Does the Phineas Gage effect extend to aesthetic value

Bibliographic Data

ID21591792
AuthorsElzė Sigutė Mikalonytė (0000-0002-3047-7729, University of Cambridge, corresponding author), Clément Canonne (0000-0003-2617-6971, STMS UMR 9912 (CNRS/IRCAM/SU), corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume38
Issue4
Pages1426-1452
Publication date2025-05-19
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePhilosophical Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0951-5089 • E-ISSN: 1465-394X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/09515089.2023.2249517
OpenAlexW4386138664
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited44

In the last 20 years, a large number of studies have investigated judgments of the identity of various objects (e.g., persons, material objects, institutions) over time. One influential strand of research has found that identity judgments are shaped by normative considerations. People tend to believe that moral improvement is more compatible with the continuity of identity of a person than moral deterioration, suggesting that persons are taken to be essentially morally good. This asymmetry is often referred to as the “Phineas Gage effect”. However, normativity extends beyond morality. In particular, it is unknown whether changes in aesthetic value have a similar impact on identity judgments. We investigate whether works of art would be analogously seen as essentially aesthetically valuable. We ran four studies (N = 1264) to explore whether aesthetic considerations have a similar influence on judgments of the identity of artworks. We presented the participants with stories describing either a painting or a musical work which undergoes changes and becomes either more or less aesthetically valuable. Overall, we found only mixed evidence for the Phineas Gage effect in relation to the aesthetic value of artworks. Other factors, such as moral value, seem to have a bigger impact on judgments of persistence

Aesthetics · Epistemology · Morality · Normative · Cultural Differences and Values · Mathematics · Philosophy · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology