Can attending live theatre improve empathy by immersing audience members in the stories of others? We tested this question across three field studies (n = 1622), including a pre-registered replication. We randomly assigned audience members to complete surveys either before or after seeing plays, and measured the effects of the plays on empathy, attitudes, and pro-social behavior. After, as compared to before, seeing the plays, people reported greater empathy for groups depicted in the shows, held opinions that were more consistent with socio-political issues highlighted in the shows, and donated more money to charities related to the shows. Seeing theatre also led participants to donate more to charities unrelated to the shows, suggesting that theatre's effects on pro-sociality generalize to different contexts. Altogether, these findings suggest that theatre is more than mere entertainment; it can lead to tangible increases in empathy and pro-social behavior.

通过让听众沉浸在其他人的故事中，参加现场剧院能否提高同理心？我们通过三个实地研究（n = 1622），包括预先注册的复制。我们随机分配观众成员在观看戏剧之前或之后完成调查，并测量了戏剧对同理心，态度和亲社会行为的影响。与以前相比，在观看演出后，人们对演出中所描绘的团体表现出更大的同情心，持有与演出中所强调的社会政治问题更为一致的观点，并向与演出相关的慈善机构捐款了更多的钱。观看剧院还促使参与者向与演出无关的慈善机构捐款更多，这表明剧院对亲社会的影响普遍存在于不同的背景下。总而言之，这些发现表明剧院不仅仅是娱乐。它可以导致同理心和亲社会行为的明显增加。