In Japan, where the cult of cute—known as kawaii—is a prominent feature of popular culture, scientists have discovered that people shown images of babies and puppies performed better on various tasks than people who were shown adult animals or other neutral images. (click below to read more)
In one experiment, subjects were asked to perform a fine-motor task using tweezers. In another, subjects had to search for letters in a matrix. Viewing cute images improved performance in both trials. A third experiment, involving picking out letters as fast as possible on screen, showed that cute images narrowed attentional focus.
Cute images, the authors write, might be useful in inducing careful behavior on the job or behind the wheel of a car.
"The Power of Kawaii: Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus," Hiroshi Nittono, Michiko Fukushima, Akihiro Yano, Hiroki Moriya, PLoS ONE (September)
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