Stability and Variability in Aesthetic Experience

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REVIEW
published:07February2017
doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00143
Stability and Variability in Aesthetic
Experience: A Review
ThomasJacobsen*andSusanBeudt*
ExperimentalPsychologyUnit,HumanitiesandSocialSciences,Helmut-Schmidt-University/UniversityoftheFederalArmed
ForcesHamburg,Hamburg,Germany
Based on psychophysics’ pragmatic dualism, we trace the cognitive neuroscience of
stability and variability in aesthetic experience. With regard to different domains of
aestheticprocessing,wetouchupontherelevanceofcognitiveschemataforaesthetic
preference. Attitudes and preferences are explored in detail. Evolutionary constraints
on attitude formation or schema generation are elucidated, just as the often seemingly
arbitraryinfluencesofsocial,societal,andculturalnatureare.Aparticularfocusisputon
theconceptofcriticalperiodsduringanindividual’sontogenesis.Thelattercontrasting
with changes of high frequency, such as fashion influences. Taken together, these
analyses document the state of the art in the field and, potentially, highlight avenues
forfutureresearch.
Keywords:aesthetics,aestheticexperience,experimentalaesthetics,art,cognitiveschemata,scripts,attitudes,
sensitiveperiod
Editedby:
AaronWilliamon, INTRODUCTION
RoyalCollegeofMusicandImperial
CollegeLondon,UK In aesthetics, we deal with a multitude of factors influencing our preferences, judgments,
Reviewedby: contemplation, appreciation, liking, and disliking. While we are searching for laws of aesthetics
RonaldHübner, universalformankind,thereisalsonoaccountingfortaste.WhileHomosapiensappearstobethe
UniversityofKonstanz,Germany onlyprimatespeciescapableoffullydevelopedaestheticprocessing,thereisalsonodenyingthat
GargaChatterjee, evolutionhasaninfluenceonouraestheticappreciation.Whilehistoryhasdemonstratedawide
IndianStatisticalInstitute,India
varietyofoftenseeminglyarbitraryidealsofbeauty,we,aspsychologists,wouldstillhopetobe
*Correspondence: abletoidentifygeneralunderlyingmentalmechanisms.Fortheendeavoroftracingstabilityand
SusanBeudt
variability in aesthetic processing in this article, we will adopt a framework for the psychology
[email protected]
of aesthetics that uses several vantage points (Jacobsen, 2006, 2010a). For one, it is based on
ThomasJacobsen
psychophysics pragmatic dualism, using the mind and brain perspectives. It also holds the view
[email protected]
that all episodes of mental processing of art, that is all episodes of aesthetic appreciation for
Specialtysection: ourconcern,manifestedasaninteractionofpersonandsituationvariablesmodifiedbydifferent
Thisarticlewassubmittedto contentdomains.Furthermore,itassertsthatchangeshappenovertime(diachronia)andthatthey
CognitiveScience, take place for different reasons and on differing timescales. Some may happen fast due to rapid
asectionofthejournal changing in social influences, as seen in fashion for instance, while others happen on extremely
FrontiersinPsychology
slowtimescales,likechangesduetoevolutionarybiology.Whilebiologicaluniversalsmayhave
Received:12August2016 beenwiththemodernmanformorethan100,000years,andwouldthusbeconsideredverystable,
Accepted:19January2017 thesameanatomyprovidesforextremelyindividualizedandhighlydiversepreferencesinvarious
Published:07February2017
domainsofaestheticappreciation.
Citation: Aesthetic appreciation entails the evaluation of sensations and perceptions against relevant
Jacobsen TandBeudt S(2017)
concepts like the beautiful, the elegant, the harmonious, the melodious, the rhythmical, and
StabilityandVariabilityinAesthetic
the like. These concepts show relative stability over time, over individuals, as well as aesthetic
Experience:AReview.
domains. The concept of beauty is central to many domains of aesthetic appreciation. On the
Front.Psychol.8:143.
doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00143 other hand, the conceptual structure shows relative variability as well. Rhythm and melody
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JacobsenandBeudt AestheticExperience:StabilityandVariability
areimportantformusicandpoems,butlesssoforfaces(Jacobsen schemata and scripts upon exposure to an aesthetic object may
etal.,2004;Istóketal.,2009;Augustinetal.,2012;Knoopetal., thenmodulateaestheticappreciation.
2016). For the present review, we have selected two theoretical We trace the importance of these mental representations
psychological notions as a basic structure of our analysis, the through different domains of aesthetic processing, while we
notion of attitude and the notion of schema or script. Both investigate the variability or stability of either the mental
arelongtermmemoryrepresentationsthathavebeenshownto representation itself or variability or stability of its contents.
influence,ifnotguide,aestheticappreciation. Attitudes and schemata/scripts are very frequently acquired
Therewerevariousattemptstoattainareasonabledefinition implicitly. They are influenced unintentionally, or overlearned
oftheconceptofattitudes(foranoverview,seee.g.,Riemeretal., intentionally.Theirflexibilityorplasticitymaychangeovertime,
2014), but all share the notion of evaluation. For a variety of may change over the course of ontogeny. Critical periods for
objects humans have acquired relatively stable “[...] summary either the acquisition or the change of an attitude or a schema
evaluations[...]rangingalongadimension[...]frompositiveto may apply. It is possible that while the content of the script is
negative”(Pettyetal.,1997),sothatinsumanattitudeobjectcan boundtochangeonaregular,fixedbasisandtimescale,thescript
belinkedwithliking/disliking.Thusanindividualwhoisabout itselfhasbeenacquiredforlifeandisthusstable.
toaestheticallyappreciatean(aesthetic)object,willapproachit There may be domains of aesthetic processing in which
with its own attitudinal system. That system may, for instance, individual differences in aesthetic appreciation have to be
comprise evaluations of one’s own expertise with regard to the accountedforinordertobeabletoidentifyunderlyinggeneral
aesthetic domain or, more specifically, the genre at hand. If mentalmechanisms.Forinstance,theidentificationofthebrain
informationaboutthecreatoroftheaestheticobjectisavailable, correlates of aesthetic judgment of beauty of novel, formal
the aforementioned may be implicated with stored evaluations graphicpatternsrequiredtheformalmodelingoftheparticipants’
ofvariousgroups.Inaddition,theaestheticobjectmightaddress individual judgments (Jacobsen et al., 2006). That is, while
explicitly specific themes or induce associations with specific individual beauty ratings for the graphic material presented to
related issues (even if not intended by the creator) for which the participants were highly heterogeneous, a common neural
summarized evaluations are stored and automatically activated network subserving the process of aesthetic judgment could be
uponexposurewiththeobject. identified.
The schema concept has also been used and described Thisreviewisorganizedasfollows.Thefirstsectionaddresses
in various ways, mostly based on conceptions suggested by the role of schemata and scripts in the context of aesthetics.
