International Association for Empirical Aesthetics

Frontiers | Does music support executive functions and affective responses during acute exercise? A systematic review and meta-analysis IntroductionMaintaining a steady running pace despite physical or mental fatigue often engages executive functions. These functions may contribute to sustain...

New systematic review/meta-analysis: Music is widely used in exercise, yet its cognitive & affective effects remain unclear. Results show no consistent overall effects, but meta-regression indicates that higher exercise intensity predicts smaller effects of music. Read more: doi.org/10.3389/fpsy...

Congrats Giaco!

Congratulations! @giacomobignardi.bsky.social receives the Frank X. Barron Award for his superior contributions to the psychology of aesthetics, creativity, and the arts as a student. The American Psychological Association honors his research on genetic effects on the perception of art🎶

🔔Deadline Extended!🔔

We have extended the submission deadline for abstracts and award nominations to February 15. We hope to see you in Philadelphia!

Submit an abstract: www.tsfnc.org/sfnc2026-sub...

Nominate for an award: www.tsfnc.org/sfnc2026-sub...

Reminder: tomorrow is the last day to submit nominees for IAEA awards!

Fechner Award: lifetime contribution
Baumgarten Award: within 10yr after PhD
Washburn Award: mid-career scientist

IAEA members submit noms (incl 2 support letters) to b.calvo@city.ac.uk w/ subject "IAEA nomination."

hey scientists, have you seen a cool paper recently that didn't get enough attention? let me know! I'm always looking for new studies to cover and would love to hear from you👇

How Slow-Looking Changes Our Experience of Art When we take the time to be present and curious, we allow for more complex aesthetic and emotional responses to emerge.

Our take about the importance of slowing down in this manic world and "How Slow-Looking Changes Our Experience of Art" | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...

🍾🎉 Congratulations to our PhD students Srestha Chakraborty and Nicola Weiss, who received the @oeaw DOC fellowship to fund their research.

Call for 2026 Mid-Career Award, deadline March 31, with a black and gold beam photo background and the Psychonomic Society logo.

The Psychonomic Society is now accepting nominations for the 2026 Mid-Career Award, which recognizes individuals who have made exceptional contributions to experimental and cognitive psychology and are currently in the middle of their careers. The deadline is March 31. Submit today: buff.ly/Pct3kUM

2026 is off to a great start! 🎉 Excited to share my new open-access publication in @plosone.org! 🎶 This study examines how our sense of self (self-construal) influences the pleasure (musical reward) we get from listening to our favourite music. Read it here: doi.org/10.1371/jour...

Reminder: Apply or Nominate someone for the 2026 SfNC Awards! Deadline - Feb. 1st ⏰

SfNC is proud to offer three annual awards recognizing outstanding contributions to creativity research. Winners receive a cash prize and are invited to present their work.

Details here: www.tsfnc.org/sfnc-awards

There’s still time to apply for the 2026 Renée Fleming Neuroarts Investigator Awards. These awards fund teams of early career investigators and arts practitioners leading innovative neuroarts research. Proposals due February 3, 2026. Have questions? View the webinar: tinyurl.com/2nv7f4uz

Attracting and Engaging Teens: Lessons from Research and Practice Teens have long been a challenging demographic for art museums, yet limited data make it difficult to assess whether visitation is actually declining. In this study, I used a four-part methodology ...

📣 I’m pleased to share that my latest research article - 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐞𝐞𝐧𝐬: 𝐋𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞 - has just been published in the 𝘑𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘶𝘮 𝘌𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

🔗 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Book 15: ‘The Creativity Choice: The Science of Making Decisions to Turn Ideas into Action’ by Zorana Ivcevic Pringle ( @z-i-pringle.bsky.social / @yale.edu)

H/t to my APA Div 10 Creativity Book Club for choosing this & inviting Zorana to speak to us!

#booksky #bookchallenge #academicsky #artsky

Musical expertise and cognitive abilities: no advantage for professionals over amateurs Abstract. Cognitive advantages in musicians are often attributed to far transfer from music training. If this causal interpretation is correct, greater mus

Sometimes I remember that I have a bluesky account ;)

I'm very happy to share our last paper, investigating how cognitive skills relate to different levels of musical expertise:

url: royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article...

@cesarflima.bsky.social @masssimo006.bsky.social

Music plays an important role in relationships, especially in the early stages. It can help people express identity, share emotions and bond. But how does music contribute to romantic love at different stages of a relationship?

Read more: doi.org/10.12688/ope...

#MusicScience #MusicSky

#MusicScience AND #NeuroJobs, together at last!

I can personally recommend several excellent chocolateries nearby:
www.fens.org/careers/job-...

🏙 Which urban man-made components are studied for aesthetics and wellbeing?
We bring the first scoping review summary on implementing aesthetics, as a factor that is considered when looking at the urban built environment, whilst also addressing potential improvements to wellbeing. @univie.ac.at

Gregor U. Hayn-Leichsenring, Head of the Organising Team, on why you should join the lAEA Aesthetics Conference 2026 in Jena.
We're looking forward to welcoming you!

- Self nominations are allowed
- Recipients need not be IAEA members (but nominators must be members)
- Need more info? Reach out!

IAEA members - nominate deserving colleagues for awards!
Fechner Award: lifetime contribution
Baumgarten Award: within 10yr after PhD
Washburn Award: mid-career scientist.

IAEA members submit noms (incl 2 support letters) to b.calvo@city.ac.uk w/ subject "IAEA nomination."

Last chance! Tonight is the submission deadline for talks/posters for IAEA2026 in Jena, Germany!

iaea-jena2026.org

Last chance to apply ✨ Submissions close tonight!

Submissions are now open!

The 2026 IAEA Congress invites researchers, scholars, and artists from different domains and countries to present and share empirical research on aesthetics, creativity, and the psychology and neurobiology of the arts and aesthetics.

iaea-jena2026.org

Submissions are now open!

The 2026 IAEA Congress invites researchers, scholars, and artists from different domains and countries to present and share empirical research on aesthetics, creativity, and the psychology and neurobiology of the arts and aesthetics.

iaea-jena2026.org

We particularly appreciate submissions fitting our conference theme:

Future follows Past -
Creating a Gesamtkunstwerk together for Arts and Aesthetics Research

Submissions are now open!

The 2026 IAEA Congress invites researchers, scholars, and artists from different domains and countries to present and share empirical research on aesthetics, creativity, and the psychology and neurobiology of the arts and aesthetics.

📣 New Paper Alert!
My PhD student Hannah Ovadia and I wrote a concise update on “The Role of the Default Mode Network (DMN) in Aesthetic Appeal” to synthesize evidence, highlight issues, and most importantly, consider theoretical alternatives.

Free access:
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lz-h8MqMi...

Poster presentation successfully completed!

I had the privilege of presenting at the Aesthetics 2025 conference: "Arts Engagement and Aesthetic Experience: Bridging the Gap between Arts and Sciences" (September 28 - October 2, 2025, Monte Verità, Ascona, Switzerland).

We had a great day of presentations with our friends at Mural Arts and the Humanities and Human Flourishing Project @ Penn. Long overdue and looking forward to continuing the conversation!