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NikolaiFyodorov · 4059 days ago · link · · parent · post: Reading literary fiction greatly enhances performance on Theory of Mind tests
The authors do seem to be implying that people who regularly read literary fiction, as a group, are more likely to have a better understanding of where other people are coming from (theory of mind ) than people who do not. That is certainly the impression that I’ve received from the synopsis. The reason, as suggested by the authors, is that literary fiction "defamiliarises" its readers: "Just as in real life, the worlds of literary fiction are replete with complicated individuals whose inner lives are rarely easily discerned but warrant exploration."