Exploring absorbing reading experiences

Abstract

Even though there is extensive research on absorbing experiences with narrative media, an instrument able to measure different aspects of absorption in the story world of a textual narrative has yet to be developed. Such an instrument should be able to predict different evaluative responses while at the same time being sensitive to various stimulus materials, because it could help further the research into the relationships between narrative texts, absorbing experiences and entertainment outcomes. This paper develops such an instrument through a literature review, interview study, pilot study, and exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Attention, transportation, emotional engagement and mental imagery were found to be dimensions of story world absorption. The final scale is reliable, sensitive to different stimulus materials and able to predict two different evaluative responses: enjoyment and impact. It is argued that the text a reader reads determines the particular evaluative response to a story world absorption experience.