Science AI Journal
Arts and Humanities · Research topic

Open research questions in Media Influence and Health

427 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 3,251 Media Influence and Health papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • Open new directions for research on narratives, modality, and persuasion. Further examination of the role of structured thinking in storyteller transportation and persuasion. Investigation of the effects of modality on storyteller persuasion in different contexts. Exploration of the potential applications of these findings in fields such as marketing and education

    How storytelling modality affects transportation and storyteller persuasion · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in prior research, which has focused on the effect of modality on audiences rather than storytellers. It also highlights the need to explore the role of structured thinking in the effect of writing on storyteller transportation and persuasion.

    How storytelling modality affects transportation and storyteller persuasion · 2026 · DOI

  • Investigate the long-term effects of awe on objectification, - Examine the effects of awe on objectification in specific contexts or populations, - Develop interventions to increase awe and reduce objectification

    Honour the Light in Every Soul: Awe Reduces Objectification via Self‐Transcendence · 2026 · DOI

  • The challenge of distinguishing between genuine human intimacy and pseudo-intimacy. The risk of cultivating emotional dependence on simulations. The need to balance the benefits of emotional AI with the importance of preserving space for friction, contradiction, and emotional labor in human relationships.

    Emotional AI and the rise of pseudo-intimacy: are we trading authenticity for algorithmic affection? · 2025 · DOI

  • Further theoretical and methodological development is required for the operationalization of authenticity. Empirical follow-up is needed to test how simulated affect shapes relational dynamics.

    Emotional AI and the rise of pseudo-intimacy: are we trading authenticity for algorithmic affection? · 2025 · DOI

  • The challenge of measuring consumers' neurophysiological reactions to television content and advertisements. The difficulty of selecting a representative sample of participants. The need to control for potential biases in participants' responses.

    The influence of television content on advertisement: a neurophysiological study · 2024 · DOI

  • Small sample size of 60 Italian individuals, - Limited age ranges of 18 to 64 years old, - Limited to a laboratory experiment setting

    The influence of television content on advertisement: a neurophysiological study · 2024 · DOI

  • Although immersion has often been treated as a central dimension of literary experience, it remains unclear how different narrative perspectives influence readers’ cognitive and subjective involvement during reading.

    Narrative perspective and immersion in literary reading: Experimental evidence from behavioural and neural measures · 2026 · DOI

  • Yet, wellbeing has historically been poorly defined within reading research, and we lack a nuanced understanding of the ways in which children's book reading may support their psychological wellbeing.

    Fiction Book Reading and Wellbeing: In‐Depth Insights From Children · 2026 · DOI

  • However, the path to literary recognition, considering the factors influencing why certain books are reviewed, earn acclaim, or face criticism, remains unclear.

    Behind the book reviews: Enduring hierarchies of occurrence and unpredictable sentiments · 2025 · DOI

  • When browsing fragmented online information, it remains uncertain whether users pay attention to the source of this content.

    When seeing is not believing: self-efficacy and cynicism in the era of intelligent media · 2025 · DOI

  • However, given the widespread use and unique characteristics of short-form videos, it remains unclear whether excessive short-form video users exhibit similar decision-making deficits.

    Excessive short-form video use is associated with increased risk-taking but not with altered ambiguity-based decision-making · 2025 · DOI

  • Interventions to address objectification remain underexplored. The effect of awe on objectification is not well understood.

    Honour the Light in Every Soul: Awe Reduces Objectification via Self‐Transcendence · 2026 · DOI

  • The absence of a specific context associated with the EFF Scale should be recognized as an important limitation.

    Developing a scale to assess cognitive responses to frightening films · 1986 · DOI

  • There is a lack of research on self-transcendent emotions in underrepresented contexts. Previous studies have largely relied on quantitative methods, overlooking the specific nuances and qualitative aspects of individual emotional experiences.

    Mapping the Content Landscape of Self-transcendent Emotional Experiences with Thematic Analysis and Hierarchical Clustering · 2026 · DOI

  • Our sample was sampled from the general population, avoiding reliance on student samples. Yet, the cultural and religious contexts specific to Brazil may limit the applica- bility of our findings to other regions. A constructivist per- spective suggests caution in extending our context-bound findings to other cultural settings (Mesquita et al., 2016). For example, themes such as religious awe, prominent in our Brazilian sample, may not appear with the same salience in less religious contexts, yet they demonstrate how cultural context influences the experience of STEs. However, rather than broadly generalizing specific themes, our dataset illus- trates general principles of how context shapes emotional expression. These situated insights thus inform broader emotion models by highlighting the need to incorporate cultural and situational factors. Moreover, our online data collection method inherently excludes individuals lacking internet access or with lower literacy levels, underrepresent- ing lower socioeconomic and educational strata. Relying on participants’ self-reported narratives of their most impactful emotional experiences introduces a bias toward memorable rather than everyday experiences. While narratives richly described situational contexts and elicitors, we were unable to consistently code appraisal dimensions (e.g., certainty, control, responsibility), which we flag as a valuable direc- tion for future work.

    Mapping the Content Landscape of Self-transcendent Emotional Experiences with Thematic Analysis and Hierarchical Clustering · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the existing literature on the role of cultural fiction in shaping emotional regulation and preventing gender-based violence. The study highlights the need for a neurocognitive model of male emotional regulation to address gender-based violence.

