The current study investigated the relationship between aesthetic preferences and the Big-Five personality dimensions across the three domains of art, architecture, and music. A five-factor classification of artistic styles was devised which included the Sophisticated, Contemporary, Intense, Mellow, and Unpretentious factors. Participants were required to provide ratings for aesthetic stimuli representing these factors, as well as complete the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) inventory. As was predicted, aesthetic preferences did vary as a function of personality, with Openness to Experience being, as usual, the best predictor. Preferences were consistent across the domains of art and architecture, but were inconsistent with some artistic styles in the music domain. Gender, ethnicity, and artistic experience were also found to exert some influence on aesthetic preferences. Implications, limitations, and future research suggestions are discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AugustinM.WagemansJ., & CarbonC-C. (2012). All is beautiful? Generality vs. specificity of word usage in visual aesthetics. Acta Psychologica, 139, 187–201.
2.
BakerF., & BorW. (2008). Can music preference indicate mental health status in young people?Australasian Psychiatry, 16, 284–288.
3.
BarronF. (1952). Personality style and perceptual choice. Journal of Personality, 20, 385–401.
4.
Chamorro-PremuzicT.BurkeC.HsuA., & SwamiV. (2010). Personality predictors of artistic preferences as a function of the emotional valence and perceived complexity of paintings. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 4, 196–204.
5.
Chamorro-PremuzicT.FurnhamA., & ReimersS. (2007). The artistic personality. The Psychologist, 20, 84–87.
6.
Chamorro-PremuzicT.ReimersS.HsuA., & AhmetogluG. (2009). Who art thou? Personality predictors of artistic preferences in a large UK sample: The importance of openness. British Journal of Psychology, 100, 501–516.
7.
CookR., & FurnhamA. (2012). Aesthetic preferences for architectural styles vary as a function of personality. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 32, 103–114.
8.
CupchikG. C., & GebotysR. J. (1988). The search for meaning in art: Interpretive styles and judgments of quality. Visual Arts Research, 14, 38–50.
9.
CupchikG. C., & GignacA. (2007). Finding, meaning and expressing emotion in response to artworks. Visual Arts Research, 33, 56–71.
10.
DonnellanM. B.OswaldF. L.BairdB. M., & LucasR. E. (2006). The mini-IPIP scales: Tiny-yet-effective measures of the Big Five factors of personality. Psychological Assessment, 18, 192.
11.
EhrhartK. H.RoeschS. C.EhrhartM. G., & KilianB. (2008). A test of the factor structure equivalence of the 50-item IPIP five-factor model measure across gender and ethnic groups. Journal of Personality Assessment, 90, 507–516.
12.
FeistG. J., & BradyT. R. (2004). Openness to experience, non-conformity, and the preference for abstract art. Empirical Studies of the Arts, 22, 77–89.
13.
FurnhamA., & AvisonM. (1997). Personality and preference for surreal paintings. Personality and Individual Differences, 23, 923–935.
14.
FurnhamA., & Chamorro-PremuzicT. (2004). Personality, intelligence, and art. Personality and Individual Differences, 36, 705–715.
15.
FurnhamA., & RaoS. (2002). Personality and the aesthetics of composition: A study of Mondrian & Hirst. North American Journal of Psychology, 4, 233–242.
16.
FurnhamA., & WalkerJ. (2001a). The influence of personality traits, previous experience of art, and demographic variables on artistic preference. Personality and Individual Differences, 31, 997–1017.
17.
FurnhamA., & WalkerJ. (2001b). Personality and judgements of abstract, pop art, and representational paintings. European Journal of Personality, 15, 57–72.
18.
GoldbergL. R. (1999). A broad-bandwidth, public domain, personality inventory measuring the lower-level facets of several five-factor models. In MervieldeI.DearyI.de FruytF., & OstendorfF. (Eds.), Personality psychology in Europe (Vol. 7; pp. 7–28). Tilburg, The Netherlands: Tilburg University Press.
19.
HeinrichsR. W., & CupchikG. C. (1985). Individual differences as predictors of preference in visual art. Journal of Personality, 53, 502–515.
20.
HekkertP., & van WieringenP. C. (1996). Beauty in the eye of expert and nonexpert beholders: A study in the appraisal of art. American Journal of Psychology, 109, 389–407.
21.
KempS. W., & CupchikG. C. (2007). The emotionally evocative effects of paintings. Visual Arts Research, 33, 72–82.
22.
LesterD., & WhippleM. (1996). Music preference, depression, suicidal preoccupation, and personality: Comment on Stack and Gundlach's papers. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 26, 68–70.
23.
MasudaT.GonzalezR.KwanL., & NisbettR. E. (2008). Culture and aesthetic preference: Comparing the attention to context of East Asians and Americans. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34, 1260–1275.
24.
McManusI. (2006). Measuring the culture of C. P. Snow's two cultures. Empirical Studies of the Arts, 24, 219–227.
25.
McManusI. C., & FurnhamA. (2006). Aesthetic activities and aesthetic attitudes: Influences of education, background and personality on interest and involvement in the arts. British Journal of Psychology, 97, 555–587.
26.
PaunonenS. V., & AshtonM. C. (2001). Big Five factors and facets and the prediction of behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 81, 524.
27.
RawlingsD. (2003). Personality correlates of liking for “unpleasant” paintings and photographs. Personality and Individual Differences, 34, 395–410.
28.
RawlingsD., & CiancarelliV. (1997). Music preference and the five-factor model of the NEO Personality Inventory. Psychology of Music, 25, 120–132.
29.
RentfrowP. J.GoldbergL. R., & LevitinD. J. (2011). The structure of musical preferences: A five-factor model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100, 1139.
30.
RentfrowP. J., & GoslingS. (2003). The Do Re Mi's of everyday life: The structure and personality correlates of music preferences. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84, 1236–1256.
31.
RentfrowP. J.McDonaldJ. A., & OldmeadowJ. A. (2009). You are what you listen to: Young people's stereotypes about music fans. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 12, 329–344.
32.
RustadR. A.SmallJ. E.JobesD. A.SaferM. A., & PetersonR. J. (2003). The impact of rock videos and music with suicidal content on thoughts and attitudes about suicide. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 33, 120–131.
33.
SchwartzK. D., & FoutsG. T. (2003). Music preferences, personality style, and developmental issues of adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 32, 205–213.
34.
ShafronG. R., & KarnoM. P. (2013). Heavy metal music and emotional dysphoria among listeners. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 2, 74–85.
35.
SwamiV., & FurnhamA. (2012). The effects of symmetry and personality on aesthetic preferences. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 32, 41–57.
36.
SwamiV., & FurnhamA (2014). Personality and aesthetic experiences. In TinioP. & SmithJ. (Eds.), Cambridge handbook of the psychology of aesthetics and the arts.Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
37.
ZuckermanM.UlrichR. S., & McLaughlinJ. (1993). Sensation seeking and reactions to nature paintings. Personality and Individual Differences, 15, 563–576.
