Abstract Previous research has argued that narrative is an evolutionary adaptation, offering advantages in terms of survival and reproductive successes. It is yet unclear, however, how narratives may promote our fitness to survive. Integrating developments in narrative theory, evolutionary psychology, communication science, and cognitive neuroscience, this article presents a Mental Simulation Model that explains the mechanisms through which narratives prepare us for potential life-threatening events in the future. The model proposes that the design features of narrative (setting, perspective, and action) facilitate various distinctive processes of mental simulation (transportation, identification, and action simulation). It is argued that these simulation processes are capable of enhancing our fitness to survive in distinct but complementary ways. The article offers testable propositions and discusses empirical implications.

中文翻译：

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阅读叙事如何提高我们的生存能力

摘要 先前的研究认为，叙事是一种进化适应，在生存和繁殖成功方面具有优势。然而，目前尚不清楚叙事如何促进我们的生存能力。本文结合叙事理论、进化心理学、传播科学和认知神经科学的发展，提出了一种心理模拟模型，该模型解释了叙事使我们为未来可能危及生命的事件做好准备的机制。该模型提出，叙事的设计特征（场景、视角和动作）促进了各种不同的心理模拟过程（传输、识别和动作模拟）。有人认为，这些模拟过程能够以不同但互补的方式增强我们的生存能力。