Investigating the Psychological Effects of News Imagery: A Case for Evidence-based Decision Making and Practices

Many professions embrace using objective data from strong empirical research as a basis for best practices. Visual communication gatekeepers, largely guided by qualitative research, may benefit from using this kind of hard data more often to help them understand the psychological impact of their image choices. Quantitative methods, commonly used in psychology, can provide a framework for investigating the effects images have on human comprehension and behavior. Substantial empirical research already exists and can be applied to important issues faced every day in the editorial decision-making process.