examples of when movies have had an impact in their lives. These self‐reports were used to exemplify three developmental categories which address the relationship between self (viewer) and other (film) in regard to film's perceived functions: 1) undifferentiated, 2) differentiated, and 3) integrated. Underlying sociocultural considerations evident in the self‐reports are also examined. The implications of a symbolic‐developmental approach for other media research traditions are discussed.