    Cultural fiction as predictive-affective simulation: a neurocognitive model of male emotional regulation and gender violence prevention · 2026 · DOI

  • The arguments developed throughout this article converge on a central hypothesis: the preventive potential of culture against gendered violence lies primarily in its ability to retrain emotional and predictive mechanisms. Ethically and emotionally complex aesthetic experiences, which amplify the contradiction rather than resolve it, train the predictive mind to endure dissonance and ambiguity. In feminist terms, empathic resonance erodes the illusion of separateness and domination, while emotional regulation teaches tolerance of vulnerability, a capacity systematically suppressed by patriarchal systems. At the same time, the framework’s level of claim must be clearly delimited. Although it is oriented toward prevention, at this stage the model does not argue that engagement with fiction directly prevents feminicide; rather, it is a hypothesis-generating proposal targeting intermediate variables empirically associated with IPV risk. The systematic operationalization of these constructs into validated indicators, experimental paradigms, and intervention protocols remains an essential next step and will require dedicated ad hoc empirical research. For instance, predictive rigidity may be assessed via established measures of intolerance of uncertainty and cognitive inflexibility; distress tolerance through validated self-report instruments and behavioral frustration paradigms; hostile masculinity through standardized attitudinal scales; and narrative training effects through pre-post experimental designs examining changes in empathy, emotion regulation strategies, and responses to simulated rejection or relational threat. Neurocognitive correlates could also be explored using emotion-regulation tasks indexing prefrontal control and interoceptive processing. In this sense, the present paper functions as a conceptual scaffold for future empirical testing and translational development, rather than as evidence of direct preventive efficacy. Moving from conceptual work to implementation, however, requires enabling cultural and institutional conditions. Before translating insights and results into practice, a feminist cultural policy ecosystem is required, that recognizes the arts as resources for emotional literacy and social prevention. This means supporting creative environments that cultivate empathy, ambiguity, and interdependence rather than competition or closure.

    Cultural fiction as predictive-affective simulation: a neurocognitive model of male emotional regulation and gender violence prevention · 2026 · DOI

  • Young adults are highly vulnerable to stress. Many people still hold negative views toward psychological assistance. There is a lack of educational intervention media that are accessible and do not create a discriminatory impression.

    Visual Novels as Anxiety Interventions: Visual Storytelling and Emotional Engagement in Young Adults · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of educational intervention media that are accessible and do not create a discriminatory impression. The study addresses the need for a more personal and non-patronizing approach to conveying mental health issues.

    Visual Novels as Anxiety Interventions: Visual Storytelling and Emotional Engagement in Young Adults · 2026 · DOI

  • The potential for television series to normalize risky behaviour or unrealistic expectations. The need for media literacy in moderating the influences of television series on youth behaviour. The challenge of promoting critical viewing and media literacy among youth audiences.

    Influence of Television Series on Youth Behaviour and Cultural Trends: A Socio-Psychological Analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need to examine the influence of television series on youth behaviour and cultural trends. The study aims to fill this gap by exploring the mechanisms through which television series influence youth behaviour and the nature of its outcomes.

    Influence of Television Series on Youth Behaviour and Cultural Trends: A Socio-Psychological Analysis · 2026 · DOI

  • Prior research has focused on the portrayal of the working class, with little attention to the upper class. There is a need to investigate viewers' responses to moral/ethical questions in relation to class.

    “Eat the Rich”: Moral Entanglement of Class and Gender in The White Lotus · 2026 · DOI

  • Handling emotional reactions to potentially traumatising stories shared by interviewees. Maintaining professional boundaries while conducting emotionally challenging research. Prioritizing self-care and seeking help when needed.

    The Positive and Negative Impacts of Researching Emotionally Challenging Topics · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research should explore the long-term effects of emotionally challenging research on researchers' wellbeing. Future research should investigate the effectiveness of support and resources for researchers conducting emotionally challenging research.

    The Positive and Negative Impacts of Researching Emotionally Challenging Topics · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Media Influence and Health

Most recent work

Find a gap in your own Media Influence and Health sub-topic

This page shows what the Media Influence and Health literature already flags as unresolved. To narrow it to your specific question, run the guided finder — it searches the gap library on demand and checks candidates against 250M+ OpenAlex works.

Open the Research Gap Finder →

Related topics in Arts and Humanities

EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning
1,670 open questions
Second Language Learning and Teaching
1,084 open questions
Themes in Literature Analysis
874 open questions
Diverse Music Education Insights
847 open questions
Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies
786 open questions
Art Education and Development
740 open questions
Reformation and Early Modern Christianity
730 open questions
Biblical Studies and Interpretation
720 open questions
427 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 3,251 Media Influence and Health papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

Tools for your next paper

Gaps & Literature SearchFind open questions in any field — 120,000+ open gaps mined from our own library.Pre-CheckIs your paper ready? A Tier 1–5 acceptance probability in seconds.Journal FinderA ranked shortlist of target journals from a 17,500-venue index.Duplicate Publication CheckerCheck prior-publication & salami-slicing risk across 8 sources.Citation GeneratorFreeA DOI or title → APA, MLA, Vancouver, Chicago, BibTeX, RIS. No signup.Graphical Abstract MakerFreeTurn your findings into a colorblind-safe graphical abstract.

Compare the category — Honest roundups of the AI research tools, ours listed alongside the alternatives.

Command palette

Jump anywhere, run any action.