This week\'s film: The Conjuring Hoffner & Levine (2005) provide a meta-analysis

Question

This week's film: The Conjuring

Hoffner & Levine (2005) provide a meta-analysis of research investigating factors that lead to an individual’s enjoyment of frightening and violent media. The authors describe several theoretical models that attempt to explain and predict enjoyment in horror films. Describe the model’s of both Zillman & Tamborini. What do these two authors propose is the key to predicting enjoyment of frightening media? Hoffner & Levine (2005) note the importance of negative affect in horror film enjoyment. Describe negative affect experienced during the viewing of this week’s horror films. What scenes or images seemed to elicit this response? Did this negative experience add or detract from your enjoyment of the film?

Explanation / Answer

solution:

Although most scholars seem to agree that enjoyment is a pleasurable response to media use (cf. Raney, 2003; Vorderer, Klimmt, & Ritterfield, 2004; Zillmann & Bryant, 1994), researchers have defined it alternately as an emotion (Vorderer et al., 2004), an attitude (Nabi & Krcmar, 2004), a combination of cognition and affect (Raney & Bryant, 2002), or some other unspecified positive reaction to media content (Miron, 2003; Tamborini, 2003). Within positive psychology research, Ryan, Rigby, and Przybylski (2006) offer a perspective that implicitly defines enjoyment as the satisfaction of three intrinsic needs related to psychological well-being: autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Deci & Ryan, 1985). These needs are part of an overarching theory of human self-determination (SDT: Ryan & Deci, 2000). Ryan et al. provide compelling logic to suggest a link between psychological well-being and the enjoyment of entertainment media. From this perspective, enjoyment is understood in functional terms as need satisfaction and is not tied specifically to pleasure seeking. Although past entertainment research has certainly been successful Corresponding author: Ron Tamborini; email: tamborin@msu.edu 758 Journal of Communication 60 (2010) 758–777 © 2010 International Communication Association R. Tamborini et al. Defining Media Enjoyment and useful in predicting a good portion of pleasure response to media entertainment, we propose that focusing only on the hedonic elements of enjoyment has overlooked important parts of the concept. Our article offers a conceptualization of enjoyment as need satisfaction and is meant to complement hedonic conceptualizations of enjoyment commonly used in entertainment research. We present and validate a proposed model of enjoyment as the satisfaction of higher order needs and argue for the inclusion of these needs along with the satisfaction of traditional hedonic needs in research defining entertainment enjoyment. The notion of enjoyment as need satisfaction is not novel. Indeed, research on mood management (Zillmann & Bryant, 1985), disposition theory (Zillmann & Cantor, 1976), uses and gratifications (U&G: Katz, Blumler, & Gurevitch, 1974), and sensitivity theory (Reiss & Wiltz, 2004) has either implicitly or explicitly defined enjoyment as such. In general, these approaches define enjoyment as a pleasurable response to entertainment media, but they do not offer a clear definition of the construct. Words such as enjoyment, appeal (Oliver & Sanders, 2004), liking (Zillmann & Bryant, 1985), joy (Reiss & Wiltz, 2004), and pleasure (Grodal, 2000) are all used to infer the same phenomenon. Although these concepts seem clearly distinguished as preference for and response to media exposure, scholars use the terms interchangeably. The differences are subtl le, yet they hinder efforts to make

predictions related to the role of enjoyment in media uses and effects. One example

of the predictive difficulties is found in the research on negatively valenced media,

which shows that individuals enjoy seemingly abhorrent entertainment content,

such as tragedy, suspense, and horror (de Wied, Zillmann, & Ordman, 1995; Mills,

1993; Oliver, 1993; Tamborini & Stiff, 1987). We argue that this paradox and other

challenges to predictive efforts stem from the limited treatment of enjoyment as

serving solely hedonically rooted functional needs, implicating humans as mere

pleasure seekers (Zillmann, 2000).

