ABSTRACT
Telling.stories.is.a.universal.human.activity..Effective.storytellers.can.bring.about.comfort,.joy,.and. excitement..Understanding.and.learning.from.stories.seems.to.be.a.fundamental.cognitive.process.. Indeed,.Schank.and.Abelson.(1995).claimed.that.all.knowledge.is.stories..While.this.strong.claim. may.be.somewhat.overstated,.the.power.of.the.narrative.form.has.been.demonstrated.in.the.judgment. and.decision-making. literature.with.Pennington. and.Hastie’s. story.model. of. jury.decision. making.(1988),.as.well.as.in.the.consumer.psychology.literature.(e.g.,.Adaval.&.Wyer,.1998;.Deighton,.Romer,.&.McQueen,.1989)..There.is.even.support.from.developmental.studies.for.a.weaker. version.of.the.claim.that.narratives.are.a.basic.mental.structure;.people.in.most.cultures.have.an. internalized.narrative.grammar,.or.understanding.of.story.structure,.by.age.3.(Mancuso,.1986).
