On the electrophysiology of aesthetic processing

Abstract

One important method that can be applied for gaining an understanding of the underpinning of aesthetics in the brain is that of electrophysiology. Cognitive electrophysiology, in particular, allows the identification of components in a mental processing architecture. The present chapter reviews findings in the neurocognitive psychology of aesthetics, or neuroaesthetics, that have been obtained with the method of event-related brain potentials, as derived from the human electroencephalogram. The cognitive-perceptual bases as well as affective substages of aesthetic processing have been investigated and those are described here. The event-related potential method allows for the identification of mental processing modes in cognitive and aesthetic processing. It also provides an assessment of the mental chronometry of cognitive and affective stages in aesthetic appreciation. As the work described here shows, distinct processes in the brain are engaged in aesthetic judgments.

Keywords: EEG and aesthetics; ERP and aesthetics; aesthetic processing; event-related brain potentials; neuroaesthetics; neurocognitive psychology of aesthetics.