How Individual States and Traits Predict Aesthetic Appreciation of Haiku Poetry

Abstract

The factors influencing poetry’s aesthetic appreciation are largely unknown. Some studies have reported features that affect the aesthetic appreciation of poetry. This study sought to determine which states and traits predict the aesthetic appeal of haiku poetry. We recruited 277 participants to rate 36 haiku on five characteristics: imagery vividness, stimulus valence, arousal, valence of felt emotion, and aesthetic appeal of haiku. Then, participants completed questionnaires that assessed their own traits. We found both valence of felt emotion and imagery vividness generally predicted haiku’s aesthetic appeal; additionally, the influence of imagery vividness on aesthetic appeal was partially mediated by valence of felt emotion. As mental imagery fosters emotional evocation, vivid imagery increases positive felt emotions associated with aesthetic appeal. Furthermore, the traits of visual imagery ability, awe-proneness, and nostalgia-proneness predicted haiku’s aesthetic appeal. This study advances our knowledge of how individual states and traits determine the aesthetic appeal of haiku.