Watching Theatre Makes Us Better People

Rathje, S., Hackel, L., & Zaki, J. (2021). Attending live theatre improves empathy, changes attitudes, and leads to pro-social behavior. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 95, 104138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2021.104138

Prior research has shown that acting training can lead to people becoming more empathetic (Koopman, 2015; Goldstein & Winner, 2012; Goldstein, Wu, & Winner, 2009; Nettle, 2006). But little research has been conducted to measure if watching theatre can cause people to act with pro-social behavior.

  • Overview

    Rathje, Hackel, and Zaki worked with Artists Repertory Theatre in Portland, OR, and the Public Theatre in New York, NY. They took pre-show or post-show surveys from 1622 audience members across three productions: Sweat (Nottage, 2015) at the Public Theatre, and two with Skeleton Crew (Morriseau, 2016) at Artists Repertory Theatre.

  • So what?

    The study indicates that attending a live theatre production could increase audience members’ empathy for groups depicted in the play, change their opinions about sociopolitical issues, and increases their charitable donations to causes related and unrelated to the play.

  • Mojo's Riff

    The pandemic took a practical effect on how to view and fund theatre. The racial reckoning made theatre makers and theatre goers re-think how to look at theatre. Starting in March 2020, we were creating and consuming performances that were necessarily neither in person nor in real time. Additionally, movements like We See You White American Theatre, Black Theatre United, and See Our Truths are asking and demanding that the industry change. In turn, the educational institutions that feed audiences and creators of theatre must uphold theatre as a place that inspires behaviors that benefits others in society.