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Part III. Digital Media and Storytelling in Research ] 95
ones socio-cultural experience. Based on the theory of social representation,
László developed a social-cognitive model of literary text comprehension
based on Moscovici (1988), according to which meaning is created by the
encounter between the text and the socio-cultural knowledge ofthe recipient
(i.e., his or her social world knowledge, personal experiences, and literary
meta-knowledge).
Factors related to the reception of certain literary works can also be
examined through content analysis of texts. László and Vincze (2001), in a
content analysis of Géza Gárdonyis novel Egri csillagok ( The Stars of Eger),
found that simplified gualities (e.g., knowledge, wisdom, or morality) appear
in the actions that both promote identification with and reinforce Hungarian
national identity.
Transactive criticism is an approach that falls between literary theory and
psychology whose key tenet is that the text cannot be interpreted in itself since
the interpreter is actively involved in the construction of the texts meaning
through the creation of transactive notes. Ihese notes represent subjective
interpretations that cannot be independent of the interpreters psychic
processes, personal life experiences, background, and identity (Holland,
1990). Not only is the text itself a narrative, but the receptive behavior ofthe
recipient is also seen as a narrative system. 1his is supported by Larsens (1996)
cognitive psychological reading theory, who investigated the factors involved
in the recall of reading perceptions. In his study, he found that the reading
experience presupposes the recipients personal and receptive experiences.
When the story of the reading is recalled, not only the content but also the
circumstances of the reception are evoked in the reader.
Laszlo (1998), in his cognitive psychology study on the reception of literary
texts, questioned whether genre classification is a barrier or a means of
interpretability. Genre theory defines genres on the basis of similar stylistic
and rhetorical features, and these attributes determine the quality of the
text and its interpretability, which is strongly dependent on prior literary
socialization. With genre knowledge, the interpretability of texts is also
facilitated (Olson, Duffy & Mack, 1984).
As in literary studies, research has been carried out on the reception of
narrative in film studies as well.The impact of a literary work cannot be
assessed during or immediately after its reception, as the reader usually
processes the work in parts; however, this is possible in film studies, as films
are normally viewed in one sitting.
Vish and Tan (2014) investigated the factors that support film comprehension
and found that, in addition to cultural, mental, and physiological processes,
genre conventions also influence the reception of films. In their experiment,
viewers interpreted the same content differently when it appeared in a different
form and genre. Events and style are the most important features of genres.
Empirical research in film studies focuses on the reception of films, with
the main focus of the research often being on the experience of the recipient