Hedonic Preferences to Audio and Visual Stimulation in Seniors with Cognitive Impairments

Background: Hedonic (or aesthetic) preferences to repeated sensory stimulation can remain stable over time (Island of Stability Effect, ISE) or vary with prior exposures (Mere Exposure Effect, MEE). Objective: Here we compared the liking ratings of seniors with cognitive impairments (mostly mild-to-moderate dementia, DPs) and neurotypical senior controls (CNs) to audio and visual stimuli and examined whether those ratings conformed to the ISE or the MEE predictions. Method: Participants (n = 212) rated sets of stimuli repeated three times at weekly intervals: images of Picasso’s paintings, PANTONE color cards, and avant-garde music clips. Results: The aggregated liking ratings of DPs and CNs were stable over time, in line with the ISE model. However, latent growth modeling indicated that those stable responses might have masked differences at the individual level, since seniors in both cohorts exhibited clusters of different responses over the time evaluated, supporting the predictions of the MEE. Notably, there was a dampening of hedonic experiences in DPs comparatively to CNs. Conclusion: The presence of hedonic responses (and individual variations) in DPs is relevant not only to their wellbeing and therapy interventions involving audio and visual stimulation, but also to the design of spaces that offset the downturn in hedonic experiences affecting seniors with cognitive impairments.

Do cognitive biases condition environmental concern? The case of Italy and Spain

This paper tackles whether it is possible to identify cognitive biases that foster environmental concern among public opinion. In particular, the study focuses on the mere exposure effect. Regression analysis was conducted on data concerning Spain and Italy to test the hypotheses that (1) exposing individuals to proenvironmental stimuli in the form of physical natural environments or recycling policies and (2) belonging to younger generations today is associated with a greater extent of environmental concern. The results confirmed both the hypotheses, suggesting environmental policies that affect individuals in their everyday lives, besides being beneficial for the environment, make the public opinion more conscious about the issue

Evaluative conditioning of responses to unfamiliar chords by exposure to valenced images

The extent to which emotional responses to musical elements are influenced by their past associations with specific emotional responses is largely unknown. To assess this possibility, the present study tested whether pairing positive, negative, or neutral chords from an unfamiliar musical system (a microtonal Bohlen–Pierce tuning) with positively or negatively valenced pictures would have an effect on subsequent liking ratings. The microtonal chords used in this experiment had been previously rated, independent of any other affective input, in an earlier experiment; this allows us to class each chord as intrinsically positive, negative, or neutral. It was found that exposure with an image increases liking ratings independent of the valence of the images, compared with no exposure which supports a mere exposure effect; but, interestingly, we did not find substantial evidence for evaluative conditioning. Results are discussed in light of theoretical accounts of evaluative conditioning and musical implications.

Multiple inter-university online lesson programs in conflict areas-evaluation for improvement

Peacebuilding and conflict prevention studies play a crucial role in promoting peace on earth. Such studies must be evaluated in order to ensure they are as effective as possible. At the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (TUFS), Japan, Associate Professor Mitsuru Ikeda, Professor Toru Miyagi and Dr Aya Fukuda are part of a team that have developed an educational programme on peacebuilding and conflict prevention that connects several universities in Asia via an online conference system. The Global Campus Program (GCP) is novel for many reasons, particularly because of its psychological angle. Ikeda is a psychologist who is a proponent of the importance of the involvement of psychology in conflict prevention education. This is because armed conflicts are caused by the human mind and psychology is also closely linked to programme evaluation research. Through the GCP, Ikeda, Miyagi and Fukuda are performing a programme evaluation of peacebuilding and conflict prevention education. This involves inviting students from different parts of the world, including conflict-affected countries and enhancing students' learning through interaction and dialogue. The researchers use two major psychological theoretical models in their work: mere exposure effect and the idea that co-action based on common goals deepens mutual understanding.

Mere Exposure Effect Is Sometimes Insensitive to Mood Inductions

The mere exposure effect (MEE) is defined as repeated exposures to a stimulus enhancing affective evaluations of that stimulus ( Zajonc, 1968 ). The three prominent explanations of the MEE are Zajonc's “neophobia” account, the uncertainty reduction account, and the perceptual fluency approach. Zajonc's “neophobia” account posits that people have an inherent low level of fear of novel objects and exposure to the objects partially extinguishes this novelty-based fear. The uncertainty reduction account asserts that people find uncertainty aversive and habituation reduces uncertainty. The fluency account postulates that people “like” representations of things with which they are fluent. In four experiments, we induced positive and negative moods before or after target exposures. In addition to assessing the MEE in each condition, we assessed the mood induction. The central hypothesis assessed in this series was that there would be an interaction between mood and the MEE. Although the three accounts of the MEE generated divergent predictions, none of the accounts were well supported by the data. Tests for mood induction demonstrated the efficacy of the induction procedures and the MEE was consistently observed, but Bayesian analysis indicated that at least in the present preparation mood had no effect on the MEE.

When twice is better than once: increased liking of repeated items influences memory in younger and older adults

Background Numerous studies have reported that the repeated presentation of a stimulus leads to an increase in positive affect towards the stimulus itself (the so-called mere exposure effect). Here, we evaluate whether changes in liking due to repetition may have a differential impact on subsequent memories in younger and older adults. Method In two experiments, younger and older adults were asked to rate a series of nonwords (Experiment 1) or unfamiliar neutral faces (Experiment 2) in terms of how much they like them and then presented with a surprise yes–no recognition memory task. At study, items were repeated either consecutively (massed presentation) or with a lag of 6 intervening items (spaced presentation). Results In both experiments, participants rated spaced repeated items more positively than massed items, i.e. they liked them most. Moreover, older adults remembered spaced stimuli that they liked most better than younger adults. Conclusions The findings are discussed in accordance with the mechanisms underlying positivity effects in memory and the effect of repetition on memory encoding.