Here’s what happens in the brain when we immerse ourselves in fiction

There’s nothing like a good work of fiction to take one’s mind off the trials and tribulations of daily life. Whether it’s a classic novel, summer blockbuster, or rerun of a 90s sitcom you’ve seen countless times, such stories transport us to different worlds and offer a needed break from reality.

Ironically, those same works of fiction that are intended to entertain and distract often offer a relatable perspective on real life as well. Perhaps you couldn’t get over how cool Han Solo was the first time you saw Star Wars, and resolved to adopt some of his attitude to your own personality. Similarly, maybe you related to Rachel’s struggle to find a steady job on the sitcom Friends.

Indeed, we all know how easy it is to get lost in a fictional world. That may mean imagining yourself sitting beside Wanda and Vision in Westview or even putting yourself in the same shoes as your favorite character. For example, seeing yourself as Batman beating up the bad guys.

Now, a fascinating new study from Ohio State University has discovered what happens in our brains when we immerse ourselves in a fictional setting and relate to our favorite characters. OSU researchers report that the more an individual relates to a fictional character, the more they use the same part of the brain associated with thinking about the self.

So, when we fall in love with and relate to a particular fictional character, our brains appear to assimilate that persona into our very sense of self. We see ourselves in our favorite fictional characters, and on a neural level, they really do become part of our identity.

“When they think about a favorite fictional character, it appears similar in one part of the brain as when they are thinking about themselves,” says lead study author Timothy Broom, a doctoral student in psychology at The Ohio State University.

One of the most popular TV shows in recent memory was used to reach these findings: Game of Thrones. While the very end of the fantasy-drama series set in a fictional medieval world filled with magic, knights, and dragons underwhelmed fans and critics alike, there’s no denying the HBO program was a cultural juggernaut for most of its eight season run.

So, the brains of 19 self-described GoT fans were scanned by an fMRI machine as they thought about themselves, nine real life friends, and nine GoT characters. The nine characters were as follows: Davos Seaworth, Jaime Lannister, Jon Snow, Petyr Baelish, Sandor Clegane, Ygritte, Bronn, Catelyn Stark, and Cersei Lannister. While participants had to think about each of those characters, they told researchers which of the nine was their favorite (felt closest to/related to the most).

 A survey was also given to each participant, intended to gauge “trait identification” levels. An individual high in trait identification tendencies would agree strongly with the following statement: “I really get involved in the feelings of the characters in a novel.”

“People who are high in trait identification not only get absorbed into a story, they also are really absorbed into a particular character,” Broom explains. “They report matching the thoughts of the character, they are thinking what the character is thinking, they are feeling what the character is feeling. They are inhabiting the role of that character.”

As participants thought about themselves, their friends, and the nine GoT characters, researchers measured brain activity in various regions by looking for blood flow fluctuations as shown by the fMRI machine. More specifically, they were interested in activity within the ventral medial prefrontal cortex (vMPFC). This brain region is known to “activate” when people think about themselves, and to a lesser extent, while thinking about close friends and loved ones.

Predictably, the volunteers’ vMPFCs were most active when considering themselves, a bit less active while thinking about real life friends, and the least active while pondering GoT. But, participants who scored high for trait identification showed much more activity in their vMPFCs while thinking about GoT in comparison to everyone else. Furthermore, these subjects’ vMPFCs  were most active while thinking about their favorite GoT character.

“For some people, fiction is a chance to take on new identities, to see worlds through others’ eyes and return from those experiences changed,” concludes study co-author Dylan Wanger, an assistant professor of psychology at Ohio State. “What previous studies have found is that when people experience stories as if they were one of the characters, a connection is made with that character, and the character becomes entwined with the self. In our study, we see evidence of that in their brains.”

The full study can be found here, published in Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience.