ABSTRACT

Suspense is a cognitive and affective state that is often experienced in the anticipation of information and contributes to the enjoyment and consumption of entertainment such as movies or sports. Ely et al. proposed a formal definition of suspense which relies upon predictions about future belief updates. In order to empirically evaluate this theory, we designed a task based on the casino card game Blackjack where a variety of suspense dynamics can be experimentally induced. Our behavioural data confirmed the explanatory power of this theory. We further compared this formulation with other heuristic models inspired by studies in other domains such as narratives and found that most heuristic models cannot well account for the specific temporal dynamics of suspense across wide range of game variants. We additionally propose a way to test whether experiencing greater levels of suspense motivates more game-playing. In summary, this work is an initial attempt to link formal models of information and uncertainty with affective cognitive states and motivation.

摘要

悬念是一种认知和情感状态，通常在对信息的预期中体验，有助于享受和消费电影或体育等娱乐活动。伊利等人。提出了悬念的正式定义，它依赖于对未来信念更新的预测。为了对这一理论进行实证评估，我们设计了一项基于赌场纸牌游戏二十一点的任务，其中可以通过实验诱导各种悬念动态。我们的行为数据证实了这一理论的解释力。我们进一步将此公式与受其他领域（如叙事）研究启发的其他启发式模型进行了比较，发现大多数启发式模型无法很好地解释各种游戏变体中悬念的特定时间动态。我们还提出了一种方法来测试体验更高水平的悬念是否会激发更多的游戏玩法。总之，这项工作是将信息和不确定性的正式模型与情感认知状态和动机联系起来的初步尝试。