Our article attempts to address some of the problems associated with the lack

of conceptual clarity regarding enjoyment of media entertainment by offering a

broader definition of enjoyment that includes the satisfaction of psychological needs

in addition to pleasure seeking. Notably, we limit our definition to include only a

response to or consequence of media exposure and eliminate preference from this

concept. We begin by acknowledging that the experience of and need for hedonic

pleasure is a central component of the enjoyment concept. That being said, the

purpose of this study is to examine a set of theoretically derived, higher order

needs related to enjoyment that are not specifically related to hedonic pleasure. By

offering a conceptualization of enjoyment that includes the satisfaction of autonomy,

competence, and relatedness needs stemming from SDT, this study is distinct from

entertainment research that is based solely on the pleasure response model of

enjoyment. Our hope is that this conceptualization will help entertainment scholars

avoid the conceptual confusion and paradoxical findings associated with definitions

of enjoyment limited to hedonic pleasure, while providing a broader understanding

of the construct. We begin with an overview of the extant literature on enjoyment

and then discuss more recent work based on functional perspectives to explicate

enjoyment in part as need satisfaction. Following this, we provide an overview of SDT

with a specific focus on how the theory has been applied to entertainment. Finally,

we present and test a formal model of enjoyment as need satisfaction.

Defining enjoyment in entertainment research as need satisfaction

Although enjoyment has been broadly understood as a pleasurable response to

entertainment media, few researchers offer a clear definition of enjoyment, choosing

to identify its correlates instead of explicating the construct itself. Vorderer et al.

(2004) describe the diverse manifestations of enjoyment related to comedy, melodrama,

and media aesthetics. Raney (2003) conceptualizes enjoyment generally as

the sense of pleasure derived from consuming media products but is careful to

note that the exact nature of enjoyment has yet to be fully determined. Moreover,

when researchers have made attempts to define the enjoyment construct, they have

paid little attention to its functional role. Nabi and Krcmar (2004) conceptualized

enjoyment as attitude toward an entertainment experience, complete with affective,

behavioral, and cognitive dimensions. Vorderer et al. defined enjoyment as a pleasant

experiential state that includes physiological, cognitive, and affective components

and Bosshart and Macconi (1998) define enjoyment as a pleasurable reception phenomenon

composed of the physical system, personality, emotions and cognition,

and the social system. Though these definitions go beyond pleasure response and

incorporate other elements of the experience— such as cognitive and behavioral

facets of the concept— they do not address the functional role of entertainment as

need satisfaction.

A number of media scholars have implicitly talked about the functional role of

enjoyment as the satisfaction of needs but have not included needs beyond those

associated with pleasure seeking. Two examples of this are mood management

(Zillmann & Bryant, 1985) and disposition theory (Zillmann & Cantor, 1976).

In mood management theory, enjoyment is understood as the pleasure resulting

from arousal regulation (Bryant & Zillmann, 1984), suggesting that individuals

expose themselves to entertainment as a way to control their environment in

pursuit of positive mood states. In disposition theory, enjoyment is understood

as pleasure resulting from the reinforcement of basal morality (Zillmann, 2000),

suggesting that audiences are constantly looking to see the worthy rewarded and

the unworthy punished. Although both theories suggest that enjoyment can stem

from the satisfaction of particular needs, neither theory suggests any understanding

of enjoyment beyond the pleasure response associated with some hedonic need

satisfaction (e.g., need for arousal regulation or retributive justice); in addition,

neither perspective offers an explicit definition of enjoyment as anything more than

pleasure response.