Piaget(1926)andBartlett(1932).AccordingtoMandler(1984), In the second section the role of attitudes and preferences in
“knowledgeaboutanobjectorclassesofobjects,aboutanevent aestheticappreciationisexplored.Thisisdonebyfirstexploring
orclassesofevents,aboutpersonalitytraitsandsocialnorms,can developmental aspects (e.g., sensitive periods). Subsequently
allbeconsideredassmallnetworksofinformationthatbecome variability and stability of relevant attitudes and aesthetic
activated as we experience these things”. Thus, schemata are preferencesacrossdifferentaestheticdomainsareelaboratedon
higher-ordercognitivestructuresthatarerelevanttounderstand thebasisofrespectiveresearchaccounts.
how old knowledge and past experiences interact with new
information (Brewer and Nakamura, 1984). Referring again to
a situation in which an object is aesthetically appreciated, the SCHEMATA/SCRIPTS
perceiver not only approaches the aesthetic object with a set
of relevant attitudes, but also holds ready applicable schemata. Itis,mostlikely,safetoassumethatweallcommandlong-term
Whereasattitudesoftenelicitreactionsorresponsestowardthe memoryrepresentationsoftheschemaandscripttypeofvarious
attitude objects, schemata provide frameworks which allow for aestheticdomains,arts,andartgenres.Ifwehavenotintendedto
makingsenseofthegivensituationoraestheticobjectbyadding acquiresuchamemoryrepresentationactively,wehaveimplicitly
missingdetails.Basedupontheattributesandtheirinterrelations acquiredit.
whicharestoredforaparticularschema,expectationsareformed Implicitly acquired, we most likely command a host of, in
and missing information can be added. Depending on various part, very diversified schemata and scripts. Besides prescribed
aspectsofthesituation,forinstance,thetypeofaestheticobject actions or rather non-actions, like not touching exhibits in
(e.g.,staticpaintingversusdynamicpieceofperformanceart)or a gallery or a museum, schemata and scripts also entail and
thecontextoftheexperience(e.g.,privatehouseversusmuseum prescribe affective responses to art. Taking the conceptual
versuslaboratory),different(typesof)schematicrepresentations structure of the aesthetics of literature as a starting point,
areactivated. Foraestheticappreciationself-schemasandevent the study by Knoop et al. (2016) shows that comedies as a
schemas, which are commonly referred to as cognitive scripts, literary genre prescribes more funny cognition than tragic, for
may be foremost important. A script holds information about instance,whileplays,ingeneral,includingdrama,areprescribed
“appropriate sequences of events in a particular context,” is as tragic, dramatic, and also sad. The data show that, most
composed of “slots and requirements about what can fill those likely, theater goers as well as readers of drama or comedy
slots,” and due to interconnections “what is in one slot, affects command a script of the reception of such a play that also
what can be in another” (Schank and Abelson, 1977). For includes elements of an affect script. Going to the cinema
instance,differentscriptswillbeaddressedduringamuseumvisit planning to watch a sad movie, entails elements of emotion
andduringatheaterplay.Insum,theactivatedsetofattitudes, regulation. We know that there will be sad content. Studies by
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Hanichetal.(2014)andWassiliwizkyetal.(2015)demonstrated ATTITUDES AND PREFERENCES
that a very important emotional response to sad movies is the
emotionofbeingmoved.Beingemotionallymovedbythemovie Long-term memory representations such as attitudes are
one watches most likely is an element of emotion regulation perceived as sets of evaluations stored for an object and
mediated by the art reception script including elements of ranging over a positive – negative dimension (Petty et al.,
an effect script. Scripts of this rather general type appear to 1994). A common notion is that attitudes entail a knowledge
be rather stable, although there is no empirical study on a component, a valence aspect and a behavioral tendency.
criticalperiodofacquisitionandorthestabilityofthesescripts Differencesoftheirunderlyingstructurearethoughttoinfluence
overtime. theirstrength,i.e.,theirpersistenceovertime,resistanceagainst
Just as other social conventions are acquired over a number counterpersuasion and thus the degree of their influence on
ofexperiences,artschemataofdifferentdomainsarefrequently judgment and behavior. Getting activated automatically, those
acquiredimplicitly.Attendingaconcertofclassicalmusicentails evaluations facilitate a quick assessment of the everyday object
being quietly seated, avoiding making noises, not getting up beingprocessed(forareview,seePettyetal.,1997).
to dance, not talking to fellow listeners, spending applause Representing an important modulator of aesthetic
only in the right moments in time, and so on and so forth. experiences,attitudesmayoftenoverrideothereffectsforwhich
Attending the showing of a theater play conventionally entails influences on aesthetic appreciation have been demonstrated
being quietly seated avoiding making noises, not talking to (i.e., fluency, familiarity, mere exposure). Theoretical accounts
one’s neighbor, not getting up to dance, and spending applause for this modulation are still scarce. Some attention has been
only in the right moments. This does, of course, not mean drawn to this issue within the framework of automatic and
that such a script cannot be broken. As it often occurs in controlled processes of aesthetic appreciation provided by
modern theater, audience may be urged to participate, like Jacobsen (2010b), in which memory systems operating at
actually getting up to dance, for instance. In such a moment, differentlevelsofaestheticappreciationarereviewed.
viewers may feel insecure and uncomfortable, if not used to When stimuli are being accommodated in the perceiver’s
participateinthingslikethat.Thislittleanecdotedemonstrates attitudesystem,thelattermayhaveaprofoundinfluenceonthe
that implicitly acquired scripts and schemata may very well aestheticappreciationofthesestimuli(seeRitterfeld,2002,fora
have the power to shape our experience, to be real. It also seminalstudyorIstóketal.,2013).Infact,attitudinalinfluences
shows that scripts and schemata may contain certain default couldevenleadtooutrightmemory-basedjudgmentsofbeauty
slots that guide our experience when filled. For instance, in the or other important concepts (Jacobsen et al., 2004; Istók et al.,
abovementionedexamplesofclassicconcertsandtheaterplays, 2009;Augustinetal.,2012;Knoopetal.,2016),insteadofproper
the audience is at a safe distance to the performance. In the aesthetic processing. Hence, some past research endeavors in
conventionalversionofthescript,audienceparticipationclearly thefieldconsideredattitudinalinfluencesasconfoundingfactors
is not called for. Thus, the members of the audience do not thatneededtobereliablyexcluded,forinstancebyusingnovel
have to be afraid of being exposed to other members. Rather, stimuli(visualstimuli:e.g.,JacobsenandHöfel,2002,2003;Höfel
onecansafelyassumetobeleftintheexclusivelyreceptiverole. andJacobsen,2003,2007a,b;Jacobsen,2004a;musicstimuli:e.g.,
This fact may foster focuses on individual subjective feeling, Brattico et al., 2010; Kornysheva et al., 2010; Istók et al., 2013)
self-referential appreciation and evaluation of sensation and thatcouldlesslikelybeintegratedautomaticallyintheperceiver’s
perception. attitudesystemongroundsofknowledgeandexpertise.
