Unit 1 Overview: A Critical Assessment of Neuroaesthetics as Experimental Science—Chances, Challenges, Required Commitments

Abstract

This chapter shows how a neuroscientific approach can contribute to understanding aesthetical phenomena We also discuss challenges and clear limitations of neuroscientific approaches. As in most psychologically rooted research questions, we cannot gain a comprehensive picture without taking further layers of analysis into account. Most importantly, every aesthetic phenomenon always has different layers that are linked with sensory, cognitive, and affective processes. Furthermore, these processes are essentially modulated by personality factors and situational and task-dependent demands which are embedded in cultural contexts. If we try to combine information from different levels, we can see the benefit of neuroscientific data in terms of the timing of subprocesses, which parts of the brain are involved in the processing, and, most importantly, how specific brain regions communicate with each other at which time. This will inform aesthetic researchers to identify areas for future research and development and how to combine interdisciplinary forces to create more complex, holistic, and profound insights into deeper aesthetic experiences such as the experience of art.