PSYCHOLOGICAL FIELDS AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT OF FEMALE PROTAGONISTS IN THREE ANIMATED FILMS: LEWIN’S THEORY

Abstract

ABSTRAK

Film animasi merepresentasikan perkembangan psikologis tokoh melalui interaksi antara karakter dan lingkungannya. Penelitian ini bertujuan menganalisis dan membandingkan perkembangan psikologis tiga tokoh protagonis perempuan dalam film animasi, yaitu Asha dalam Wish (2023), Asuna Watase dalam Children Who Chase Lost Voices (2011), dan Kokone Morikawa dalam Napping Princess (2017). Dengan analisis sastra bandingan kualitatif, penelitian ini menerapkan teori medan psikologis Kurt Lewin, khususnya prinsip bahwa perilaku merupakan fungsi dari pribadi dan lingkungan psikologis (B = f(P, E)). Data diperoleh melalui penayangan ulang ketiga film dan dianalisis dengan mengidentifikasi adegan yang merepresentasikan kebutuhan psikologis, tujuan, ruang hidup, valensi, ketegangan, hambatan, daya, lokomosi, konflik, dan ekuilibrium. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa para tokoh mengalami transformasi psikologis melalui perubahan hubungan antara kebutuhan pribadi dan daya-daya lingkungan. Asha berkembang dari kepedulian individual terhadap harapan kakeknya menuju agensi sosial dan moral yang bersifat kolektif ketika ia menentang sistem yang menindas. Asuna bergerak dari keterikatan emosional dan kesulitan menerima kehilangan menuju kematangan emosional dan penerimaan. Sementara itu, Kokone berkembang dari ketidakpastian dan eksplorasi imajinatif menuju agensi kognitif, familial, dan personal yang lebih besar melalui integrasi dunia mimpi dan realitas. Meskipun menghadapi bentuk konflik yang berbeda, perkembangan psikologis ketiga tokoh mengikuti proses dinamis yang serupa: ruang hidup yang terganggu menimbulkan ketegangan, daya-daya yang saling bersaing memengaruhi gerak perilaku, dan reorganisasi medan psikologis menghasilkan ekuilibrium baru. Simpulan penelitian ini menegaskan bahwa teori psikologis Lewin merupakan kerangka yang bermanfaat untuk analisis komparatif perkembangan karakter dalam film animasi.

ABSTRACT

Animated films represent psychological development through the interaction between characters and their environments. This study examines and compares the psychological development of three female protagonists in animated films: Asha in Wish (2023), Asuna Watase in Children Who Chase Lost Voices (2011), and Kokone Morikawa in Napping Princess (2017). Employing a qualitative comparative literary analysis, the study applies Kurt Lewin’s psychological field theory, particularly the principle that behavior is a function of the person and the psychological environment (B = f(P, E)). Data were obtained through repeated viewing of the three films and were analyzed by identifying scenes that represent psychological needs, goals, life space, valence, tension, barriers, forces, locomotion, conflict, and equilibrium. The findings demonstrate that the protagonists experience psychological transformation through changing relationships between personal needs and environmental forces. Asha develops from an individual concern for her grandfather’s wish toward collective social and moral agency as she challenges an oppressive system. Asuna moves from emotional attachment and difficulty accepting loss toward emotional maturity and acceptance. Meanwhile, Kokone develops from uncertainty and imaginative exploration toward greater cognitive, familial, and personal agency through the integration of her dream world and reality. Although the three protagonists encounter different forms of conflict, their psychological development follows a comparable dynamic process in which disrupted life spaces generate tension, competing forces influence behavioral movement, and the reorganization of psychological fields leads to new equilibrium. The study demonstrates that Lewin’s psychological theory provides a useful framework for comparative analysis of character development in animated films.