Someschematamayactuallybequitediversifiedanddetailed, One common way to gauge the automatic activation of
even on the bases of implicit acquisition. Art schemata and attitudesistheapplicationoftheimplicitassociationtest(IAT),
scripts are constituted in a social fashion. This means they are which allows an exploration of the unconscious use of the
subject to change on the bases of social and cultural change. attitudinal memory system (e.g., Fazio and Olson, 2003). By
Therefore, stability and variability of art schemata and scripts now this approach has been adopted in a few studies within
hingeonculturalandsocialfactors.Ontheotherhand,somevery aestheticdomainssuchasthehumanbody(Ahernetal.,2008),
basic schemata may even have evolutionary underpinnings. An visualartandarchitecture(Mastandreaetal.,2011),anddesign
example may be the basic narrative scheme, making minimum objects(MastandreaandMaricchiolo,2014).Wewillnowexplore
requirements for a narrative plot. The art form for poetry, findings regarding sensitive periods for the development of
for instance, may have characteristics that speak to a co- attitudes relevant to aesthetic contemplation and we will try to
evolution of our language and memory faculties. The more relatethosefindingstothedevelopmentofaestheticpreferences
evolutionary grounding an arts schema or art script has, the fordifferentdomainsofaestheticappreciation.
less likely it should be subject to change, and thus be very
stable.
Acquisition and Sensitive Period of
The notion of scripts for the reception of performing
Attitudes and Aesthetic Preferences
arts as introduced by the affect script example above, most
likely, extends to various narrative and/or performing Appreciationofartandaestheticsareoftenconsideredasbeing
art forms. To date, we do not know of systematic uniqueforthehumanspecies(e.g.,Dobzhansky,1962).During
studies on the acquisition and the ex-act design of these ontogenesisofboththehumanperceptualsystemandthehuman
scripts. conceptual system, foundations are laid for the capacity of
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aestheticevaluationandtherebyaswellfortheformationoftaste. consonance:Peranietal.,2010),occurearlyinchilddevelopment
Severalaspectssupportthisnotion. (Nieminenetal.,2011,2012).
Regardingthedevelopmentofvisualperception,amongthose The development of a distinctive musical taste which
aspects is, for instance, the existence of ocular dominance characterizes an individual has been outlined by Brattico et al.
columns (Hubel and Wiesel, 1962), for which a critical period (2013).Intheirneuro-cognitivemodeloftheaestheticprocessing
(postnatal up to 5 and more years of age) for their experience- of music they proposed that musical taste results from a
dependent neuroplasticity has been widely investigated (for a long-term set of preferences, attitudes, values and aesthetic
review, see e.g., Hooks and Chen, 2007). Another aspect refers judgmentsandthoseinturnshouldbeinfluencedbyindividual
to functional specialization of individual neurons as well as of characteristicssuchasage,gender,socialstatus,andpersonality.
neuralcircuitsfortheprocessingof,forinstance,singlefeatures Whether listeners arrive at consciously liking or disliking a
(like color or motion direction; see e.g., Zeki et al., 1991) or musical piece should be determined by an interaction of their
complex shapes and objects (like faces, substantially processed musicaltasteandtheircontextvariables(mood,attention,social
bythefusiformfacearea;Kanwisheretal.,1997;Kanwisherand attitudes).Theauthorsdescribedthisasbuildingafeedbackloop
Yovel,2006).Thedevelopmentoffaceprocessingsensitivityhas whichshouldbemorepliablewithinearlyadulthoodifcompared
beeninvestigatedinastudywithsubjects,whohavebeenblind toinfancyoradulthood(Bratticoetal.,2013).Inyounglisteners
frombirthbutwhohadtheirvisionrestoredviacataractsurgery (daycare and elementary school) music preferences have been
(Röderetal.,2013).Duetothevariedtimeperiodsofblindness showntobestronglyaffectedbysocialfactorssuchaspreferences
amongsubjects,identificationofacloserdefinedsensitiveperiod of parents and siblings (Roulston, 2006) and for 7- to 8-year-
hasnotbeenpossible,thoughtheresultscoulddemonstratethat old children exposure to gender stereotypic role models seems
suchaperiodexists.Astosensitiveperiodsforthedevelopment toberelevantforchoosingamusicalinstrument(Harrisonand
ofothercharacteristicsofthevisualsystem,differenttimeperiods O’Neill,2000).Lateadolescenceandearlyadulthoodhavebeen
seem to exist, in that, for instance, the development of normal linkedtoindividual’sincreasedmusicalgenreexploration,which
visual acuity and peripheral light sensitivity are impaired when is in line with the open-earedness hypothesis (LeBlanc et al.,
visualdeprivationbeginsat6monthsafterbirth(reviewbyLewis 1996; Hargreaves and North, 2010). According to the open-
and Maurer, 2005). Interestingly, this does not apply for global earedness hypothesis younger children show more tolerance
motion sensitivity for which impairment could only be shown toward musical styles, which are categorized as unconventional
when visual deprivation began near birth (Lewis and Maurer, byadults,possiblyasaresultofbeingless“adaptedto”normative
2005). standards with regard to what is considered as good and bad
Within the limits of this manuscript, we do not aspire to taste in the given culture. Exploring various musical genres in
give an ample overview of the findings regarding sensitizing thisdevelopmentalstageisthoughttohelpshapeandcrystallize
periods for all perceptual qualities. Preliminary to reviewing musicaltaste.
findings regarding the development of aesthetic preferences Lately it is discussed, that adolescence may provide also
and attitudes toward musical stimuli, we will shortly address periods for sensitization, mainly concerning higher-order
sensitive periods for the auditory domain. Similar to the processes (Howard-Jones et al., 2012; Fuhrmann et al., 2015).
development of the visual perceptual system, for auditory It was also suggested, that for bi-directional transfer of skills
perception the early years after birth are crucial for developing between language and musical processing there may exist a
normal auditory feature processing (for reviews, see e.g., sensitiveperiodaswell(Whiteetal.,2013).
Trainor, 2005; Howard-Jones et al., 2012). For instance, the
neonate brain’s sensitivity to discriminate acoustic differences
Variability and Stability of Attitudes and
is initially very high, before it learns to organize auditory
Aesthetic Preferences
input according to distinctive features and to belonging to
certain categories while learning to ignore more and more The notion of a universal in aesthetic appreciation constitutes
insignificantvariabilityofsounds(forareview,seeKral,2013). the strongest variant of stability. Historically and culturally
Besides being obviously crucial for language learning (for a invariant,itstracescanbeobservedinindividualbehavior.Ina
review, e.g., Kuhl, 2010), this initial sensitive period is also psychophysicalsense,adoptingthemind-brainperspective,taste
relevant to musical learning (Penhune, 2011). Young infants canbeconsideredalong-termrepresentationthatismoreorless
are able to discriminate acoustic properties (e.g., timing and changing, or the respective bodily substrate. Furthermore, taste
pitch,Trehub,2003)andtheyaresensitivetoprocessingrhythm, also comprises a more generalized element when regarding the
melody, aspects of harmony (Trehub, 2006; Trehub et al., scopeofagenreorstyle(formusicaldomain,seee.g.,Istóketal.,
1997), which is relevant for music processing and therefore for 2013).
later musical preferences (for a review, see Nieminen et al., Tasteingeneralissubjecttochangewhichhappensatdifferent
2011). time scales. In fashion, taste once was expected to adapt on a
Whether musical preferences are biologically determined 6 months’ cycle. By now this has been taken to the extreme,
or acquired through exposure is still being debated. Studies anecdotally in the context of fast fashion cheaply imitating
investigatingmusicalpreferencesinneonatesandyounginfants fashiontrendsandinvolving(inthecaseofsomefashionbrands)
indicate that sensory processing of basic musical properties, up to 6 mid-seasonal trends per year. There is most likely,
along with core liking of those properties (like preference for although evidence is still scarce, highly stable taste based on
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ontogenetic acquisition during critical periods (as depicted in idea of the fundamentally important golden ratio, the latter
Chapter2.1).Ontheotherextreme,therearespeciesuniversals accountspointingatahighsusceptibilityoftheeffecttostudies’
that are expected to be stable, or at best culturally modified. methodologicaldifferences(Höge,1995).
