BIP (BraIn Plasticity and Behavior Changes) Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Turin.
Department of Economics, Harvard University.
J Exp Psychol Gen. 2022 Jun;151(6):1433-1445. doi: 10.1037/xge0001149. Epub 2021 Nov 18.
Neurocomputational models of cognition have framed aesthetic appreciation within the domain of knowledge acquisition and learning, suggesting that aesthetic appreciation might be considered as a hedonic feedback on successful perceptual learning dynamics. Such hypothesis, however, has never been empirically demonstrated yet. In order to investigate the relationship between aesthetic appreciation and learning, we measured the EEG mismatch negativity (MMN) response to more or less appreciated musical intervals, which is considered as a reliable index of perceptual learning. To this end, we measured the MMN to frequency (Hz) standard and frequency deviant musical intervals (Experiment 1) while participants were asked to judge their beauty. For each single stimulus, we also computed an information-theoretic index of perceptual learning (Bayesian surprise). We found that more appreciated musical intervals were associated with a larger MMN responses, which, in turn, correlated with trial-by-trial fluctuations in Bayesian surprise (Experiment 1). Coherently with previous results, Bayesian surprise was also found to correlate with slower RTs in a detection task of the same stimuli, evidencing that motor behavior is inhibited in presence of surprising sensory states triggering perceptual learning (Experiment 2). Our results provide empirical evidence of the existence of a positive correlation between aesthetic appreciation and EEG indexes of perceptual learning. We argue that the sense of beauty might have evolved to signal the nervous system new sensory knowledge acquisition and motivate the individual to search for informationally profitable stimuli. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
认知神经计算模型将审美欣赏置于知识获取和学习的领域内，表明审美欣赏可以被视为对成功感知学习动态的享乐性反馈。然而，这种假设尚未得到实证证明。为了研究审美欣赏和学习之间的关系，我们测量了对更受欣赏和不太受欣赏的音乐音程的 EEG 失匹配负波（MMN）反应，这被认为是感知学习的可靠指标。为此，我们测量了对频率（Hz）标准和频率偏差音乐音程的 MMN（实验 1），同时要求参与者判断它们的美。对于每个单独的刺激，我们还计算了感知学习的信息论指数（贝叶斯惊喜）。我们发现，更受欣赏的音乐音程与更大的 MMN 反应相关，而 MMN 反应又与贝叶斯惊喜的逐次波动相关（实验 1）。与之前的结果一致，贝叶斯惊喜也与相同刺激的检测任务中的较慢 RT 相关，表明在引发感知学习的令人惊讶的感官状态下，运动行为受到抑制（实验 2）。我们的结果提供了审美欣赏与 EEG 感知学习指标之间存在正相关的经验证据。我们认为，美感可能是为了向神经系统发出新的感官知识获取的信号，并激励个体寻找信息有利的刺激而进化而来的。（PsycInfo 数据库记录（c）2022 APA，保留所有权利）。
