Transformed by Beauty: Aesthetic Appreciation Increases Abstract Thinking and Self-Transcendent Emotions in an Art Museum

IF 1.5 4区心理学 0 HUMANITIES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY

Empirical Studies of the Arts Pub Date : 2025-05-26 DOI:10.1177/02762374251337699

Elzė Sigutė Mikalonytė, Jasmina Stevanov, Ryan P. Doran, Katherine A. Symons, Simone Schnall

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Abstract

According to prominent philosophical views, appreciating beauty involves psychological distancing, where one does not consider the beautiful object in light of practical interests, and beauty leads to transformative and self-transcendent affective experiences. In this study (N = 187), conducted in the naturalistic environment of a museum, we explored these ideas. Half the participants were instructed to rate the beauty of pottery objects created by a renowned artist, while the other half engaged in a control task that did not involve evaluating beauty. Based on Construal Level Theory, we used the Behavior Identification Form to explore whether aesthetic experiences encourage abstract thinking, and in turn, psychological distance. We also predicted that beauty appreciation would lead to greater transformative and self-transcendent emotions. Indeed, appreciating the beauty of artworks led participants to think in a more abstract way, especially those who practice an art hobby themselves, as well as to transformative, and self-transcendent emotions.

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被美的转化：艺术博物馆的审美提升抽象思维和自我超越的情感

根据著名的哲学观点，欣赏美涉及心理距离，在这种情况下，人们不会根据实际利益来考虑美丽的对象，而美会导致变革和自我超越的情感体验。在本研究（N = 187）中，我们在博物馆的自然环境中进行了研究，探讨了这些想法。一半的参与者被要求评价一位著名艺术家创作的陶器的美，而另一半则参与了一项不涉及评价美的控制任务。基于解释水平理论，我们使用行为识别表来探讨审美体验是否会促进抽象思维，进而促进心理距离。我们还预测，审美会带来更大的变革和自我超越的情感。事实上，欣赏艺术品的美使参与者以更抽象的方式思考，特别是那些自己从事艺术爱好的人，以及变革和自我超越的情感。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Empirical Studies of the Arts Multiple-

CiteScore

2.60

自引率

0.00%

发文量

期刊介绍： Empirical Studies of the Arts (ART) aims to be an interdisciplinary forum for theoretical and empirical studies of aesthetics, creativity, and all of the arts. It spans anthropological, psychological, neuroscientific, semiotic, and sociological studies of the creation, perception, and appreciation of literary, musical, visual and other art forms. Whether you are an active researcher or an interested bystander, Empirical Studies of the Arts keeps you up to date on the latest trends in scientific studies of the arts.