Can a video move you to make a prosocial decision?
- Date
- Wednesday 4 March 2026, 14:00
- Location
- Charles Thackrah Building Room G.07
- Speaker
- Professor Gaëlle Vallée-Tourangeau (Kingston Business School)
Abstract
This research explores what makes people decide to reach out and offer support to others. Charities and health organisations increasingly use multimedia content to promote prosocial actions for mental health support, yet little is known about how effective different formats can be to nudge people to act. We examined (1) whether a professionally-produced film narrative is a more effective video format compared to informational video with text overlay to create an emotional connection and encourage people to reach out to their friends, and (2) whether the extent to which viewers experience an emotional reaction to the video impacts their subsequent decision to reach out to others. We measured both implicit emotional processing (automated facial expression analysis) and explicit emotional experience (kama muta—the feeling of being moved by communal bonds), alongside behavioural decisions. In this talk, I will present analyses of data from over 200 participants and discuss the implications for understanding how moving images can impact decisions.
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