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News Release

UCCS Faculty Member Studies How Viewers Respond To Television Finales - 12/17/25

As the finale for Stranger Things approaches, fans are sure to have opinions after ten years and five total seasons.

Maja Krakowiak, UCCS Communications Professor, conducted a study on a viewers’ responses to television series finales, finding that positive outcomes for main characters and narrative closure lead to reduced emotional distress, increased enjoyment and appreciation and other viewer responses. 

 

Krakowiak surveyed 840 students from Boston University via a questionnaire, which asked them to think of a specific series finale episode from a television program they had watched for more than one season. Of those 840, 87% reported watching at least 75% of the episodes in the series that they chose, including the finale, with 74% reporting that they had viewed all episodes. 

 

This study found support for the idea that finales that offer more resolution and more positive endings may be more satisfying, and as a result, reduce recovery efforts by limiting the need for post-viewing rumination, information-seeking and analysis.  

 

These findings have theoretical implications for media-induced recovery as it appears that enjoyment may decrease the need for future coping, whereas appreciation may encourage these behaviors. 

 

Read the entirety of “How It Ends: Exploring How Narrative Closure and Character Outcomes in Series Finales Relate to Viewer Responses and Coping Behaviors” online at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15205436.2024.2344515.

 

UCCS Faculty Member Studies How Viewers Respond To Television Finales - 12/17/25

As the finale for Stranger Things approaches, fans are sure to have opinions after ten years and five total seasons.

Maja Krakowiak, UCCS Communications Professor, conducted a study on a viewers’ responses to television series finales, finding that positive outcomes for main characters and narrative closure lead to reduced emotional distress, increased enjoyment and appreciation and other viewer responses. 

 

Krakowiak surveyed 840 students from Boston University via a questionnaire, which asked them to think of a specific series finale episode from a television program they had watched for more than one season. Of those 840, 87% reported watching at least 75% of the episodes in the series that they chose, including the finale, with 74% reporting that they had viewed all episodes. 

 

This study found support for the idea that finales that offer more resolution and more positive endings may be more satisfying, and as a result, reduce recovery efforts by limiting the need for post-viewing rumination, information-seeking and analysis.  

 

These findings have theoretical implications for media-induced recovery as it appears that enjoyment may decrease the need for future coping, whereas appreciation may encourage these behaviors. 

 

Read the entirety of “How It Ends: Exploring How Narrative Closure and Character Outcomes in Series Finales Relate to Viewer Responses and Coping Behaviors” online at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15205436.2024.2344515.