Visits to figurative art museums may lower blood pressure and stress

Background: The research aimed to assess, through physiological measurements such as blood pressure and heart rate, whether exposure to art museums and to different art styles (figurative vs. modern art) was able to enhance visitors’ well-being in terms of relaxing and stress reduction. Method: Participants (n = 77) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions, on the basis of the typology of the art style they were exposed to in the museum visit: (1) figurative art, (2) modern art and (3) museum office (as a control condition). Blood pressure and heart rate were measured before and after the visits. Results: Diastolic values of the participants were quite stable, as expected in people who do not suffer hypertension; we therefore considered only variations in systolic blood pressure. The majority of the participants exposed to figurative art significantly decreased systolic blood pressure compared to those exposed to modern art and museum office. No differences were found in the heart rate before and after the visit for the three groups. Conclusion: Findings suggest that museum visits can have health benefits, and figurative art may decrease systolic blood pressur

A comparison between preference judgments of curvature and sharpness in architectural façades

Can curvature drive preference, perceived familiarity, complexity, stability and approachability for architectural façades? In this study, we generated four versions of the same reference building, varying only the amount of curvature introduced in the façade. Participants’ judgments were measured using three experimental methodologies. Multidimensional scaling on forced choices showed that the curved façade was the most preferred. Multidimensional unfolding on ranking task showed that the majority of participants expressed higher preferences for the curved façade compared to the sharp-angled and rectilinear ones. Ratings on different psychological variables provided supporting evidence for curvature significantly influencing liking and approachability judgments. Results from image analyses –using a dynamical model of the visual cortex and a model that characterizes discomfort in terms of adherence to the statistics of natural images – matched behavioural data. We discuss the implications of the findings on our understanding of human preferences, which are intrinsically dynamic and influenced by context and experience.PostprintPeer reviewe

Art and Psychological Well-Being: Linking the Brain to the Aesthetic Emotion

Empirical studies suggest that art improves health and well-being among individuals. However, how aesthetic appreciation affects our cognitive and emotional states to promote physical and psychological well-being is still unclear. In this review, we consider the idea that the positive emotional output elicited from the aesthetic experience affects mood, and indirectly promotes health and well-being. First, we examine evidence that arts promoting well-being involve art museums, healthcare settings, and education. Second, we review some neuroimaging studies addressing aesthetic experience and emotional processing. In particular, we leveraged advances in neuroaesthetics to explore different hypotheses about the determinants of aesthetic pleasure during art reception, in the attempt to clarify how experiencing art promotes well-being. Finally, we propose research on aesthetic experience and psychophysiological measures of stress, with the goal of promoting a focused use of art as a tool for improving well-being and health

Integrated calcareous plankton biostratigraphy of selected Miocene successions in the Northern Calabria (Italy)

An integrated calcareous plankton biostratigraphic approach on six sections cropping out in Northern Calabria allowed to define a revised chronostratigraphic framework for Tortonian-Messinian deposits. Four sections have been investigated in the Amantea Basin (Timpone Napoli, Vallone Salina, Case Vespano, and Cozzo Salice) and two in the Rossano Basin (Vallone Casino and Cozzo Sant'Isidoro). Biostratigraphic analyses have been based on quantitative counting of planktonic foraminifers and semiquantitative counting of nannofossils. The Timpone Napoli and Vallone Salina sections are Late Tortonian in age and referable to the Globorotalia suterae Zone. In terms of nannofossils zonal scheme these sections fall within the Coccolithus pelagicus - Amaurolithus primus Zones. The Case Vespano and Cozzo Salice sections can be ascribed to the Messinian. The Case Vespano section is wholly characterized by the common occurrence of Globorotalia miotumida group. The co-occurrence of Amarolithus delicatus, A. cf. amplificus,. and Reticulofenestra rotaria confirms a Messinian age. The lower part of the Cozzo Salice section is rich of Gt. conomiozea, while its middle and the upper part is barren in planktonic foraminifers. In the Vallone Casino and Cozzo Sant'Isidoro sections the Tortonian-Messinian boundary corresponds to the first occurrence (FO) of Gt. miotumida group (sensu Hilgen et al., 2000), just above the first occurrence of A. delicatus. Biostratigraphic data allowed to correlate the Messinian silty layers of Amantea Basin with the coeval diatomitic beds of Rossano Basin indicating that the two areas, during the Messinian, had different paleogeographic and palaeoecological evolution

Psychophysiological and behavioral responses to descriptive labels in modern art museums

Educational tools in art exhibitions seem crucial to improve the cultural and aesthetic experience, particularly of non-expert visitors, thus becoming a strategic goal for museums. However, there has not been much research regarding the impact of labels on the quality of visitors’ aesthetic experience. Therefore, here we compared the impact on the cognitive and emotional experience of naïve visitors between essential and descriptive labels, through multiple objective and subjective measurements, focusing on the controversial modern art museum context. We found that, after detailed descriptions, observers spend more time inspecting artworks, their eyes wander more looking for the described elements, their skin conductance and pupil size increase, and overall, they find the content less complex and more arousing. Our findings show that people do receive important benefits from reading detailed information about artworks. This suggests that elaborating effective labels should be a primary goal for museums interested in attracting a non-expert public

