DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

Distinguishing Reality From fiction

Mandi Blanton
College of Western Idaho

DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

Abstract
Some children and adults alike are found to have trouble distinguishing the difference
between reality and fiction. This is caused by a number of factors such as insufficient parental
teaching methods, missing structures of the brain, the makeup of the brain itself, and the learning
process.
Keywords: reality, fiction, cognitive development, childhood development,
schizophrenia, learning

DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

Distinguishing reality from fiction

Weve heard about it in the news before, children being injured or even killed pretending
to imitate characters off of their favorite television shows and games, participating in dangerous
games based wholly around fictional universes, fantasy worlds filled with locations and
characters far removed from our own reality. When children attempt to take the rules of these
fantasy words and apply it to our own, disastrous consequences have been known to occur. One
such example occurred just a mere 4 years ago in the state of Washington. A young boy and his
friends were playing outdoors when one of the children decided to start a game based around the
popular animated series Naruto: A Japanese cartoon centered about a rebellious teenage ninja,
who happens to have a variety of mystical powers at his disposal. One of the boys tried to imitate
a character from the show known Gaara, whom in his universe, had powers which allowed him
to control sand. He could submerge himself in or do things such as levitate it through in air. In
order to mimic this character, the boy had his friends bury him under a foot of sand in the
backyard, seemingly not being able to understand that doing something like that in the real word
was dangerous. When the boy started to flail around, his friends laughed, thinking that the kid
was only joking. Eventually, all movement stopped and the friends began to get worried, they

DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

finally uncovered him, only to find that he had stopped breathing. Paramedics were called and
quickly arrived on the scene, but after being taken to the hospital and listed under critical
condition, he was pronounced dead. (Schoetz, 2008) The friends couldnt believe it. After all, if
this Gaara character could hide under the sand, why couldnt their friend?
What they didnt understand that things like that were dangerous in the real world, unlike
the things they saw on television. Some children just seem to have a hard time distinguishing
reality from fiction, overestimating the kinds of things they can do in the real world and
confusing them with the limitless capabilities they see the make believe universes they are
presented with on television, games, and in movies. What causes some kids to get reality and
fiction confused? Is it a problem with mental health? If so, is there some kind of symptom or
indicator which can help us identify the problem before it becomes an issue? Are we born with
the ability to distinguish to two? If not, is it a learned ability, or something which is taught
through explicit instruction via our parents and role models? These are questions which may be
answered as we begin to understand the huge variety of factors which influence the development
of this skill; From brain composition, the environment we are exposed to as children, the type of
parenting style we are brought up with, and the kinds of media we see every day. Each and every
one of them play important roles in teaching us the difference between what is real and what is
not.

So how do we begin distinguishing reality from fiction? Well, science has already shown
us that there is a part of the brain which helps us in determining what we think is real. They have
named this structure the Paracingulate Sulcus, or the PCS for short. What the PCS does is help

DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

control our planning, thought, and judgement. Those missing the PCS have been known to
confuse fictional things for reality, hallucinate, and have trouble recalling accurate information
from past events, tending to make up false details which they believe to actually have happened.
A startling is that studies have shown almost twenty seven percent of those surveyed were
missing the PCS portion of their brains, and that almost forty four percent of those also suffer
from schizophrenia. (Szalavitz, 2011) Whether they suffer from the hallucinations that are
associated with schizophrenia because of the missing PCS structure or if the disease worsens the
effects caused by the missing organ is still up for debate, but what scientists do know is that if
the PCS is missing or found to be perfectly symmetrical in patients (normally the PCS extends
farther into the right hemisphere than the left), than the patient more frequently is diagnosed with
Schizophrenia. (Le Provost, Bartres-Faz, Paillere-Martinot, Artiges & Pappata, 2002) So there is
definitely a clear connection.
Now, missing structures in the brain and differences in the brain itself isnt the only
factor in determining whether we can distinguish the things we see from the imaginary, whether
it be something we see on television such as the example provided involving the child with the
sandbox, or the strange hallucinations schizophrenics experience. Not all children suffer from
diseases such as schizophrenia and other brain disorders, but they may still have difficulty in
distinguishing fact from fiction. If you ask any child what their stances are on things such as
imaginary friends, their beliefs in magic, and directly about their beliefs on the reality of fictional
content, they tend to respond differently depending on the media they were exposed to. Some
children separate what they read in books or see on television from real life, and may perceive
it as something of an alternate reality. Others actually believe things such as magic exist, and this
is where we see things such as the opening story occur. (Walker, Ganea, Gopnik, 2012) Age has

DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

been shown to be a huge factor for children in determining the differences between two separate
worlds. Not surprisingly, children around the age of three are more likely to judge a story
character as real than a child around the age of four or five. (Walker, Ganea, Gopnik, 2012)
This shows that learning and development have a significant impact on the way a young child
views reality. However, children also seem to judge things based on experiences theyve had in
real life, and tend to relate similar events together even if the fictional story seems preposterous.
For example, an experiment was conducted where a child was given one of two short stories to
read, one story was more realistic while the other was more imaginative. Both stories had a
similar plotline, however details were changed. In the realistic story, the main protagonist drove
a car and found a ladybug, while in the imaginative story, he flew on a magic carpet and found a
fairy. However, in both versions of the story, the protagonist sniffs a Popple flower and gets
the hiccups from it. After reading a story, a child was asked questions and then told to sort flash
cards of events in the story into real and imaginary piles. Those who read the realistic story
were found to sort the popple flower event into the real pile more frequently while those who
had read the imaginary story more frequently sorted it into the just pretend pile. (Walker,
Ganea, Gopnik, 2012) It seems that we tend to sort things depending on what were told it is. If it
is explained to a child that something is imaginary and that it cannot physically happen, they are
most likely to believe it, even if it is something true. Likewise goes for the opposite, if a child is
told that something is real, even if it isnt, theyre still likely to believe it. Tall tales of figures
such as Santa Clause and the Tooth Fairy are great examples of this, which of course are what
parents like to call little white lies. Children readily take what their parents say as a fact, and
neglecting to educate your child on the differences between something that is real vs. something
that is fake can have some serious consequences later.

DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

In conclusion, teaching a child the difference between reality and imaginary is an

important part of growing up, coupled with mental problems, neglecting to do so can lead to
tragic events like the story of the boy in the sandbox. The PCS is also a vital structure in the
brain which can lead to children having even more trouble distinguishing the two. Remember to
take the time to explain the realm of fiction to your children, it may just be important.
Sources
Le Provost, J. B., Bartres-Faz, D., Paillere-Martinot, M. L., Artiges, E., & Pappata, S.
(2002). Paracingulate sulcus morphology in men with early-onset schizophrenia. (Doctoral
dissertation, Service Hospitalier Frdric Joliot, Orsay, Cerdex, France)Retrieved from
http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/182/3/228.full

Mendelson, A. L., & Papacharissi, Z. (2007). Reality vs. fiction: How defined realness affects
cognitive and emotional responses to photographs. Manuscript submitted for publication,
Department of Journalism, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennysylvania, , Available from
Academia.edu. Retrieved from
http://www.academia.edu/230047/Reality_vs._fiction_How_defined_realness_affects_cognitive
_and_emotional_responses_to_photographs

Schoetz, D. (2008, March 11). Boy mimicking cartoon in sandbox stunt dies - abc news.
Retrieved from http://abcnews.go.com/US/MindMoodNews/story?id=4430328&page=1

DISTINGUISHING REALITY FROM FICTION

Szalavitz, M. (2011, October 05). Reality check: why some brains can't tell real from
imagined. Time, Retrieved from http://healthland.time.com/2011/10/05/reality-check-why-somebrains-cant-tell-real-from-imagined/

Walker, C. M., Ganea, P. A., & Gopnik, A. (2012).Childrens casual learning from fiction:
Assessing the proximity between real and fictional worlds. Informally published manuscript,
Psychology Department, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, Retrieved from
http://mindmodeling.org/cogsci2012/papers/0199/paper0199.pdf