Research reported by the University of Exeter corroborates earlier studies indicating that seeing aquariums makes people feel calmer. Cracknell, Pahl and White determined that “viewing aquarium displays led to noticeable reductions in blood pressure and heart rate, and that higher numbers of fish helped to hold people’s attention for longer and improve their moods…Deborah Cracknell [who] conducted the study [states that]: ‘Fish tanks and displays are often associated with attempts at calming patients in doctors’ surgeries and dental waiting rooms. This study has…provided robust evidence that ‘doses’ of exposure to underwater settings could actually have a positive impact on people’s wellbeing.’”
“Aquariums Deliver Health and Wellbeing Beneifts.” 2015. Press release, University of Exeter, http://www.exeter.ac.uk
Sally Augustin, PhD, a cognitive scientist, is the editor of Research Design Connections (www.researchdesignconnections.com), a monthly subscription newsletter and free daily blog, where recent and classic research in the social, design, and physical sciences that can inform designers’ work are presented in straightforward language. Readers learn about the latest research findings immediately, before they’re available elsewhere. Sally, who is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, is also the author of Place Advantage: Applied Psychology for Interior Architecture (Wiley, 2009) and, with Cindy Coleman, The Designer’s Guide to Doing Research: Applying Knowledge to Inform Design (Wiley, 2012). She is a principal at Design With Science (www.designwithscience.com) and can be reached at sallyaugustin@designwithscience.com.