Enhancing Vitality: Physiological Evidence for the Recovery Potential of Entertaining Movies

• In Event: Best of Information Systems

Abstract

Research on recovery from stress and strain demonstrated that entertaining movies can lead to mood repair, psychological detachment and relaxation. Through these processes, entertainment consumption fosters well-being by increasing feelings of vitality. As work strain and stress have a strong physiological component, studies relying solely on self-reports cannot answer the question of psychological and somatic recovery. The current study therefore addressed this issue by assessing saliva cortisol levels in order to relate a physiological indicator to experiences of recovery and vitality. In an experiment (N = 60), participants were stressed before they either watched a hedonic movie, a eudaimonic movie, or a control movie. Results confirmed that media stimuli amplify recovery experiences when they convey a high entertainment experience. Further, cortisol levels influenced post-reception vitality by enhancing energetic arousal and affect. These results are discussed regarding the interpretation of physiological indicators to study stress and strain.

Authors

• Diana Rieger, University of Mannheim

• Julia Kneer, Erasmus University Rotterdam

• Lena Frischlich, University of Cologne

• Tim Wulf, University of Cologne

• Olivia Cornelia Rutkowski, U of Cologne

• Gary Bente, U of Cologne