Research investigating universal, biologically based aesthetic Another theoretical aspect which has been thought of as
tendenciesandtheirshapingbyculturalandhistoricalinfluences constitutingauniversalisthecorrespondenceofbasiccolorsand
(see ipsichronia vantage point, Jacobsen, 2006) is scarce so far forms. If such a correspondence exists, we would expect it to
(for an overview on cross-cultural differences and similarities be highly stable. The desire to find basic, generally applicable
regardingattractivenessoffacesorbodyfeatures,seeLittleetal., principles for art and design in early 20th century gave rise
2011). to theorizing about a universal and ideal visual language, and
One factor that is regarded as a standard in aesthetic resulted in the color-form assignments developed by Wassily
appreciation shared across cultures is symmetry, which seems Kandinsky(Jacobsen,2002,2004b).ThenceforwardKandinsky’s
to be one of the biologically based aspects of beauty. Though assigned yellow triangle, red square and blue circle became a
withincultureperspectivethereexistaccountsofmorevariability well-knownthemeintheBauhausschoolofdesign.Remarkably,
across aesthetic domains. For the aesthetics of faces similar assessing color-form assignments in those a study with non-
aesthetic tendencies across different cultures have been found artist students, Jacobsen (2002) could show that Kandinsky’s
(Little et al., 2007). Within the domain of the aesthetics of combinations were the least preferred. In both tasks (mere
architecture and urban space, a more differential picture of the color-formcorrespondencevs.aestheticcorrespondence),about
importanceofsymmetryhasbeenshown.Investigatingthelink half of the participants showed clear and stable assignments
between the visual, spatial properties of complex streetscapes (red to triangle, blue to square and yellow to circle) and
and their aesthetic judgments, Weber et al. (2008) found that stated world knowledge associations in the rationale for their
visual regularity informed by parameters of symmetry and choice.Yet,anotherstudywithvisualartsexpertsdemonstrated
uniform arrangements of lateral boundaries in the streetscape different color-form assignments (Jacobsen and Wolsdorff,
photographsseemstobeaprimaryfactorinbeautypreferences. 2007). Those results led to the notion that a multitude of
Though,analysescontrollingforprofessionalisminarchitecture factors(i.e.,worldknowledge,education,andhistoricalchange,
and urban planning, indicated that symmetry/asymmetry seem as well as individual, group-specific, and societal leitmotifs)
to be differentially important factors for beholders of different influenceindividualcolor-formpreferencesandthattheBauhaus
expertiselevels. combinations were historically/culturally determined (Jacobsen
Along with symmetry, the complexity factor of an aesthetic andWolsdorff,2007).
stimulus has been discussed as a strong predictor of aesthetic Another combination of basic perceptual qualities such as
judgment (Jacobsen and Höfel, 2001). The effects of both color and sound and their corresponding approach-avoidance
factors on aesthetic judgment seem to be quite robust, even patterns have been investigated recently in a comparative eye-
across different stimuli, participants and contexts (Tinio and tracking study on human and non-human primate species
Leder, 2009). Interestingly, more recent accounts investigating (Mühlenbeck et al., 2015). Regarding biases for and avoidance
familiarization with stimuli have revealed findings that are ofcolorsinhumansubjects,thisstudyonlypartiallysupported
inconsistent with study results on mere-exposure (e.g., Zajonc, previous findings (i.e., avoidance of yellow). Eye-tracking data
1968). Thus, the robust effects of symmetry and complexity for non-human primates (orangutans) did not indicate clear
seem to be modifiable by massive familiarization (Tinio and gaze duration biases or avoidance for color at all. Other
Leder, 2009), which has been thought of eliciting a subsequent thanhypothesized,nomodulationofcolorapproach-avoidance
preferenceofnovelstimuli(BiedermanandVessel,2006). patterns by consonant and dissonant auditory stimuli could be
A recent comparative eye-tracking study across cultures and found for both human and non-human subjects. The authors
speciesshowedthathumanswithadifferentculturalbackground concluded that in specific contexts color preferences could
(Namibian hunter-gatherers and German town dwellers) both be independent of perceiving auditory stimuli and that the
showed longer fixation on symmetric abstract graphic stimuli lack of specific color biases and color avoidances in both
(adoptedfromJacobsenandHöfel,2002),irrespectiveofpattern subject groups neither support nor disagree with hypotheses
complexity,whereasnon-humanprimates(orangutans)didnot regarding the advantageous evolution of trichromatic color
differentiatebetweensymmetricandnon-symmetricpatternsbut vision.
showed faster and broader scanning of the presented screen Among all of the contenders for aesthetic universals one
(Mühlenbeck et al., 2016). Comparison of aesthetic evaluations of the most realized across cultures seems to be the factor of
betweenbothhumangroupsrevealedthataestheticpreferences skin quality. Apart from a few exceptional examples regarding
were in accordance with fixation preference only within the beautyrelatedskincondition(e.g.,decorativescarringinAfrican
Germansubjectgroup,butnotintheNamibiangroup. tribes, facial tattooing in women of Myanmar’s chin tribe),
One of the strongest contenders for a universal law of a flawless and even skin texture as well as homogeneity of
beauty has been considered the Golden Section. In “Vorschule skin color seem to be primary determinants of perceived
der Ästhetik,” Fechner (1876) illustrated the role of the attractiveness (e.g., Symons, 1995; Fink et al., 2001, 2006).
GoldenSectionHypothesisindeterminingaestheticpreferences. This influence of skin quality has been explained in terms of
Importantly, there are empirical accounts both supporting and perceivedhigherhealthcondition,reproductiveabilityandyouth
contradicting (for an overview, see e.g., Konecˇni, 2012) the ingeneral.
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VisualArtandPhotography effectscontextcouldhaveonperceptionandappreciationofan
Researchonaestheticpreferenceinvisualartshassofarfocused artwork. Again they found that aesthetic appreciation can be
on group differences in order to find general rules. However, significantlyinfluencedbyanartworkscontextandthatsomeof
individualdifferencesofaestheticjudgmentshavebeenrevealed thoseeffectsdependonthestyleofartworksandsomeresultfrom
infewdifferentdomains,oneofthembeingthatofvisualart(e.g., aninteractionofcontextandindividualinterestinartstyles.
