Chris McManus

Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, UK

Cross-cultural effects in aesthetics? Three studies

About the talk

Cross-cultural studies in aesthetics are relatively rare, but it seems reasonable to presume that they should exist. Elsewhere in psychology there is a growing interest in cross-cultural differences and effects, particularly based on the influential work of Masuda and his colleagues, who have argued that "East Asians" are more holistic and context-oriented in their perceptions than "Westerners" who are more analytic and object oriented, which it is suggested results in preferences for different types of photographs and art works. In this talk I will describe three cross-cultural studies we have carried out using different approaches, and which have involved participants in China, Hong Kong, Thailand and Morocco.

About the speaker

Chris McManus is Professor of Psychology and Medical Education at University College London, and was a Visiting Professor in Helmut Leder's unit in Vienna for a semester in 2012. He is a Fellow of the International Association of Empirical Aesthetics, and has published research for many years on art and aesthetics (see publications).