The world of wizards, witches and magic spells makes for more than just a fantastic story, as research shows that films like Harry Potter can actually help to improve a child’s imagination and creativity.
Researchers from Lancaster University have discovered that there are educational benefits to introducing children to fantasy films, books and concepts like the Easter Bunny and that a link between magical thinking and creativity does exist in preschool children.
Researchers Dr Eugene Subbotsky, Claire Hysted and Nicola Jones from the Department of Psychology at Lancaster University concluded that:
“Magical thinking enables children to create fantastic imaginary worlds, and in this way enhances children’s capacity to view the world and act upon it from multiple perspectives.”
The study tested children aged between four and six years old on creative tasks, such as pretending to be a rabbit driving a car and thinking of alternative uses for a cup. The results showed that the children who had watched two 15 minute clips of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, which showed magical content had performed significantly better than those who had watched the non-magical scenes.
The researchers concluded that most preschoolers think magically in their everyday life and that rather than just being used for entertainment, “magical thinking can be viewed as an additional source of development of imagination and divergent thinking in children.”