Cognitive Scientist Jim Davies and his Carleton students Sara Abou-Alwan, Gabriel M. Brown, and Faith Chambers published the first paper systematically looking at the contents of people’s imaginations. How many objects are depicted? Is there motion? Are they in colour?
“Although there has been significant research on imagination’s effects and capabilities, there is relatively little exploration of the content of imagination. This qualitative, exploratory study explored the content of mental imagery and imagination in 23 undergraduates.”
This is an open-access article.
Abou-Alwan, S., Brown, G. M., Chambers, F., & Davies, J. (2025). A Descriptive Analysis of Imagination Content. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 02762366251392813.