The Psychology of Fantasy
A chat with two psychologists about fantasy and our brains as kids — and as adults
I’ve been drawn to fantasy stories since I was very young. Many teachers accused me of living with my head in the clouds. I vividly remember my first grade teacher asking us to draw a picture of our home with our family and pets. My picture included not only my family and my dog, but an entire zoo, complete with dolphins, elephants, triceratops, and a baby dragon. My teacher was very upset and made me complete the assignment again. In hindsight, this foreshadowed my fantasy-rich life and all the joy I would eventually find through the genre. Whether it’s hunting magical rings, riding dragons, or practicing spells at Hogwarts, I’ve always been drawn to stories that allowed me to leave the real world one page at a time.
When I became a mother, I was thrilled to share my love of magic with my children. By four months old, both of my children had heard me read aloud the Harry Potter series. It was my favorite source of entertainment as I was held captive on the couch by a nursing infant. I had hoped hearing the stories repeatedly throughout their young lives would create children who shared my fascination with worlds where anything was possible. Much to my dismay, my first child has no interest in fantasy stories. She enjoys the occasional sci-fi book or movie, but if it feels too close fantasy she will walk away with no interest. I have often wondered why this is. How can my love for fantasy run so deep while my child has disdain for anything that feels far-fetched?
Why are some people so entranced by fantasy, while others view it as silly?
To seek out a little clarity, I sat down with two psychologists. Dr. Christine Gockman has been a practicing child psychologist for 30 years, and Dr. Kevin Brown is a cognitive psychologist with 35 years of experience, who now works in school psychology.
Q: Why are some people drawn to fantasy stories more than others?
KB: Those drawn to fantasy tend to be people with a more creative mind. It’s an often underestimated form of intelligence, but it is an important form.
Creativity tends to be undervalued in our society. Interestingly, many who do not necessarily have a creative mind still have a visceral need for the creativity of others through literature or music.
CG: It is largely based on personality differences. There are certain disorders which make fantasy difficult to process, but for most it is just a varying definition of fun. People who are more realistic have a difficult time enjoying non-plausible storylines. Fantasy requires a willful suspension of disbelief and many people are unwilling, or afraid, to do so.
Me: This fits with my daughter. She is drawn to math and science in school, and prefers reality based stories.
KB: She wants factually, scientifically based information. These personality types tend to be more logical and realistic, whereas fantasy draw on creativity. They are complimentary; different but both vital. If her left brain is dominant, asking her to use her right side will go against her comfort zone.
CG: That’s not a problem or cause for concern. It’s just a different definition of fun for her. If her brain is wired to seek scientific answers and mathematical solutions fantasy stories may feel stressful or silly for her.
Why do some adults hold onto their craving for fantasy worlds while others outgrow it?
KB: Most adults do not get to use creativity as much as they did when they were children. For some that is just accepted, but many others still need that form of creativity in their lives. Fantasy gives an outlet for the creative part of the brain without straying too far from real life.
CG: Some adults are more imaginative and creative than others. Our world is becoming increasingly demystified and some people crave finding new mysteries to explore. So much of what adults do every day is the same old duties, same old work, so we look for something new and exciting. Unfortunately, I think many adults are too cynical. While some may be able to lap up a fantasy story, some might be just skeptical about the whole thing.
In children we honor and appreciate their imagination so we work to develop these skills.
Q: Is there a benefit to reading children fantasy stories? Are the benefits the same or different for adults who read fantasy stories?
KB: It stimulates their mind to think beyond the concrete. We accuse kids of not being able to think outside of the here and now, and fantasy books/movies teaches us to think outside of the real world that we’re living in. It allows them to imagine better.
Discoveries happen because of imagination. Someone imagined a flying machine, so today we have airplanes. Someone imagined an oven that could cook dinner in 2 minutes, and now we have microwaves.
There have been several studies that show children retain information at higher rates when they are learned through fantasy stories and play. There was a recent study* that compared vocabulary word retention between a set of children read a fantasy story and another set read a non-fiction story. The children in the fantasy group could define significantly more words than the non-fiction group. While I don’t know of any comparable studies conducted on adults, I suspect the advantages would be similar.
