As a part of the Marketing Department’s Research Seminar Series, Kristin Diehl from the University of Southern California was welcomed at WU to present her latest research about the effect of picture taking on enjoyment and memory of experiences.

Photo-taking has become a daily and ubiquitous activity for millions of people during special as well as mundane experiences. Therefore, her research is relevant and relatable for a wide audience, not only for professional photographers and the like. It has been found that photo-taking can heighten enjoyment of positive experiences, and does so because photo-taking increases engagement with the experience. Furthermore, even without revisiting any photos, those who do take photographs recognize more of what they saw but less of what they heard during experience. Aside from the main line of research, interesting related research results were also presented, and Kristin’s future research plans were outlined.

We thank Kristin for her visit, as well as for the engaging talk she shared with us. For information on the upcoming guest speakers at the Research Seminar Series, lease check the agenda.