JacobsenandHöfel,2002;Jacobsen,2004a). Inanotherstudy,implicitaestheticpreferencesforfigurative
Höfel and Jacobsen (2003) could demonstrate that beauty as opposed to abstract art styles have been shown (Mastandrea
judgmentsofnovel,formalgraphicpatterns(takenfromJacobsen et al., 2011), involving shorter response latencies when
and Höfel, 2002) made by undergraduate students with no participants (non-experts in arts) associated positive (vs.
expert knowledge in fine arts were changing within several negative)wordswithfigurative(vs.abstract)art.
weeks, thereby showing low stability of individual judgments Astotheaestheticsofphotography,todatefewstudieshave
of aesthetic value. Following up on this finding, Jacobsen investigated specific attributes that might account for favoring
(2004a) investigated individual differences in beauty judgments one (artistic) photograph over another. Often photographs
of another set of novel, formal graphic patterns, comparing have been used as a technical means to investigate other
individual performance and group models for ratings and questionswithinexperimentalaestheticsandmostexperimental
rankings made by a homogeneous group of non-artist college approaches, directed at photography itself, focused more on
students. It was found that the group model, based on data the perceptual than on aesthetic processing of photographs.
averages, could only account for half of the participants’ Certainly, some of the attributes which are discussed as being
judgments, whereas better representation of the data was relevant for aesthetic preference in visual and fine arts might
achievedbytheindividualmodels.Beautyjudgmentsofanumber be relevant for the aesthetics of photographs as well. The
of participants even resulted in contrary ratings and rankings, few empirical findings suggest that features determining image
beingintra-individualconsistent. quality seem to be important for the liking of a photograph.
In those studies, which used novel graphic patterns, the In two studies, Tinio and Leder (2009) and Tinio et al. (2011)
individual differences in aesthetic judgment of beauty would usedimagesofnaturalandhuman-madescenesforwhichthey
have led to null results if prescriptively classified objects would manipulated certain image features (systematic degradations of
havebeengroupedfortheanalysis.Rather,individualjudgment contrast, grain size, and sharpness/focus). Depending on the
policieshavebeencapturedusingmethodsofjudgmentanalysis. type of scene (stronger effects in human-made as compared to
This way, different subsets of stimuli have contributed to natural scenes), they found that certain degradations and their
conditionsindifferentparticipants.Inviewoftheabovefindings, combinations(highercontrast,lessgrain,betterfocus)hadmore
which indicated manifest individual differences in aesthetic impact on aesthetic preference than others. Furthermore, their
preferences, it may be essential to group judgment categories results showed an additive effect for feature degradations (an
rather than object categories. As implemented by Jacobsen imagewaslesslikedthemoredegradationsitwassubjectedto).
et al. (2006), identifying brain correlates of aesthetic judgments Composition plays a role in a lot of stimuli that can
of beauty using these graphic patterns was only possible by be experienced aesthetically. To examine compositional effects
employingthisapproach. experimentally, a few studies focused for instance on cropping
Few studies have also shown individual differences for color of photographs and its determinants (McManus et al., 2011;
preferences (McManus et al., 1981; Whitfield, 1984). Those Abelnetal.,2016).Itwasobserved,thatcroppingabilitydiffered
preferences appear to depend to a great extent on the context, substantially between individuals and that cropping is driven
specifically on the object to be colored. Regarding the study morebytop-downknowledgeofobjects(McManusetal.,2011)
by Whitfield (1984), participants showed substantial individual and that saliency and balancing of different salience regions
differences of color preferences for walls of a domestic interior seems to play an important role for aesthetic appreciation and
furnishedinoneofthreestyles(Modern,Georgian,ArtNouveau) preference (Abeln et al., 2016). Regarding image attributes that
whenasktoperformcorrespondingappropriatenessrankingsof are traditionally discussed within visual aesthetics, such as the
givencolorsamples. ruleofthirdsandthegoldensection,therarestudiesinvestigating
Sinceatleastconceptualartemergedinthemiddleofthe20th thoseinthecontextofphotographsdidnotrevealaclearpattern
century, it stands to reason that defining art requires reference offindingsyet.Surprisinglyalotoffactorswhichmayinfluence
to its context (Gartus et al., 2015). Contextual influences on theaestheticappreciationofphotographshavenotbeenorhave
emotionalresponsestowarddifferentkindsofartworks(abstract been only insufficiently investigated yet. To the best of our
paintingsvs.graffitiartworks)weredemonstratedinastudyby knowledge,thisappliesaswelltothedevelopmentoftasteinart
GartusandLeder(2014).Theypresentedbothtypesofartworks photography.
in one of two contexts (museum vs. natural street scene) and
showed that participants with a positive attitude toward graffiti Music
art even elicited more positive evaluations of those artworks in Uptodateneuro-cognitivemodelsofhumanmentalfacilitiesand
a street context (compared to a museum context). The authors sensorymodalitiesarequitesophisticated.Inviewofsubstantial
concludedthatindividualattitudestowardartstylesmodulated differencesinthementalprocessingarchitectureacrossdomains
contextualeffectsontheevaluationofartworks.Followingupon like vision and audition, it stands to reason that there are
thoseresults,Gartusetal.(2015)investigatedspecificallywhich domain-specific characteristics of music processing which have
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to be taken into account in addition to modality- and domain- lyrics,andlyricalcuesseemedtobemoreimportantfordefining
independent processing stages. This has been implemented in andinducingsademotions(Bratticoetal.,2011).Attributionof
theneuro-cognitivemodelproposedbyBratticoetal.(2013),in a value (positive or negative) to music is observable during an
whichdomain-specificityisconsideredanimportantaspectinthe individual’slifespanandacrosscultures(Bratticoetal.,2009a).
aestheticprocessingofmusic. On a neural level, basic emotion perception was associated
In contrast to other aesthetic domains like dance, language, with structures being spatially separate from motivational and
or architecture, research on the aesthetic appreciation in the evaluative processes and seems to be processed earlier than
musical content domain has been progressed notably within the latter (Brattico et al., 2016). This implicit appraisal of the
the last decade. The respective model by Brattico et al. (2013) affectivestatewhichisinducedbyamusicalpieceseemstobuild
now constitutes a relevant reference point for present-day the basis for aesthetic enjoyment, conscious liking and various
research.Accordingtotheirelaborations,initialprocessingstages judgmentslinkedtotheaestheticepisodes(e.g.,beautyjudgment;
(feature analysis, multisensory integration, top-down cognitive Bratticoetal.,2016).Soundfeatureslikecomplexityorsensory
processing) in the course of an aesthetic appreciation of a dissonance can be linked to more stable aspects of aesthetic
musical stimulus, are common among individuals which share experiencesandtodomaingeneralperceptualpreferencesacross
the same background of musical culture. Subsequent stages different musical and auditory domains (Brattico et al., 2009a).
are characterized by controlled cross-modal neural processes Morespecificallytemporallyorspectrallycomplexityispreferred
underlying intermingled cognitive, affective, and decisional over less complexity (Tervaniemi et al., 2000; Brattico et al.,
processeswhichresultinaestheticemotions,aestheticjudgments 2001;Fujiokaetal.,2004)whereassensorydissonanceisshown
and conscious liking. Although often used as synonyms, the to be related to avoidance behavior of individuals as early as
authors differentiate “liking”, which is considered as a more 2 months old (Trainor et al., 2002). It has been proposed that
ongoing process, from “preferences.” Preference for a musical the listening context (everyday situation vs. aesthetic context
style or genre is regarded as stable over time and has been like a concert hall) might either induce solely basic emotions
shown to be determined for instance by social factors (peer (everyday situations) or special aesthetic emotions such as
groups, musical taste of parents and siblings, especially during aestheticenjoyment,awe,nostalgiaorbeingmoved(Bratticoand
adolescence;Roulston,2006)andanindividual’spersonality(e.g., Pearce,2013).
