Experiencing beauty in everyday life

Abstract

Beauty surrounds us in many ways every day. In three experience sampling (ESM) studies we investigated frequency, category of eliciting stimuli (natural vs human-made) and, the potential moderating role of several individual difference measures on such everyday experiences of beauty in an ecologically valid manner. Further, we explored the impact of such experiences on valence & arousal. Study 1 re-analysed data from a previous study, in line with the current aims. In Studies 2 and 3, we asked participants to report daily experiences of beauty using a mixed random and event-contingent sampling schedule. Mobile notifications (random sampling) prompted participants to take a photo and rate the beauty of their surroundings. Further, current valence and arousal were assessed. Notification frequency and total days of participation differed between these two studies. Participants were able to report additional experiences outside of the notification windows (event-contingent sampling). Our results indicate that we frequently encounter beauty in everyday life and that we find it in nature, in particular. Our results further suggest a mood-boosting effect of encounters with beauty. Lastly, our results indicate influences of individual differences however, these were inconclusive and require further attention.