New studies again show that vision, and what one sees strongly impacts memory and cognitive ability.

At two studies conducted at the University of Michigan , Marc G. Berman and colleagues tested the effect of a walk’s scenery on cognitive function ( Berman, Jonides & Kaplan, 2008 ; PDF ).

In the first study participants were given a 35 minute task involving repeating loads of random numbers back to the experimenter, but in reverse order. After this special task in cognitive psychology the subjects went for a walk. One group walked around an arboretum and while the other walked down busy city streets. Both groups were tracked with GPS devices.

The memory tests were repeated upon their return.

The results showed that the test group which took a walk in the tree lined natural surroundings improved in memory performance by almost 20% The subjects who walked in the busy urban scene did not improve to a reliable extent.

The arboretum is located in the City, near the university as the selected urban street. Thus the traffic sounds, sirens and noise were similar. Being outside on the same day within walking distance the groups experiences the same weather, and many of the same scents.

What differed significantly was what each group perceived visually.

Judy Rey Wasserman’s Fall Tree Aleph

The second study honed in on that difference. This time participants remained in the lab. One group of participants was shown images of natural scenes of trees and fields while others looked at urban images of lampposts and streets. Then they were again tested in relation on short term memory retention using random numbers. Once again the study subjects who were exposed to the images of natural environments of trees and fields showed marked improvement over the other study group; however, the improvement was slightly less.

In the second study participants weren’t even allowed to leave the lab but instead some stared at pictures of natural scenes while others looked at urban environments. The improvements weren’t quite as impressive as the first study, but, once again, the trees and fields beat the roads and lampposts.

These results replicated a previous study by Berto (2005) , which concluded that just viewing pictures of natural scenes positively effected cognitive function. This study noted that an individual’s performance was soon restored by picture of trees, fields and hills, but not by streets, industrial units or even complex geometric patterns.

Clearly, our environments influence us visually. We can influence our own lives, and those of our family, friends, clients, customers and teammates by displaying images that do more than decorate. Once again, proof that art can change lives. Art can enhance brain functioning.

For information on how a new kind of art can easily and effectively change your life click here to download a free booklet.