RentfrowandGosling,2003;North,2010).Researchonmusical The numerous factors and their netting of complex
genrepreferenceshavetotakeintoaccountdifficultiesindefining interactions, which are thought to influence the aesthetic
genres and the respective interindividual differences as well as experience of music, seem to account for a high variance of
the development of genres and of their sociocultural meaning subjectivemusicalpreferences(BratticoandJacobsen,2009).
over time, which might limit the validity of assessed genre
preferences. Other than for musical genres, preferences for a LanguageandLiterature
musicalinstrumentseemtobemorecontext-sensitive,atleastin Arecentstudyshedlightontheconceptualstructureunderlying
children,whosechoicesofmusicalinstrumentshavebeenshown the aesthetics of literature, using a verbal association task
to be susceptible to social schemata such as gender stereotypes (Knoop et al., 2016). The conceptual representations were also
(HarrisonandO’Neill,2000). investigated specifically for the aesthetics of literary forms
Researchexaminingthosefactorsthatareassumedtoaccount and genres (short stories, novels, poems, comedies, plays).
for a certain variability of musical liking has focused, e.g., on Comparison to findings for other conceptual structures in the
mood (for a review on general mood influences, see Konecˇni, domains of visual art and music revealed the greatest overlap
2010; on sad music and mood congruency, see Sachs et al., betweenliteratureandmusic.Particularly,asbeautywasnamed
2015),attentionandintentionality(foranoverview,seeBrattico as one of the most frequent terms for almost all domains
et al., 2013). As summarized by Brattico et al. (2013), a certain investigated, it seems to be an important category for non-
variabilityoftheaestheticexperienceofmusicisbroughtabout expertconceptualizationofaesthetics(Jacobsenetal.,2004;Istók
byinternal(e.g.,expertise,mood,attitudes)andexternalcontext et al., 2009; Augustin et al., 2012; Knoop et al., 2016). Though,
factors (environment, peers, task at hand). One explanation for Knoop et al. (2016) derived from their findings a different role
an influence of expertise on musical preferences (as shown, of the term beautiful when literature is denoted. More specific,
e.g., by Müller et al., 2010; Brattico et al., 2016) seems to be rather prosodic language qualities and feelings (or moods or
that expertise provides specific prototypes (Leder et al., 2004). atmospheres) described as romantic or poetic seem to underlie
Prototypicality has been proposed to be preferred (Martindale, anattributionofliterarytextsasbeautiful.Foroverallaesthetics
1988)andforthedomainofmusicithasbeenshowntopositively ofliterature,suspensefulwasanotherprevalentterm.Apartfrom
influence preferences (Smith and Melara, 1990; Brattico et al., that,themostfrequentlabelsvariedbetweenliterarysubgenres.
2009b). Inaddition,therewasapredominanceofevaluative(compared
Another interesting study showed that lyrics (as another tofewdescriptive)terms,aspreviouslyfoundfortheaestheticsof
external factor) have differential effects in aesthetic experience objects(Jacobsenetal.,2004).Knoopetal.(2016)suggestedthat
of happy and sad music, that is instrumental cues were shown within aesthetic conceptualization even the apparently purely
to be more important in happy music (with stronger positive descriptive labels may comprise an evaluative dimension. For
emotions for happy music without lyrics), both happy and sad instance, rhythmic was among their top listed music-related
musical pieces without lyrics were liked more than those with terms for poetry (besides harmonious and melodious) and in a
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previousstudyregularityinpoemswasassociatedwithpositive The findings by Kirsch et al. (2013) didn’t show increased
aestheticlikingjudgments(Obermeieretal.,2013).Therearealso enjoymentofdancemovementsintheviewandmusic,ormusic-
empirical accounts that indicate that even when not explicitly only conditions, suggesting that actual performance of dance
instructed to do so, spontaneous evaluation takes place during movements additionally contributes to the aesthetic experience
silentreading(Bohrnetal.,2013). ofdance.Cross(2015)describedtheinteractionofembodiment
It was discussed, that it was not possible to derive to which and aesthetic experience as resembling a U-shaped function.
extenttheassessedconceptualrepresentationsfortheaesthetics Thisperspectivemightpartiallyexplainthehighpreferencesfor
of literature (and subgenres) arose by reason of acquired familiarandlikelyphysicallyreproducibledancemovementsas
theoreticalconceptsorbytheparticipant’sownexperiencewith wellasforthosedancemovementswhicharespectacular,novel
thecontemplatedsubgenres(Knoopetal.,2016).Thus,although andnotphysicallyreproducible.
therearerareempiricalendeavorsyetwhichinvestigatedliterary In their studies Stevens et al. (2009) used personal digital
aesthetic preferences, their degree of stability and potential assistants (PDAs) to assess psychophysiological data of
influencing factors accounting for a certain context-dependent participants viewing a dance performance. In contrast to
variability, the presented information regarding the concepts emotional arousal, which has been higher during more
associated with aesthetic attribution in the domain of literature important dance parts (according to choreographer and
contribute to a deeper understanding of how aesthetic appeal experimenter ratings), no correlations with specific dance
dimensions are perceived and conceptualized across aesthetic parts have been found for emotional valence. A wide variety
domains. of individual’s interpretation of and experience with dance
performanceshasbeendiscussedasapotentialfactorthatledto
Dance thelatterresult.
Ithasbeensuggestedthatwatchingadancemovementinvolves
a simulation of this movement using the same neural network ArchitectureandEnvironmental/UrbanSpace
that is active while executing it (Calvo-Merino et al., 2005). It Considerationofaestheticaspectsispartofarchitecturalcreation
mightbereasonableorevenessentialtoincludeconsiderationsof itself, thus both are closely linked and, perhaps to a similar
morebasicmovementsinordertotackletheaestheticsofdance. extentlikeinthedomainofvisualarts,widelydiscussedwithin
Orgs et al. (2013) have broken down the aesthetic experience philosophical,architectural,andpsychologicalframes.Research
intotheinvestigationofaestheticeffectsofthreelevelsofhuman endeavorsinthefieldhavetriedtotacklegeneralprinciplesfor
movementrepresentations.Theirfindingsindicatethataesthetic an influence of physical features on the evaluation of aesthetic
preferences can be influenced by body postures, movement experience of buildings and their environments (Nasar, 1994).
