5.5 Imagery

Mental imagery is about the subjective experience of being in your own mind, especially while you are in the process of using your imagination. What can you see in your “mind’s eye” when you use your imagination? Can you visualize a picture, scene, or movie in your mind? Can you hear a song in your head? If so, how would you describe the quality of the mental image? Is it vivid and life-like? If not, how would you describe your experience of using your imagination?

Mental imagery: Imagined sensations of any type, including seeing pictures in your mind’s eye, hearing a song in your head, using your inner voice, and others like imagined smell, touch, or sense of space.

Mental imagery is a paradigm example of research in cognitive psychology because it involves experiences that are entirely internal to your own mental processes. Behaviorists like Watson were strongly opposed to research on mental imagery because it could not be directly observed. However, mental imagery was an important topic early in the history of psychology and is a significant part of contemporary cognitive psychology as well.

But how do we study a subjective experience like mental imagery?