Researchers at Cambridge University have found that engaging with artistic beauty can lead to enhanced cognitive processing and abstract thinking. The study, conducted by a team of psychologists using the University's Kettle’s Yard modern art gallery as a "living laboratory," compared the effects of merely observing art to actively assessing its beauty.
Participants in the study who focused on evaluating the beauty of ceramic objects reported experiencing elevated psychological states, enabling them to think beyond immediate concerns. This was contrasted with participants who were tasked only with matching line drawings to the artwork. These findings are published in the journal Empirical Studies of the Arts.
Professor Simone Schnall, senior author of the study and Professor of Experimental Social Psychology at Cambridge, stated: “Many philosophers throughout history have suggested that engaging with aesthetic beauty invokes a special kind of psychological state.” She added, “Our research indicates that engaging with the beauty of art can enhance abstract thinking and promote a different mindset to our everyday patterns of thought, shifting us into a more expansive state of mind.”
The experiment divided participants into two groups: one group rated the beauty of each ceramic object they viewed, while another group matched line drawings to artworks. Participants' information processing was then tested for practical or abstract tendencies. Dr Elzė Sigutė Mikalonytė, lead author and researcher at Cambridge's Department of Psychology, explained: “These tests are designed to gauge whether a person is thinking in an immediate, procedural way...or is attuned to the deeper meaning and bigger picture.”
Results showed that those in the 'beauty' group scored almost 14% higher on average in abstract thinking than those who simply observed. Participants with an artistic hobby scored over 25% higher when engaged in assessing beauty.
While participants reported increased transformative feelings such as being moved or inspired by about 23%, there was no significant increase in overall happiness compared to those who did not focus on beauty. Mikalonytė noted: “Our findings offer empirical support for a long-standing philosophical idea that beauty appreciation can help people detach from their immediate practical concerns and adopt a broader perspective.”
The research forms part of a larger project led by Schnall exploring how aesthetic experiences affect cognition. Supported by Templeton Religion Trust, this project seeks to determine if art contributes positively to human flourishing.
Schnall remarked on contemporary challenges: “People today are often tethered to their devices...It’s becoming much rarer to zone out and just let the mind wander.” She suggested that admiring art might be key in reviving lost abstract cognitive processes amid increasing screen time.