continuation(“good”vs.“bad”)andchoreographicstructure.The As reviewed by Nasar (1994), three kinds of aesthetic variables
finding,thatinitialfamiliarizationwithasymmetricalsequences became apparent on that score, that is formal variables (factors
increased later liking of such asymmetrical sequences, also such as complexity, enclosure and order), symbolic variables
suggestastructuralmereexposureeffect. (e.g., style) and schema (e.g., typicality). The author’s analyses
Drawing upon the discovery of mirror neurons and the ofempiricalaccountsderiveadvicefordesignreviewersseeking
concept of embodied simulation, it has been argued that the different evaluative responses based on combinations of the
activationofuniversalmechanismsencompassingthesimulation above listed feature characteristics. Besides considerations of
of emotions, actions and bodily sensations, is a crucial part of aestheticallyrelevantaspectsofbuildingsthemselves,featuresof
theobserver’saestheticresponsetothosestimuli(Freedbergand abuilding’scontext,rangingfromcloselyoutlinedsurroundings
Gallese,2007).Accordingtothem,suchembodiedresonancein tovaststreetscapesencompassingseveralotherobjectsandtheir
response to an image can also arise if emotions, actions and featureswithinurbanspace(e.g.,parks,stations,railways,space
bodily sensations are merely implied by the physical traces of betweenobjects),arealsoregardedintermsoftheirinfluenceon
artworkproductionandevenintheabsenceofanovertemotional aestheticappreciationandshouldbeaddressedjustaswellwithin
component. Cross et al. (2011) suggested that the above experimental aesthetics. Selecting habitats and creating shelter
conceptualization could be further applied to more dynamic arearguablyveryoldhumanbehavior.
forms of art and they reasoned that embodied simulation may First, research findings fitting the more narrowly drafted
influence the aesthetic experience of dance performances. In architectural domain will be reviewed before addressing the
their fMRI study, they had participants judge how well they aestheticsofurbanspaceinthesecondpartofthisparagraph.
think they were physically able to reproduce a range of dance Giffordetal.(2000)hadarchitectsandlaypersonsaesthetically
movements(performedbyprofessionalballetdancers)andhow judgetheirglobalassessment(rangingona10-pointscalefrom
muchtheylikedthosemovements.Resultsindicatedapreference terrible to excellent architecture) of modern office buildings.
forwatchingmoredifficultmovements(associatedwithahigher Additionally, assessed pleasure and arousal ratings for those
activationofbilateraloccipitotemporalandrightinferiorparietal building photographs have been related to objective features of
portions of the action observation network (AON)). It seems the buildings. Global assessments of the buildings have been
that increased aesthetic ratings for dance movements that have foundtobebasedonelicitedpleasurebutnotonelicitedarousal
been mentally simulated or even physically practiced do not forbothgroups.Theauthorsfound,thataestheticevaluationsof
result from mere exposure or familiarity effects, as suggested expertsandlaypersonswerealmostunrelatedandtheyconcluded
by findings of later training studies (Kirsch et al., 2013, 2015). that this might be due to the fact, that both groups based their
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emotionalassessmentsondifferentgroupsofobjectivefeaturesof (via effecting processing fluency) have been discussed as well
thebuilding’sexterior.Forexpertparticipantspleasureregarding by Mastandrea et al. (2011). Using the IAT, they observed
an office building has been related to objective features such shorterreactiontimeswhennon-expertparticipantswereasked
as more metal cladding, more railing, and fewer arches. Those toassociatepositivewordswithclassicalarchitecture(compared
physical features seemed to signify more complex ideas for to longer reaction times when associating with contemporary
architects,suchasprototypicalityandrichnessofmaterial.Ina architecture). This response pattern corresponded with the one
differentway,layperson’spleasureratingswerenotderivedfrom assessed for explicit evaluations for both architectural styles.
even one of the assessed objective building features. This has Note that this correlation has not been found for the other
beenexplainedinthecontextoflayperson’sgreaterwithin-group stimulustype,i.e.,figurativeandabstractartworks.Theauthors
heterogeneity of pleasure ratings, the latter being more subject concludedthat,ontheindividuallevel,participantsmighthave
to various influences in laypersons in contrast to expert ratings shown the same evaluative trend in both implicit and explicit
of architecture. However, an additional interesting result has aestheticevaluationtasksbecausevarietyofstimuliwithineach
been,thatnoneofthethreeassessedcontextualvariables(visible architectural category is relatively low (which is not the case
amount of landscaping and roads, human presence/activity regardingartcategories).
evidence) had a significant influence on global assessments, One physical feature which has always been regarded
pleasure, and arousal ratings, which indicated little impact of as important for architectural planning and designing (Le
non-buildingcontext. Corbusier, 1927) and which has been shown to influence
Another study by Markovic´ and Alfirevic´ (2015) compared emotionalreactions(e.g.,Hevner,1935)andaestheticpreferences
artist’s and non-artist’s aesthetic judgments of architectural (e.g., Leder and Carbon, 2005; Bar and Neta, 2006) is contour,
expressiveness of photographed buildings. Two clusters of especiallyitsamountofcurvature.InoneofthefirstfMRIstudies
architectural objects have been obtained within analyses. on the influence of physical features of the built environment
A choleric expressiveness cluster including objects rated high on brain activation, Vartanian et al. (2013) demonstrated that
on the factors aggressiveness and color and low on the the effect of contour on beauty judgments can be extended
factor regularity, and the phlegmatic expressiveness cluster to architecture. In their study non-expert participants showed
encompassing architectural examples with low ratings on beautypreferencesforcurvilinearoverrectilinearspacesandon
Aggressiveness and Color, and high ratings on Regularity. behavioral level this effect has been shown to be likely driven
The authors associated objects of the former choleric cluster by pleasantness. Moreover, contemplating beauty of curvilinear
with expressionistic and the latter phlegmatic cluster objects spaces was associated exclusively with increased activity of
with minimalist architectural character. Interestingly, further the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) over beauty judgments
analysessuggestedthatalthoughthetwogroupsofarchitectural of rectilinear spaces. It has been demonstrated that the ACC
objectsdifferedregardingtheirallocatedexpressiveness,aesthetic contributes to reward and emotional processing (Kringelbach
pleasure has been rated virtually equal for both across and Rolls, 2004; Liu et al., 2011). Taking together behavioral
participants.Expertiserelateddifferencesinaestheticpreferences andneuralresults,Vartanianetal.(2013)concludethataesthetic
(experts rated objects included in the phlegmatic cluster as preferencesforcurvilinearcontourisunderpinnedbyrewardand
more aesthetic, whereas non-experts judged choleric cluster emotion,onceagainpointingtotheroleofemotioninaesthetic
objects as more aesthetic) have been interpreted in terms experience.
of processing fluency and Berlyne’s (1971) optimal level of In this 2013 study, stimuli were controlled for the variables
arousal. Markovic´ and Alfirevic´ referred to architects (meaning heightandopenness/enclosurebecauseofsomeempiricalresults
experts,asagainstnon-experts)asbeingmoreresponsivetonew hinting at their influence on cognition and emotion when
experiences and as preferring abstract and less comprehensible contemplating architecture (Franz et al., 2005; Meyers-Levy
content (compared to non-experts’ preferences of clearer and and Zhu, 2007). In a later study, the authors investigated
pleasant content; empirical accounts by Rawlings, 2000, 2003). the effects of those variables on aesthetic judgments, again by
Given that, they argued that the phlegmatic cluster might assessing behavioral and fMRI-data (Vartanian et al., 2015).
