A Psychological Exploration of the Experience of Acting

Abstract

The work of actors involves realistically enacting the lives and personalities of fictional characters. Despite society’s deep fascination with actors, there has been very little psychological research on actors’ experience of acting. This review first considers how theater practitioners have viewed acting throughout history, and then examines research findings on the effects (both positive and negative) of stepping into the shoes of a fictional character and “becoming” that character. Studies of boundary blurring, dissociation, and flow in actors are examined, and recommendations for future research on acting are proposed.