The Psychology and Aesthetics of Satisfying YouTube Videos
YouTube hosts over two million search results for 'oddly satisfying' videos, with many clips attracting hundreds of thousands of views. These videos showcase visually pleasing scenes, such as melting ice and flawless calligraphy. A particularly favored category is the slime genre, where hands interact with gooey substances. In The New Yorker, Jami Lauren Keiles associates this appeal with the term 'frisson.' Dermatologist Sandra Lee, famously known as Dr. Pimple Popper, boasts three million subscribers for her extraction content. While ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response), often referred to as 'brain orgasm,' lacks robust scientific evidence, its popularity continues to rise. Additionally, IKEA launched a 25-minute ASMR-themed advertisement for dorm essentials, and photographer Austin Radcliffe's blog 'Things Organized Neatly' earned a Webby Award and became a bestseller.
Key facts
- Searching 'most satisfying video' or 'oddly satisfying' on YouTube yields over two million results.
- Satisfying videos include melting ice, chocolate pours, perfect calligraphy, and ultra-sharp knives cutting objects.
- The slime genre features close-ups of hands pressing into gooey material, often with bizarre sounds.
- Jami Lauren Keiles wrote in The New Yorker that the sensation is sensual or even erotic, akin to popping a blackhead or plunging a hand into dry rice.
- The sensation is related to the psychological reflex 'frisson'—goosebumps from music.
- Dermatologist Sandra Lee (Dr. Pimple Popper) has three million YouTube subscribers for her extraction videos.
- ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response) is called 'brain orgasm' and involves whispering, tapping, and stroking to trigger a tingling sensation from the scalp.
- IKEA released a 25-minute ASMR-style ad for dorm room products.
- Kirsten Lepore's animation 'Hi Stranger' went viral; her claymation character whispers new-age phrases.
- Austin Radcliffe's blog 'Things Organized Neatly' won a Webby Award and became a bestselling book.
- The article suggests these pleasures may relate to mild obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Entities
Artists
- Jami Lauren Keiles
- Sandra Lee
- Kirsten Lepore
- Austin Radcliffe
- Valentina Tanni
Institutions
- YouTube
- The New Yorker
- IKEA
- Webby Awards
- Artribune
- Politecnico di Milano
- NABA – Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti