A new psychology study shows people can will have more altruistic behaviors when they see someone dressed as Batman that is aptly called the Batman Effect.
A team of psychologists completed and published the study in the Nature science journal last month. It demonstrated that the seeing someone dressed as Batman led to a nearly doubled rate of people doing something altruistic, such as giving up their seat to a pregnant woman on a subway.
Researchers deem this occurrence as the “Batman Effect”. The Batman Effect also suggests that people do not even consciously notice the Batman actor’s presence in order to do a “good deed”. According to the researchers, 44 percent of the people questioned reported they did not even consciously register Batman’s presence.
The Batman and pregnant woman actors on a subway in the study.
The Other Psychological Study
Interestingly, this study was somewhat inspired by another psychological study that originally coined the phrase the “Batman Effect”. This study compared children doing boring tasks against children who wore costumes like Batman while doing the same tasks. It turns out that the kids who wore Batman outfits or other similar heroes like Dora the Explorer were more persistent and worked harder. The researchers found that the kids dressed as Batman even started identifying themselves closer to Batman. They would prompt themselves by saying “Batman can do it”, which boosted their motivation.
So with all these studies, what does that mean for fans? One thing that it confirms is that Batman is a hero. And he’s not just a fictional hero. Batman’s heroism transcends the comic book pages or movies and has become a real-life inspiration for people. These studies show us that we all have a capacity for being a hero or a better person.
And it is okay if we fail, because what is more important is that we persevere and continue to try to be better. It’s just like what Alfred said to Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins.