Expert: Brian G. Philbin - 11/24/2008

Question
how far has academic research on batman comic books gone?what are the topics that have been chosen to work on by various scholars?is it possible to tell me the where to look for the information on internet?

Answer
Hi, Pritesh,

Thanks for your question!  There have been a few books published on the "Psychology of Super Heroes", which have explored the psyche of The Batman and others like him.  However, as far as academic research, per se, I don't know of any dissertations that have been solely dedicated to The Batman.

There's certainly plenty of work published for the masses, but none in academia of which I am aware.

I would recommend a couple of books/places to look:

Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society by Danny Fingeroth
The Psychology of Superheroes: An Unauthorized Exploration by Robin Rosenberg
Seduction of the Innocent by Frederic Wertham (this is to see how far we've come - Dr. Wertham was a bit off on his assessment, as he judged that comics created delinquent behavior, once he had determined that most delinquent children read comic books... not taking into account that 90% of all boys at that time read comics at one point or another)
Also, Travis Langley teaches Special Topics: Comics & Psychology at Henderson State University and there is a website for the class syllabus available at:

http://fac.hsu.edu/langlet/syllabi/2008/Comics_Psy_syllabus.htm

Further, you will find all manner of forewards in different collections of comics (trade paperbacks and hardcover) about The Batman that contain insightful comments from the writers themselves remarking on their own specific takes - or the take of the writer of the series contained within - on the character.  I would seek out a few of these at your local Library or bookstore, each of which should have collections of Batman stories at least in the Trade Paperback version.

I hope you find this information helpful - each of these books should provide further information and references to work from.

Pax, harmonia,

Brian G. Philbin
www.metropolisplus.com/comics.htm