Experiments with art and mood

Roger Greenwald's Psychology of Art website is an experiment that seems more for the sake of the participant than the experimenter. Greenwald explains the purpose of his website and research: "If one practices using their creative mind, mental imaging, a positive mood can be chosen by recalling a pleasant image or memory. Tough day at work, bad mood - modify your state of mind by choosing a pleasant image."

The Psychology of Art consists of a series of bright, colorful images - some with recognizable forms and some abstract - that invite you to recall pleasant memories. The text fields for your responses ("What do you see?", "Does it trigger a memory or familiar thought?") are an exercise, helping you to more fully process the art and obtain a positive state of mind.

Of course, Greenwald alludes to using the responses in a scientific article. And that may happen, although I don't know of too many psychological studies where they give away the purpose of the study beforehand. As a way to get yourself into a more positive mode of thinking, however, my anecdotal evidence supports it.

Visit the Psychology of Art here.