‘Serious At Night’, Fernando Bandini, 2023
« The rain on my chest is a baptism. I’m born again. » — Batman (The Dark Knight Returns, Frank Miller, 1986)
Ever wonder why putting on a character, an alter ego, a persona, a job title, or even a uniform can make you more disciplined than simply trying to be disciplined?
In 2017, psychologists White et al. investigated whether self-distancing, the ability to mentally step outside one’s immediate experience and view a situation from an observer’s perspective, could improve children’s perseverance.
Six year old children were asked to complete a repetitive and boring task while having the option to take breaks by playing an extremely attractive video game.
The most effective condition was not asking children to persevere as themselves. It was pretending to be someone else. Children who impersonated a competent role model, in this case a character like Batman, spent the most time working compared to children who approached the task from a first person perspective.
Stepping outside one’s own identity, even through play, proved more powerful than simply trying harder as oneself.
The ‘Batman Effect’ is not just a children’s quirk. It builds on earlier research in adult psychology showing that adopting psychological distance from the immediate self, by taking an observer’s perspective rather than reliving an experience from a first person perspective, not only reduces rumination and improves emotion regulation, but also facilitates meaning making, creating space for wiser judgment and more intentional action (Kross & Ayduk, 2011; Grossmann & Kross, 2014).
The underlying mental mechanism that helps a six-year-old finish a tedious task is the same one that helps adults navigate difficult conversations, interpersonal conflicts, and challenging decisions: psychological self-distancing (for example, through distanced self-talk).
The ‘Batman Effect’ builds on those findings by suggesting that adopting a positive alter ego can help us persevere and act more consistently in line with our long term goals.
When you are stuck, instead of asking yourself, How do I push through? step outside your own identity and ask, What would Batman do in this situation? After all, he is known for acting despite fear, guided by a strong moral commitment to protecting others, and making effective use of available tools, knowledge and allies, to name just a few of his qualities.
The point is not to imitate a DC or Marvel character literally. Choose your alter ego wisely according to the situation you’re facing, as someone who embodies the qualities you need right now.
Sometimes the fastest route to discipline isn’t more effort. It’s a different perspective.
The Batman himself would not confine himself to the narrow perspective of his immediate, automatic thoughts and emotions.
You can consciously choose a different vantage point. Stepping into a different perspective does not mean becoming someone else. It means becoming more capable of acting as the person you desire to be.
Identity may be more flexible than you’ve tended to believe.
« It’s not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me.” ― Batman (Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan, 2005)
Grossmann, I., & Kross, E. (2014). Exploring Solomon’s paradox: Self distancing eliminates the self other asymmetry in wise reasoning about close relationships in younger and older adults. Psychological Science, 25(8), 1571–1580.
Kross, E., & Ayduk, Ö. (2011). Making meaning out of negative experiences by self distancing. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 20(3), 187–191.
White, R. E., Prager, E. O., Schaefer, C., Kross, E., Duckworth, A. L., & Carlson, S. M. (2017). The « Batman Effect »: Improving Perseverance in Young Children. Child Development, 88(5), 1563–1571.