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The Impact of Soothing Media on the Content of Prospective Mental Imagery. Photo-Elicitation and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Study

DOI: 10.1177/02762366241306398
Gouveia Gaglianone, C., Zhu, L., Gillespie-Smith, K., & Schwannauer, M. (2025). The impact of soothing media on the content of prospective mental imagery. photo-elicitation and interpretative phenomenological analysis study. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 44(3), 257–286. doi:10.1177/02762366241306398

Abstract

Positive mental imagery (PMI) is believed to counteract the negative effects of anxiety and depression. However, research on PMI remains nascent. Participants often report difficulties in generating positive mental imagery, including prospective mental imagery, which involves creating hypothetical future events based on episodic memory. The present qualitative study investigated the prospective mental imagery content and the influence of soothing videos on prospective mental imagery production. Twenty semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants aged 18–65 years of various nationalities. The data were analyzed using, an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). The study found that prospective mental imagery content, included, regardless of nationality and age, was related to A) goals, including life a life and career milestones, B) time with family and friends, and C) travel. Participants also reported that it was easier to produce vivid PMI after soothing videos were presented. These findings suggest that regardless of the similar content across demographics, interpretation is subjective and linked to individual factors. These insights should be considered in the clinical setting when addressing mental imagery.

Authors

  • Catarina Gouveia Gaglianone1
  • Lian Zhu1
  • Karri Gillespie-Smith1
  • Matthias Schwannauer1

What This Study Is About

Researchers wanted to know what people actually "see" when they imagine their future and if watching relaxing videos makes it easier to create these mental movies. They specifically looked at prospective mental imagery—which is just a fancy way of saying the ability to picture future events in your mind.

How They Studied It

The researchers sat down with 20 people from all over the world for deep-dive interviews. First, they asked participants to describe what they usually picture when thinking about the future. Then, they showed them a 10-minute video of "soothing" things—like puppies, calm oceans, and forests—and asked them to try imagining the future again.
Note for our community: This study specifically looked at people who *can* visualize. In fact, they checked to make sure participants did not have aphantasia (the "blind mind's eye," where people don't see any mental images at all) so they could focus on how the clarity of images changed.

What They Found

Even though the participants came from different cultures and ages, their "future trailers" were surprisingly similar. Most people pictured three things:
1. Big Milestones: Graduating, getting a dream job, or getting a promotion.
2. Connection: Hanging out with family or starting their own.
3. Adventure: Traveling to places like the Maldives or climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
The big discovery? After watching the soothing videos, people found it much easier to "see" their future. The images felt more vivid, and the participants felt more excited and motivated to reach those goals.

What This Might Mean

This suggests that our environment acts like a "mental remote control." If we are stressed, it’s hard to see a happy future. But using "external tools"—like a relaxing video—might help people "prime" their brains to visualize positive things.
However, we have to be careful: this was a very small study of only 20 people. While it *suggests* that soothing media helps visualization, we need much larger studies to *prove* it works for everyone.

One Interesting Detail

The researchers found that imagining the future is a double-edged sword! While picturing a dream job made people feel "energetic," it also made some feel "anxious" because it reminded them of how much work they still had to do to get there. Science shows that even a happy imagination can be a little stressful!
This summary was generated by AI and may contain errors. Always refer to the original paper for accuracy.