Neuropsychopharmacological aesthetics: A theoretical consideration of pharmacological approaches to causative brain study in aesthetics and art

Progress in Brain Research
Blanca SpeeMatthew Pelowski

Abstract

Recent developments in neuroaesthetics have heightened the need for causative approaches to more deeply understand the mechanism underlying perception, emotion, and aesthetic experiences. This has recently been the topic for empirical work, employing several causative methods for changing brain activity, as well as comparative assessments of individuals with brain damage or disease. However, one area of study with high potential, and indeed a long history of often nonscientific use in the area of aesthetics and art, employing psychopharmacological chemicals as means of changing brain function, has not been systematically utilized. This chapter reviews the literature on this topic, analyzing neuroendocrinological (neurochemical) approaches and mechanisms that might be used to causatively study the aesthetic brain. We focus on four relevant neuromodulatory systems potentially related to aesthetic experience: the dopaminergic, serotonergic, cannabinoid, and the opioidergic system. We build a bridge to psychopharmacological methods and review drug-induced behavioral and neurobiological consequences. We conclude with a discussion of hypotheses and suggestions for future research.

Citations

Oct 12, 2018·Perspectives on Psychological Science : a Journal of the Association for Psychological Science·Hause Lin, Oshin Vartanian
Sep 15, 2020·Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews·P SarassoI Ronga
Jun 4, 2021·Neurodegenerative Disease Management·Julio Alberto Perez MatosMatthew Pelowski

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Brain Injury & Trauma

brain injury after impact to the head is due to both immediate mechanical effects and delayed responses of neural tissues.

Related Papers

Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience
Anselm Brachmann, Christoph Redies
American Practitioner and Digest of Treatment
W KARLINER
Perspectives on Psychological Science : a Journal of the Association for Psychological Science
Marcus T PearceMarcos Nadal
© 2022 Meta ULC. All rights reserved