Is it time to install the Bat-Signal in Sankofa Square?
Or maybe Walmart should replace their meek greeters this Black Friday weekend with Incredible Hulks? Should Wolverine prowl Etobicoke Creek to deter illegal dumping? Can the presence of Doctor Strange impose orderly behaviour inside our chaotic ERs?
I have a gelato in my heart for academic research out of Milan. The Italian city was a hotbed for telekinesis studies in the ’70s. Espressos and spoon-bending?
Meraviglioso!
The new study has nothing to do with Uri Geller. Instead, psychologists at the Catholic University of Milan conducted a quasi-field experiment on the Milan Metro. (Think the TTC, but with fashionable riders and nobody clipping their fingernails at rush hour.)
The study “tested whether an unexpected event, such as the presence of a person dressed as Batman, could increase prosocial behaviour by disrupting routine and enhancing attention …”
Researchers took 138 rides. In the control condition, a pregnant accomplice boarded the train with an observer. In the experimental condition, another character was added to the mix, entering via a different subway door: Batman.
Imagine stopping at Yonge and Bloor and the Caped Crusader saunters onto the train with a hoagie and headphones he invented with Alfred.
That would capture your peepers. You might even be on best behaviour.
The Italian result: “Passengers were significantly more likely to offer their seat (to the pregnant woman) when Batman was present.”
Seat giving went from 37.66 per cent to 67.21. POW! What if Robin was also a straphanger? Would riders spontaneously sign organ donation cards? BAM! Did Thor just tap his Presto card at Pape Station? Why, it’s time to donate to the Santa Claus Fund. ZAP!
Can the presence of a superhero make us supernice?
Should City Hall rebrand as the Justice League with Olivia Chow arriving to work as Wonder Woman? Let’s see what Doug Ford has to say when he is squeezed inside her Lasso of Truth.
“These findings contribute to discussions on how public spaces and social interventions can be designed to encourage kindness and cooperation,” wrote researchers.
This also has the potential for new peace and harmony inside Gotham North.
Think about it. We all resent drivers who abuse the carpool lanes. Oh, the profanities that escape my lips when a single driver blows past me in the double-occupancy lane. So get the Flash to sprint along every HOV and force those selfish drivers back into gridlock.
ServiceOntario is a black hole of drudgery and delay, mostly because too many people don’t fill out the proper paperwork before getting in line. Put Mr. Terrific in the front vestibule to use his genius problem-solving to explain why a marriage certificate is unrelated to a vehicle registration and why you need the 014-0265-82E for a health card.
Exploit superheroes to transform us into a better city.
Sadly, there is not enough money in an academic grant to keep splurging on masks, codpieces and foam muscles. But you don’t need to spring for a Black Panther doppelganger to stop impatient motorists from inching into the intersection and blocking traffic at King and Bay.
Sometimes, superhero imagery can be enough to power kinder, gentler actions.
Researchers once found that showing someone a photo of Superman made them more likely to help strangers with mundane tasks. And that was a generic Superman — not David Corenswet or Henry Cavill.
Then again, if you show someone a photo of Dean Cain, they are 84 per cent more likely to buy a different kind of mask and join ICE.
In South Korea, researchers concluded watching Spider-Man movies reduced arachnophobia. That one was confusing. I mean, all this crazy stuff happened to Peter Parker because he was bit by a spider.
If you suffered from aquaphobia, I wouldn’t recommend “Titanic.”
You know what happens if you put a preschooler in a cape? According to a 2017 study, they are more likely to concentrate harder and complete tasks with confidence.
Now, are there situations in which the so-called “Batman Effect” might backfire?
Sure. I wouldn’t advise anyone to dress up like Iron Man and loiter in the club district at 2 a.m. on a Saturday. Not unless Iron Man wants to get punched in the back of the helmet and jeered by drunk revellers in search of a hot dog cart.
But this new Milan research is heartwarming. It suggests we can get shaken out of our prefab routines and cocoons. We can be more aware of those around us. When Batman shows up on the morning commute, you are more considerate of the normies. You are a better you.
It would be great if we didn’t need Deadpool’s sarcasm to be courteous.
But if it helps, sure, put the Green Lantern atop the CN Tower for all to see.
