A recent Harvard University study published online in Social Cognitive & Affective Neuroscience suggests that people fond of reading fiction may be more empathetic and imaginative than nonfiction readers or their non-reading counterparts.
Researchers revealed that this habit triggers heightened activity of the brain’s default mode network, which is activated when one pictures hypothetical scenarios or puts oneself in another’s shoes. Conversely, reading fiction about physical places does not have the same effect. The outcome is also dependent on how a particular fiction can catch a reader’s interest. Stories with gripping characters and settings may stimulate the neural network resulting in improved social skills or social cognition.
Responses were recorded from MRI brains scans of participants who read a total of 52 excerpts from novels, magazines, and other sources. The study, however, may have limited data for inference, considering its small sample size of 16 females and 10 males, ages 19 to 26 years old.
In previous related studies, subjects with developmental and psychiatric disorders, such as autism or schizophrenia, showed an interruption in the default network.