Final published version
Licence: CC BY-NC: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - The Narrative Arc
T2 - Revealing Core Narrative Structures Through Text Analysis
AU - Boyd, Ryan
AU - Blackburn, Kate
AU - Pennebaker, James W.
PY - 2020/8/7
Y1 - 2020/8/7
N2 - Scholars across disciplines have long debated the existence of a common structure that underlies narratives. Using computer-based language analysis methods, several structural and psychological categories of language were measured across ~40,000 traditional narratives (e.g., novels, movie scripts) and ~20,000 non-traditional narratives (science reporting in newspaper articles, TED talks, Supreme Court opinions). Across traditional narratives, a consistent underlying story structure emerged that revealed 3 primary processes: staging, plot progression, and cognitive tension. No evidence emerged to indicate that adherence to normative story structures was related to the popularity of the story. Finally, analysis of fact-driven texts revealed structures that differed from story-based narratives.
AB - Scholars across disciplines have long debated the existence of a common structure that underlies narratives. Using computer-based language analysis methods, several structural and psychological categories of language were measured across ~40,000 traditional narratives (e.g., novels, movie scripts) and ~20,000 non-traditional narratives (science reporting in newspaper articles, TED talks, Supreme Court opinions). Across traditional narratives, a consistent underlying story structure emerged that revealed 3 primary processes: staging, plot progression, and cognitive tension. No evidence emerged to indicate that adherence to normative story structures was related to the popularity of the story. Finally, analysis of fact-driven texts revealed structures that differed from story-based narratives.
KW - psychology
KW - text analysis
KW - language
KW - narrative
U2 - 10.1126/sciadv.aba2196
DO - 10.1126/sciadv.aba2196
M3 - Journal article
VL - 6
JO - Science Advances
JF - Science Advances
SN - 2375-2548
IS - 32
M1 - eaba2196
ER -