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This article explores the role of text and reader characteristics in character engagement experiences. In an online study, participants completed several self-report and behavioral measures of social-cognitive abilities and read two literary narratives in which the presence of linguistic viewpoint markers was varied using a highly controlled manipulation strategy. Afterward, participants reported on their character engagement experiences. A principal component analysis on participants' responses revealed the multidimensional nature of character engagement, which included both self- and other-oriented emotional responses (e.g., empathy, personal distress) as well as more cognitive responses (e.g., identification, perspective taking). Furthermore, character engagement was found to rely on a wide range of social-cognitive abilities but not on the presence of viewpoint markers. Finally, and most importantly, we did not find convincing evidence for an interplay between social-cognitive abilities and the presence of viewpoint markers. These findings suggest that readers rely on their social-cognitive abilities to engage with the inner worlds of fictional others, more so than on the lexical cues of those inner worlds provided by the text.

Ten handbooks of journalism most-used in Dutch and Iranian (applied) universities were content-analyzed and compared for their instructions on (crime) newswriting and assumptions behind the given instructions. While Dutch handbooks consider 'informing' the optimal function of journalism and news, Iranian handbooks put emphasis on 'increasing awareness'. Consequently, Dutch handbooks consider news as event and value information on facts, while Iranian handbooks aim for reporting the truth and consider news as on-going process. Specifically, as Iranian journalism handbooks value flexibility and creativity, they view storytelling style in news reports as the preferred journalistic genre and approach crime news as a special genre which should fulfill an educative function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To develop a practical step-by-step approach to constructing narrative health interventions in response to the mixed results and wide diversity of narratives used in health-related narrative persuasion research. Method: Development work was guided by essential narrative characteristics as well as principles enshrined in the Health Action Process Approach. Results: The "storybridging" method for constructing health narratives is described as consisting of four concrete steps: (a) identifying the stage of change, (b) identifying the key elements, (c) building the story, and (d) pre-testing the story. These steps are illustrated by means of a case study in which an effective narrative health intervention was developed for Dutch truck drivers: a high-risk, underprivileged occupational group. Conclusion: Although time and labour intensive, the Storybridging approach suggests integrating the target audience as an important stakeholder throughout the development process. Implications and recommendations are provided for health promotion targeting truck drivers specifically and for constructing narrative health interventions in general.

Few studies have focused on visual representation of crime-related events in news images across national contexts. In this study, eighty-three news images from two hundred Iranian and Dutch news articles published in national newspapers were qualitatively analyzed. These images were scrutinized for their use of semiotic strategies as well as the overall visual pattern. The findings showed few similarities and notable differences between news images in the two cultural contexts. The Visual Pattern Analysis led to identification of six visual framing patterns. While Iranian images focus on non-identifiable arrested criminals, Dutch images frame crime in terms of identifiable victims and crime location. Remarkably, crime is rarely framed in terms of social causes and solutions in either corpus. The discussion links the findings to the socio-cultural contexts in which images are produced and received. The visual discourse analysis raised questions about the production and reception of crime news images to be investigated in future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When comparing old and new Bible translations, differences are striking at all discourse levels. This paper concentrates on variations in the representation of subjective cognition and reasoning of subjects in the discourse. A corpus-based analysis was conducted that compared the domains of use of causal fragments in Dutch Bible translations that were either old, contemporary and loyal, or "easy". In a close comparison of Bible translations, differences between domains of use are analysed in more detail. In old translations, the character's subjective reasoning is clearly separated from the narrator's utterances. By contrast, in modern translations, causal reasoning is more intertwined between character and narrator, resulting in shared reasoning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews scientific research on narrative journalism, aiming to (1) demystify the nature of narrative journalism by specifying its core characteristics, resulting in a sustainable definition of the genre; (2) characterize the current state of the scientific field; and (3) identify gaps in our knowledge about narrative journalism. A systematic search of the scientific literature between 1998 and 2017 resulted in a set of 103 journal articles about narrative journalism. Their analysis reveals that the scientific field is dominated by essayistic and qualitative studies on printed forms of narrative journalism, with a focus on the history and style of narrative journalism, whereas systematic research on the function and impact of the genre is scarce. A framework is presented that synthesizes the hitherto isolated strands of research on narrative journalism and offers anchors for an empirical turn in narrative journalism studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]