coronavirus pandemic, a new study has shown.A group of researchers from the Research Program for Media, Communication, and Society and the School of Communication and Culture at Aarhus University asked 310 participants about their film and TV viewing habits earlier this year during the Covid-19 crisis.“Although most people go into a scary movie with the intention of being entertained rather than learning something, scary stories present ample learning opportunities,” the study explains.“Fiction allows the audience to explore an imagined version of the world at very little cost.
Through fiction, people can learn how to escape dangerous predators, navigate novel social situations, and practice their mind-reading and emotion regulation.