The Role of Cliffhangers in Serial Entertainment: An Experiment on Cliffhangers' Effects on Enjoyment, Arousal, and Intention to Continue Watching

Public Policy Relevance Statement Episodes or seasons of TV shows often end with a cliffhanger. It is generally assumed that cliffhangers induce suspense and thus bind viewers to the program. We tested this assumption with an experiment and found that although cliffhangers induce suspense, they do not affect the enjoyment of a show or intention to continue watching it. Cliffhangers are a common style element in serial entertainment. This study investigates their role in today's high-choice media environment. It is assumed that cliffhangers lead to higher arousal, increase the enjoyment of a series, and foster the intention to continue watching. This may foster binge-watching or, more generally, high-intensity viewing of TV shows. In a laboratory experiment, individuals (N = 133) were exposed to 3 to 4 episodes of a drama series, eventually finishing either with or without a cliffhanger. Participants' arousal, enjoyment of the show, and intention to continue watching the series were measured via self-report and psychophysiological measures (electrodermal activity and cortisol levels). The results suggest that cliffhangers lead to higher arousal but do not increase enjoyment or the intention to continue watching.