Psychological Predictors of Energy Saving Behavior: A Meta-Analytic Approach

Understanding how psychological processes drive human energy choices is an urgent, and yet relatively under-investigated, need for contemporary society. A knowledge gap still persists on the links between psychological factors identified in earlier studies and people’s behaviors in the energy domain. This research applies a meta-analytical procedure to assess the strength of the associations between five different classes of individual variables (i.e.,: attitudes, intentions, values, awareness, and emotions) and energy-saving behavioral intentions and behaviors (self-reported and actual). Based on a systematic review of studies published between 2007 and 2017, we estimate the average effect size of predictor-criterion relations, and we assess relevant moderators and publication bias, drawing on data obtained from 102 independent samples reported in 67 published studies (N = 59.948). Results from a series of five single meta-analyses reveal a pattern of significant positive associations between the selected psychological determinants and energy-saving indicators: associations between individual-level predictors and energy-saving outcomes are positive and moderate in size, ranging from large effects for emotions to small-moderate effects for pro-environmental values. Interestingly, moderation analysis reveals, among other things, that attitude-behavior links are not statistically significant when actual behavior is considered as an outcome. Implications for policy interventions are discussed

Lightning-Induced Voltages on Overhead Distribution Lines: Theoretical and Experimental Investigation of Related Problems and their Impact on Power Quality

Recent power quality studies have been focused on the source-identification of voltage disturbances at distribution network busses. This paper describes a method aimed at correlating indirect-lightning events with power systems relay operations, associated with voltage dips. The proposed method, based on the coordinated use of the Italian lightning location system CESI-SIRF, the Italian monitoring system of protection manoeuvres CESI-SAM, and the availability of an advanced simulation tool for the accurate simulation of lightning-induced voltages on complex power networks, namely the LIOVEMTP code, is applied to the real case of an Italian distribution system. The LIOV-EMTP code is also employed along with a statistical procedure based on the Monte Carlo method to carry out a statistical analysis aimed at assessing the lightning performance of a typical Italian distribution line

THE PRATI DI STUORES/STUORES WIESEN SECTION (DOLOMITES, ITALY): A CANDIDATE GLOBAL STRATOTYPE SECTION AND POINT FOR THE BASE OF THE CARNIAN STAGE

The Prati di Stuores/Stuores Wiesen section (Dolomites, Italy) is proposed as a candidate Global Stratotype Section and Point for the base of the Carnian Stage. In addition to being a famous, richly fossiliferous locality, it includes the type-section of the Cordevolian substage. The section is located near Pralongià, along the southern slope of the crest separating the Badia/Abtei and Cordevole valleys. Below the levels with Trachyceras aon, the section contains a rich ammonoid fauna that chacterizes the lower part of the Regoledanus Subzone and subsequently records the first appearances of the mid-high latitude genus Daxatina (Daxatina sp., D. cf. canadensis) and of traditional Trachyceras with species different from T. aon. Moreover, the Daxatina cf. canadensis Subzone is recognised above the Regoledanus Subzone. Very rare conodonts of the Budurovignatus group and species of Gladigondolella from the diebeli Assemblage Zone occur. Gondolella polygnatyformis, already known from the Aon Subzone, is absent. Palynomorphs, foraminifers, gastropods, bivalves, brachiopods, microcrinoids and holothurian sclerites were studied. Variations in frequency and taxonomic diversity of these faunas suggest anaerobic-disaerobic bottom conditions for the lower-middle part of the section (0-105 m), followed by a more stable oxygen content in the upper portion. Magnetostratigraphy showed four intervals with normal polarity and three intervals with reversed polarity. The Daxatina cf. canadensis Subzone falls close to the normal polarity interval S2n. The present study proposes the FAD of the cosmopolitan genus Daxatina as a marker of the base of the Carnian Stage, placing it at a lower stratigraphic level than previously indicated in the Stuores area. The Prati di Stuores section is proposed as GSSP of the Ladinian-Carnian boundary.&nbsp

La prospettiva della psicologia delle arti: approcci teorici e sperimentali

Historically, psychology has outlined three different approaches to the study of the arts, and in the last twenty years, a quarter has been added. These four approaches refer to: 1. The artist and his personality with the contribution of Sigmund Freud and the psychoanalysis of the art; 2. The artwork from a perceptual point of view with the role of Rudolf Arnheim and the psychology of the Gestalt; 3; The experimental aesthetics and the measurement of preference with Gustav Fechner and Daniel Berlyne; 4. The neuroaesthetics and the relationship between the aesthetic perception and the brain, starting from Semir Zeki. Furthermore, three empirical studies referring to the aesthetic experience in museum contexts are reported. The first show that emotional aspects related to the visit were relevant for modern art museum visitors, while a more cognitive approach based on learning characterized ancient art museum visitors. The second study concerned personality traits: people who attend modern art museums seem to be higher in the sensation seeking personality trait compared to people who visit ancient art museums. In addition, the emotions aroused by visitors to the museum of modern art reached higher scores compared to visitors of the museum of ancient art. The last study showed, through physiological measurements such as blood pressure and heart rate, that exposure to art museum and precisely of figurative art was able to enhance visitors’ well-being in terms of the decreasing of blood pressure. The final aim is to show that psychology, from both a theoretical and an experimental perspective, can give a significant contribution to the increasingly understanding of the arts