RUNNING HEAD: Forrest Gump

Forrest Gump: A Social Psychological Perspective

By

Madison Wyant

B.S. Program in Psychology

Mansfield University of Pennsylvania

For

PSY 3310

Dr. Sechrist

November 22, 2019

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Forrest Gump: A Social Psychological Perspective

Forrest Gump follows the life of a man growing up in Alabama. Through the course of

the film, the watcher learns about the many struggles, successes, and the growing and contracting

relationships a man named Forrest Gump faced throughout his life. While this is an emotional

story to watch, it is important to recognize the many social-psychological principles that come

into play throughout the film. Attraction, group cohesion, and self-fulfilling prophecies are seen

in the everyday lives of people, and in the film, and explain how and why people do the things

that they do.

Forrest’s attraction to Jenny is one of the most prominent aspects of the film. Forrest

Gump was getting on his bus for the first day of school. He was wearing leg braces and was

different than other kids for this and other reasons. When he got on the bus, many students were

telling him that the seat was taken and that he could not sit with them. He said that he then heard

the most wonderful voice, and it was Jenny, telling him that he could sit with her if he wanted to.

Their relationship then blossomed from that first day, and Forrest did everything he could to be

there for Jenny including spending long nights with her when she didn’t want to go home, saving

her in the bar when the men were grabbing at her while she was trying to sing a song, and

protecting her when one of her boyfriends had hit her during the Black Panther meeting.

Eventually they got married, and when she became ill, he was always there to love and support

her.

Research has shown that there are many factors that come into play when people are

attracted and love each other. There is a physical attractiveness stereotype of what’s beautiful is

good. Snyder, Tanke, and Bershield (1977) found that women who were thought to be attractive

acted more friendly, warm, confident, and likable, which allows for people to be attracted to that
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person. In addition to physical attractiveness, similarity in background, attitudes, and values

predict friendship formation, and people tend to like people that also like them, also known as

reciprocal liking. Forrest and Jenny also experienced a bit of the mere exposure effect: the more

someone sees something, the more they like it. Once that relationship begins to develop, Clark

and Mills suggested that there are communal and exchange relationships. Communal

relationships are relationships in which the primary concern of the partners is being responsive to

what the other person needs, and benefits are given on the basis of needs, not in getting

something in return.

All of these things can be seen within Forrest and Jenny’s relationship throughout the

film, that all started on the first day of school, when Jenny said Forrest could sit with her on the

bus. Forrest was physically attracted to Jenny; she had large eyes and a big smile, a small nose

and chin, and narrow cheeks, which drew Forrest into Jenny’s beauty. In addition, Forrest and

Jenny were similar in that they both came from the same small town and had similar attitudes

about things. They also experienced the mere exposure effect. From the first day of school, Jenny

and Forrest spent almost every day together. Forrest said they “were like peas and carrots.”

Forrest was always there for Jenny when she needed him; he always protected her, welcomed her

into his life, spent long nights with her as children, and still loved her every time she left him. On

that first day, Jenny was nice to Forrest and said that he could sit with her on the bus, while she

expected nothing in return. The initial attraction Forrest and Jenny felt for each other was

something that kept them connected throughout the course of their lives.

The loyalty Forrest felt for Jenny can also be seen in groups that he was a part of, more

specifically when he enlisted into the army. He was sent to Vietnam with his best friend from

training, Benjamin Blue, also known as Bubba. Even though Bubba was Forrest’s best friend in
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the unit, he became friends with everyone. More specifically, during Forrest’s time in Vietnam,

he became extremely close with his unit. They spent all of their days together and went through a

four-month period of rain. Once the rain had finally stopped, the unit was being attacked, and

they were all told to run to get out of there. Forrest made it to safety first and realized he did not

have anyone else around him, so he went back into the fire zone, so that he could save Bubba, his

best friend. Upon returning to look for Bubba, he found other members of his unit that needed

help, so he helped them. Once he found Lieutenant Dan, he dropped him off in safety and turned

to go back so he could find Bubba. Lieutenant Dan demanded that Forrest not go back into the

fire zone, but Forrest insisted that he needed to find Bubba, so he did.

Group cohesion is the extent to which group members like and want to remain a part of

the group. The group members interact with each other, have a shared sense of goals, are similar,

and have success in meeting their goals. These things assist in improving the longevity of the

group and increases participation, loyalty, personal security, and enhances self-esteem for group

members.

This specific scene shows that Forrest felt a strong loyalty to his group and was willing to

do anything to save them. The group spent a lot of time together during the war and had a

common goal to get out of the situation in which they were being fired at. Forrest’s loyalty to his

group and his friend was so strong that he ignored orders given to him by his Lieutenant,

something that he normally would not have done. Not only within the film, but also in real-world

situations, when people are strong within their group, they are willing to do anything to keep the

group safe and in-tact.

Forrest Gump was always someone that surprised other people in good ways. While he

did follow rules and orders given to him, he was also one to do the unexpected. For example,
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there are two instances in which a group of boys harasses and chases Forrest down a dirt road.

These boys call Forrest stupid and make fun of him. They act as though they are better than him

and treat him poorly because he is different than them. In the first instance, he still has his leg

braces on, and the boys chase him while riding bikes. Forrest runs as hard and as fast as he can,

as Jenny cheers him on. His leg braces break off, and he finds out that he is a strong runner. The

second time, the boys are driving a truck and are trying to beat him up, but he outruns the truck

and makes his escape from what could have been a bad ending for Forrest.

Self-fulfilling prophecies include people finding proof for a stereotype by behaving in a

way that makes the outgroup member fit the held stereotype. Word, Zanna, and Cooper (1974)

conducted a study in which individuals were given interviews, and the interviewer was either

extremely professional or stuttering and unable to properly conduct the interview. It was found

that those who had the competent interviewer performed better in their interviews and were more

likely to get the job, while people that had the interviewer that did not perform the interview

well, struggled in their own responses to the questions and were less likely to get the job.

Many people in Forrest’s situation would have reacted differently than he did. He failed

to conform to a self-fulfilling prophecy because he was able to escape both of those situations

effectively. It is expected that he would take the negative things people say about and do to him

and act in a way that shows he thinks that he is worthless, but that is not the case. Forrest has a

rather strong self-esteem and knows that he has people on his side, such as his mother and Jenny.

He knows that just because he is different than other people, that doesn’t mean that he is bad.

Even through the mistreatment that Forrest faces, he is still kind and open-minded towards

others. He is able to break the stereotype that other people have about him by being who he truly

is and not letting the negativity change his outlook on life.

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While most people watch movies purely for enjoyment, it is important to realize that

these films have deeper meanings. Social psychology is everywhere and shows society how

people act and why people do the things they do. Forrest Gump is just one of many examples to

show how attraction, group cohesion, and self-fulfilling prophecies are experienced in everyday

life. People don’t realize the effect that social psychology has on many different aspects of life,

but when a closer look is taken, social psychological principles can be seen everywhere.

References
Paramount Home Entertainment. (2006). Forrest Gump.

Sechrist, G. (2019). PSY 3310: Social Psychology, ch. 11, ch. 6, ch. 7 notes [lecture notes].