More recent entertainment research has begun to explicitly talk about enjoyment

as need satisfaction. Literature on both U&G (Katz et al., 1974) and sensitivity theory

(Reiss & Wiltz, 2004) has defined enjoyment more explicitly as the satisfaction of

different needs. U&G identifies enjoyment specifically as an affective need distinct

from cognitive, personal integrative, social integrative, and tension release needs

(Katz, Gurevitch, & Haas, 1973), and although U&G explains enjoyment as need

satisfaction, it still limits enjoyment to a mere pleasure response. Sensitivity theory

(Reiss & Wiltz, 2004) differs from U&G in that it does not specify enjoyment as a

unique need to be satisfied in itself; instead, it defines the experience of joy (a proxy

for enjoyment) as the satisfaction of one or more of 16 disconnected needs. Although

this perspective is one of the first to include other, nonhedonic needs as representative

of the construct of enjoyment, the theory does not provide any organizing scheme

with which to understand the needs.

Despite the limitations with sensitivity theory and U&G, the notion of enjoyment

as need satisfaction has initiated discussion of the functional role of enjoyment as

serving both hedonic and nonhedonic needs. Recent work by Oliver (in press) has

proposed that the enjoyment of sad media is related to the satisfaction of eudaimonic

needs, such as introspection and expressiveness, which are conceptually distinct

from hedonic needs such as pleasure seeking. In a similar manner, both Hartmann,

Klimmt, and Vorderer (in press) and Vorderer and Ritterfield (in press) talk about

enjoyment defined by self-enhancement and personal growth needs as part of a

two-factor model of enjoyment, which distinguishes these types of eudaimonic needs

from the forms of physiological homeostasis that we refer to as a hedonic needs.1

Although these conceptualizations have yet to be formally applied in empirical

research, they do suggest a relationship between achieving psychological well-being

and enjoyment, something well rooted in the research on SDT and enjoyment (Ryan

et al., 2006).

Self-determination theory:

SDT is a broad theory of human motivation that focuses on the degree to which

human behaviors are volitional or self-determined. The theory posits that individuals

are motivated to pursue activities that will satisfy basic psychological needs defined as

‘‘innate psychological nutriments that are essential for ongoing psychological growth,

integrity, and well-being’’ (Deci & Ryan, 2000, p. 229). Past research specifies three

such needs: autonomy, a sense of volition or willingness when doing a task (Deci

& Ryan, 2000); competence, a need for challenge and feelings of effectance (Deci,

1975); and relatedness, a need to feel connected with others (Ryan & Deci, 2001).

Several outcomes can occur when these intrinsic motivations are met, including

increased interest in an activity, inherent satisfaction with an activity, and enjoyment

of an activity (Ryan & Deci, 2000). Most important to our study is the experience

of enjoyment, as SDT is particularly useful in explaining enjoyment associated with

recreational activities for which intrinsic rewards tend to be the primary motivating

factor, such as sports and play (Frederick & Ryan, 1995). Entertainment media, such

as video game play (Ryan et al., 2006), fall within this realm of activities that are

intrinsically rewarding regardless of whether extrinsic rewards are present or the need

for extrinsic reward is driving behavior.

SDT and entertainment research:

Evidence supporting the utility of defining enjoyment as the satisfaction of needs is

apparent in four studies by Ryan et al. (2006). Their research is the first to measure

media enjoyment as the satisfaction of needs related to psychological well-being,

using video games as stimulus material. Two specific sets of results from their study

help validate this approach: evidence showing relationships between video game

attributes and need satisfaction and evidence showing relationships between need

satisfaction and subsequent enjoyment. First, they focus on the ability of specific

video game attributes to satisfy needs. In each of four studies, they found evidence

showing that different video game characteristics—namely, game controls and social

play context—can satisfy different needs related to psychological well-being. The

first three studies showed that features of game controls were related to autonomy

and competence needs, and the fourth study showed that playing massive multiplayer

online games (MMOs) was correlated with relatedness need satisfaction. Second, they

found evidence suggesting a relationship between need satisfaction and enjoyment. In

all four studies, the satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs was

positively correlated with enjoyment. In their first three studies, they demonstrated

experimentally that the satisfaction of autonomy and competence needs observed

following video game play was associated with higher levels of enjoyment, and in the

fourth study, they reported survey data showing that relatedness satisfaction after

playing MMOs was correlated with higher enjoyment.

