# Ohio State University study on reading and empathy > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/ohio-state-university-study-on-reading-and-empathy > Updated: 2026-10-24T05:40:56.000Z. Sources: 4. Developments: 2. Researchers at Ohio State University published a study in the journal Frontiers in Psychology exploring how narrative techniques influence empathy and forgiveness. The research utilized three online experiments involving 1,563 participants to examine the impact of ‘internal focalization.’ By allowing readers to access a character’s private thoughts and emotions rather than merely observing outward actions, the study found that participants were more likely to forgive mistakes. In one specific test involving a story about a technician, participants who could read the character’s internal remorse provided an average forgiveness rating of 7.3 out of 10, whereas those who only heard a verbal apology provided a rating of 6.3. The findings suggest that understanding a character’s internal state can mitigate judgment of their actions, potentially extending to real-life empathy. ## Timeline ### 2026-10-24: Ohio State University research links literary reading to increased forgiveness Research from Ohio State University shows that reading fiction with ‘internal focalization’ can increase empathy and a reader's willingness to forgive mistakes in both characters and real-life individuals. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/ohio-state-university-research-links-literary-reading-to-increased-forgiveness ### 2026-10-20: Ohio State University study links reading to increased empathy Research from Ohio State University published in Frontiers in Psychology shows that reading stories with ‘internal focus’ can increase a person's tendency to forgive others. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/ohio-state-university-study-links-reading-to-increased-empathy --- Cite as: Ohio State University study on reading and empathy. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/ohio-state-university-study-on-reading-and-empathy