CG: Fantasy stimulates a child’s imagination! It fosters their belief in possibility. This often results in children who are hopeful and more optimistic. Children truly believe their thoughts materialize into reality. Take the movie Home Alone for example, Kevin truly believes he made his family disappear. Adults have an easier time dismissing stories, but children internalize and believe them much more readily. I hear parents often complain about children lying, but for young children the line between truth and desire is indistinguishable. The truth is what they want it to be, and sometimes what they think you want to hear. The focus on good vs evil further instills moral codes into children. Most fairy tales and fantasy stories often have morals embedded within them, and entire societies benefit from instilling these in children from a young age.
*This study, “The Fantasy Advantage” conducted by Dr. Deena Weisberg, concluded that children learn and retain information better when they involve imagination.
Q: It’s interesting that you bring up morals. Fantasy novels generally deal with heroes and villains, and often have an accompanying moral factor. Does this have an influence on readers?
KB: Fantasy promotes optimism. The belief that at some point things will go well and that tough times can be weathered. Optimism is a very healthy personality type to have.
However, good vs evil is an adult concept, and not one most children will naturally connect to a story. The ability for abstract thinking does not develop until 11–16 years old. Prior to this, children will explain the action of a story or repeat quotes from a character; their focus is on the literal and not the broad generalizations. As adults we can help children to develop this skill by discussing larger concepts with them. Explaining abstract moral lessons from a movie will help them to begin connecting those lessons from a story. Most children will not be able to naturally connect broad moral lessons from a book or movie, but they will if they are being asked a lot of guiding questions. So, fantasy stories can be a great tool in reinforcing morals, but it will need adult guidance to have a lasting influence.
CG: Kids like for heroes to win! Adults also like to see heroes win but we also know that it doesn’t always happen. Children don’t yet share our cynical realism. We are trying to teach our children to be good people, and having our messages echoed in their entertainment only further instills the values we preach to them. Watching a beloved character act morally and win in the end helps reinstate what parents are telling them. A book or movie on their own may not be sufficient, but when paired with parental guidance it can make a huge impact.
Q: I read once that people are not necessarily drawn to fantasy, they’re drawn to the “escapism” that fantasy provides. Do you agree, and if so, is escaping healthy?
KB: I don’t like the word escapism. As a psychologist I feel ‘escape’ has a negative connotation. As if there’s something wrong with letting go for short periods. Escaping harsh realities through fantasy is a healthy way of managing the stress of everyday living. We all find a way to escape from time to time, and fantasy reading or shows are a lot healthier than escaping through drugs or alcohol. Whether you do it with a fantasy story, video game, vacation, or television is a personal preference. Some do it through meditation or prayer. Real life is hard, especially as an adult. Life can be repetitive and dull. I prefer to see escape occur in a healthy way.
CG: Escapism is good to a point. There are a lot of horrors in this world and it is natural to need a break from them. Some people internalize these big issues more than others, and for them it is very natural to need an escape. So long as the escape is a temporary break from dealing with real life, then fantasy reading is a very healthy way to achieve it. That said, both adults and kids need to live in reality sometimes. Escape is wonderful, if you embrace reality when necessary. Work still needs to be done regardless of your hobbies. As a properly channeled source of leisure-time it is very healthy and likely beneficial.
The remainder of my real life today will be paying bills, washing dishes, cooking dinner, and fighting with my children about why we can’t eat macaroni every night. It is a happy reality, and one that is my greatest source of pride. It is not, however, the most adventurous existence and I will revel in my few stolen hours where I can ride dragons into battle with Daenerys and hunt horcurxes along with Hermoine.
A note from the editor: speaking of childhood fantasy fixations, Disney’s A Wrinkle In Time (based on Madeleine L’Engle’s stunning novel) is coming out in 2018, and it looks gorgeous:
Have thoughts about this? Write them down and send them our way.