have encompassed objects that have been experienced as more Their results showed that higher ceilings and open rooms
interestingandthusmorepleasantforexperts,whereasthesame were more likely to be judged as more beautiful. Increased
objects seemed to have been incomprehensible (less fluently activity in frontal and parietal structures of the dorsal stream
processable),boringandthuslesspleasantfornon-experts.The associated with visuospatial exploration and attention have
latter experienced the presented architectural objects as more been demonstrated for higher ceilings. Moreover, the authors
aggressive (compared to experts), which has been interpreted suggestedthatinvolvementofthetemporallobeswhenjudging
as representing higher negative arousal resulting from a lack thebeautyofopenroomsmightbelinkedtotheircontribution
of competence and safety feeling. Linking those considerations tothetemporaldynamicsofvisualmotionrepresentation.
with the results found by Gifford et al. (2000), it is interesting, Havingfocusedontheaestheticsofbuildingsandtheirinterior
that the latter found no relation between arousal ratings sofar,itremainstoaddresstheinfluenceofthecontextinwhich
and general assessments of architectural quality and pleasure thosebuildingsarebeheld.Withregardtotheaestheticsofurban
experience. landscapes, it has been shown that urban scenes that constitute
Familiaritywith,prototypicalityandsimplicityofarchitectural places with panoramic views, settings with historical/cultural
objects as influencing factors on automatic aesthetic evaluation significance and recreational places were considered as most
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attractive, whereas industrial and housing areas were rated as when social information was not decodable or inconsistent.
mostunattractive(GalindoandHidalgo,2005).However,those Thus, failure of the social heuristic resulted in an increase
categoricalresultswerederivedfromlistingsofthemostandleast of preference judgment latencies and a decrease of evaluation
attractive places of one city (Málaga, Spain). The participants, certainty. Even so, taking into account motivational factors,
who were residents who indicated a high sense of belonging an automatic application of social heuristic processing can be
for the city, also evaluated the restorative properties and the overcome when accuracy or directional goals are present. To
environmentalcharacteristicsoftheirlistedplaces.Theauthors explaineverydayaestheticexperiencesandpreferences,Ritterfeld
basedtheformationoftheabovelistedurbanaestheticcategories (2002) proposed an integrative model comprising both target
on two dimensions, that is the function and historical value of properties and motivational aspects as determining factors.
a scene, which they consider as important influencing factors Another study that also used chairs (classic vs. modern) as
regarding urban scene preferences. Findings by Van den Berg targetdesignobjects,investigatedwhetherexpertiseinindustrial
etal.(2003)andGalindoandHidalgo(2005)furthersupportthe designwouldinfluencepreferencesforthedifferentstylesonan
ideathattherestorativecapacityofasceneseemstobeoneofthe implicit and explicit level (Mastandrea and Maricchiolo, 2014).
criteriaunderlyingenvironmentalaestheticpreferences(Purcell The results indicated an automatic influence of expertise on
etal.,2001). aesthetic evaluation of those objects, with laypeople showing
Even more interesting than assessing preferences for rather no specific preference orientation compared to experts who
broad urban aesthetic scenes is the question, to which preferredmodernoverclassicchairs.
visual, spatial properties those aesthetic preferences can be
attributed. Weber et al. (2008) were narrowing down this
issue by assessing the relationship between aesthetic judgments CONCLUSION
and selected visuospatial properties of complex streetscapes
sampled from an existing mid-sized German town. Vegetation, We have examined aspects of variability and stability regarding
stylistic uniformity, homogeneity of scale, and symmetry the aesthetic experience and aesthetic preferences for different
were observed as important factors. Corresponding to Gestalt domainsofaestheticappreciation.Withinthisscope,wewanted
psychology’s figure formation characteristics (later adapted to rivet on the role of sensitive periods for the development of
for 3D architectural spaces by Weber, 1995) the results aesthetictaste,aswellasontheimportanceofcognitiveschemata
of participants’ beauty ratings suggested visual regularity as and specifically scripts for the aesthetic experience in various
primary factor in beauty judgment. Precisely, factors such aestheticdomains.
as symmetry and uniformity of lateral spatial boundaries of Bearing in mind that all aesthetic experience is situated and
the streetscapes depicted in the photographs were influencing processed by individuals whose ontological development was
aesthetic judgments especially if those boundaries were formed influenced by nature and nurture (e.g., Jacobsen, 2006, 2010a),
byvegetationorbybuildingtypesfeaturingstylisticuniformity. the diverse empirical pattern obtained in the present analysis
Surprisingly, the study revealed no significant differences may not be surprising. People differ and aesthetic domains do
betweenaestheticjudgmentsofexpertsandlaymen. as well. Although some preferred features appear to be deeply
rootedinthevisualmodality,symmetryorgreenvegetation,the
Design visual aesthetic domains appear to show the highest variability.
Nowadays a lot of entities can be “designed” in some way. In While mixed accounts of variability and stability were found
this section, we will shortly look at the few research findings for the domains of music, language, and architecture. It is
addressing the more traditional fields of design. Empirical importanttonote,however,thatthemosaicofavailableresearch
accounts indicate that, regarding the aesthetic appreciation of ispatchy.Whilenotionsonsensitiveperiodsinthedevelopment
objects,usabilityofthoseobjectsorproductsispositivelyaffected ofmusicaltasteexist,comparableresearchforvisualdomainsof
by visual aesthetics, but that this relation is mediated by an aestheticappreciationisscarce.Inthesamevein,comparisonsof
overall evaluation of “goodness” of the respective object (for individualdifferencesofaestheticexperienceacrossdomainsare
a review, see e.g., Hassenzahl and Monk, 2010). Individual currentlyhardlypossible.
differences of aesthetic preferences for wall color of a domestic Wesuggestthatwithinontogenesisofthehumanperceptual
interior, which was furnished in one of three styles, was found and conceptual system, crucial foundations for the capacity of
by Whitfield (1984). An examination of the preferences for aesthetic evaluation are laid. To date, research on sensitive (or
pieces of furniture, which should be also categorized according even critical) periods regarding, for instance, the development
to those three styles, showed once more, that prototypical or of basic characteristics of human sensory processing as well as
familiarobjectswerepreferred(WhitfieldandSlatter,1979).An of higher-order processes relevant for aesthetic appreciation, is
influence of attitudes on interior design preferences has been still somewhat limited. In order to link such relevant sensitive
demonstratedbyRitterfeld(2002).However,thiseffecthasbeen periodstoperiodswhichmaybecrucialforthedevelopmentof
solely shown to arise from social heuristic processing when aesthetictaste,furtherresearchisrequired.Therefore,itwillbe
the social information of the object (a piece of furniture) was important to isolate even more those perceptual and cognitive
decodable or consistent. This way of processing is thought to processes (and relevant interactions) which play a crucial role
be more automatic and less controlled. In contrast, systematic for the formation of aesthetic evaluations. We also believe that
analysisoftheobject’sstructural,non-socialpropertiesappeared callingsomeattentiontothesignificanceofcognitiveschemata
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