Though the evidence apparent in Ryan et al. (2006) is consistent with an implicit

definition of enjoyment as need satisfaction, it does not meet all the conventional

standards for convergent and discriminant validity as discussed by Campbell and

Fiske (1959). These criteria are discussed in the following sections.

Establishing convergent and discriminant validity:

Campbell and Fiske (1959) discuss the necessity of establishing both convergent and

discriminant validity when offering an explication of a construct. Ryan et al. (2006)

presented evidence of convergent validity by demonstrating predicted positive relationships

between game characteristics and need satisfaction. Their first three studies

showed convergence in the correlations reported between intuitive controls and the

satisfaction of autonomy and competence needs, and their fourth study established an

association between playing MMOs and the satisfaction of relatedness needs. Each of

the four studies reported positive relationships between the satisfaction of needs and

enjoyment. However, none of the studies offered evidence of discriminant validity.

In their experimental research, they omitted measures of relatedness, arguing that

the single-player nature of the video games used in their studies made relatedness

irrelevant to need satisfaction in this specific context. Although the role of relatedness

in single-player games can be debated, construct validation stipulates the need to

test for and demonstrate a zero correlation where one is expected to exist; it is not

sufficient to simply assume it exists and omit it from the investigation without testing.

In their fourth study, when the evidence necessary to demonstrate all predicted

positive and zero relationships between exogenous and endogenous variables was

obtained, they simply reported correlations rather than presenting a complete model

identifying all variables and the predicted paths between them. Furthermore, their

research never demonstrated a complete test of convergent and discriminant validity

that included both game features (game controls and social play) as well as the

three specific needs.2 Thus, although Ryan et al. implicitly define enjoyment as need

satisfaction, their study does not offer a formal validation of this conception. We

explicitly define enjoyment in part as the satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and

relatedness needs by considering evidence consistent with a definition of enjoyment

as need satisfaction as well as areas where evidence is lacking.

A proposed model of enjoyment as need satisfaction:

Our study builds on the work of Ryan et al. (2006) to offer evidence of a model of

enjoyment stemming from the satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness

needs using the convergent and discriminant validity using criteria established by

Campbell and Fiske (1959). It attempts to validate enjoyment defined in part as

the satisfaction of the three needs established by SDT as essential to psychological

well-being. The proposed model of enjoyment is tested in an experimental setting

that manipulates two characteristics of game play—game controls and social play

context—demonstrated in prior research to vary the ability of a game experience to

satisfy the stated needs. Based on the logic provided by Ryan et al., the model begins

with paths from game characteristics to need satisfaction that include (a) predicted

positive paths from game controls to both competence and autonomy, (b) a predicted

positive path from social play context to relatedness, (c) a predicted zero path from

game controls to relatedness, and (d) a predicted zero path from social play context

to both competence and autonomy. The model concludes with (e) predicted positive

paths from the satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs to

enjoyment.

Emotions are key to the player experience (PX) and interest

in the potential of games to provide unique emotional, some-

times uncomfortable experiences is growing. Yet there has

been little empirical investigation of what game experiences

players consider emotionally moving, their causes and ef-

fects, and whether players nd these experiences rewarding at

all. We analyzed 121 players’ accounts of emotionally mov-

ing game experiences in terms of the feelings and thoughts

they evoked, different PX constructs, as well as game-related

and personal factors contributing to these. We found that most

players enjoyed and appreciated experiencing negatively va-

lenced emotions, such as sadness. Emotions were evoked by a

variety of interactive and non-interactive game aspects, such

as in-game loss, character attachment and (lack of) agency,

but also personal memories, and were often accompanied by

(self-)reection. Our ndings highlight the potential of games

to provide emotionally rewarding and thought-provoking ex-

periences, as well as outline opportunities for future research

and design of such experiences. They also showcase that neg-

ative affect may contribute to enjoyment, thereby extending

our notion of positive player experience.

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