Call for Papers

StoryNet Symposium

"Stories of the Heart and Mind: Cognitive and Emotional Functions of Media Narratives"

August 11 and 12, 2011

Jacobs University Bremen, Germany

StoryNet will co-host a symposium at the conference of the Media Psychology Division of the German Psychological Society on August 11 and 12, 2011 at the Jacobs University Bremen. In accordance with the focus theme of the conference, the StoryNet Symposium is concerned with cognitive and emotional functions of media narratives.

Stories are one of the most ancient forms of human communication and knowledge transmission. It has even been argued that storytelling lies at the heart of our ability to make sense of the world and give meaning to our lives. The symposium explores the multiple cognitive and emotional functions that media narratives can have for their audiences. How can stories help media users learn new facts and gain new insights about social reality? How can stories make individuals change their mind? How can stories help individuals improve their mood or cope with painful emotions and stressful life experiences?

The workshop's special focus is on the complex interplay of cognition and emotion in shaping the experience and effects of media narratives. Does emotional involvement with narratives foster a more careful or a more superficial processing of the story content? Can emotional narratives motivate cognitive follow-up processes after exposure such as (self-)reflection, communication with others, or further information seeking? How do story-related emotions and cognitions translate into actual behavior?

We invite contributions that address these and other related questions concerning the cognitive and emotional functions of media narratives. Contributions dealing with a wide spectrum of fictional and non-fictional media stories including textual, audiovisual, interactive and cross-media storytelling are welcome. The workshop will be held in cooperation with the 7th Conference of the Media Psychology Division of the German Psychological Society (held on August 10 and 11, 2011). For further details, please see the Call for Papers at: www.jacobs-university.de/medpsych2011

Conference language

The workshop will be held in English (as will the conference of the Media Psychology Division).

Types of contributions:

• position and review papers
• research papers
• posters

Submission:

• For each type of contribution, please submit a 300 word abstract including results to the organizers via e-mail (anne.bartsch@phil.uni-augsburg.de).
• Submission deadline is March 1, 2011.
• Authors will be informed about acceptance by May 15, 2011.

Location:

Jacobs University Bremen, Campus Ring, 28759 Bremen

Symposium Organizers: