Fiction Against Loneliness: A literary intervention to foster moral engagement in Danish schools

Loneliness is a growing concern in Danish schools, often linked to sadness, low self-esteem, shame, and self-blame. Its long-term effects can be severe. Existing interventions tend to individualise the issue, reinforcing loneliness as a personal problem.
The project Fiction Against Loneliness shifts the focus to social dynamics and bystander behaviour (Wang & Goldberg, 2017). Drawing on Bandura’s theory of moral disengagement (1999), which explains why people sometimes act against their own moral norms, we examine mechanisms behind exclusion and passive bystanding (Obermann, 2011).
The research question is: How can a literary intervention in Danish L1 strengthen students’ moral engagement and foster inclusive action towards lonely peers?
The intervention integrates literature, art, and philosophy into Danish L1, aiming to promote moral reflection and inclusive behaviour. Inspired by experimental psychology and narrative medicine, the approach combines inquiry-based (Hansen, 2023) and philosophical teaching methods.
Conducted over six school days in September 2025, the study involved 22 Year 8 students (aged 13–15) at a private school in rural Denmark. Research methods include pre- and post-tests on collective moral disengagement, participant observation, student interviews, and analysis of student artefacts.
While no immediate change in moral disengagement was observed, preliminary findings suggest that students developed a more nuanced moral vocabulary, and some demonstrated increased narrative empathy. Emerging themes include ambiguous responsibility, fear of losing social status when reaching out, and gendered norms. Although the literary intervention fostered moral reflection and recognition, some students – particularly boys – resisted vulnerability, and proposed inclusive actions often remained abstract or performative. Implications for educational practice will be discussed.