Abstract
It is known that reading stories can cause changes in mood. However, since experimental results on mood change due to story reading have been inconsistent, we hypothesized that the effect of story reading on mood change could be moderated by various individual difference factors. In this study, we explored the individual difference factors for mood change due to story reading using five indices that measure individual characteristics. Hierarchical cluster analysis of the values of the emotional state scale before and after reading revealed three clusters: “negative resolution”, “increased calmness”, and “slight change in mood”. Comparing the reading characteristics for each cluster, significant differences were found in NTS-SF(Osanai, 2016), which measures the state of transportation into a story. Participant characteristics also showed some significant trends. The results revealed that the individual difference factors were a moderating mood change, but also suggested the need to examine states during reading in more detail.
