A recent Lancet Psychiatry paper offers compelling evidence that emotional mental imagery—our mind’s ability to create vivid emotional scenes—could be a transformative tool in psychological therapies for young people.
As mental health needs among adolescents continue to rise, this research highlights a new frontier that combines scientific insight with intuitive engagement.
What’s Emotional Mental Imagery?
It’s not just “thinking in pictures.” Emotional mental imagery involves vivid, sensory-rich mental experiences that carry emotional weight—whether it's reliving a painful event or imagining a hopeful future.
These internal experiences can deeply influence our feelings, behaviors, and recovery pathways.
The Study at a Glance
The researchers conducted a systematic review of 86 studies on imagery-based interventions and consulted:
10 young people with lived experience
7 international experts in mental health and psychological science
This mixed-method approach ensured the findings were both scientifically rigorous and meaningfully grounded in real-world youth experiences.
What Techniques Work?
Three categories of techniques showed the strongest potential:
Imagery Rescripting – Transforming distressing memories by mentally reworking the narrative into a safer, more controlled version.
Positive Imagery Training – Building mental habits of visualising positive, emotionally uplifting scenarios to counter negative thinking.
Imagery-Enhanced Therapy – Adding imagery exercises to established methods like CBT for greater emotional impact.
Why This Matters for Young People
Young people naturally process emotions through images, sounds, and sensory impressions more than abstract language. That makes imagery-based interventions especially engaging and emotionally resonant.
Adding to this, these techniques may also bridge gaps where verbal therapies feel too distant, analytical, or inaccessible.
Personalized Interventions
Effectiveness isn’t one-size-fits-all. Outcomes vary based on:
Individual characteristics (age, trauma history, diagnosis)
Contextual settings (clinical vs. community-based)
Cultural relevance and adaptability
This underscores the importance of personalisation, flexibility, and cultural sensitivity in deploying imagery tools at scale.
The Takeaway
Emotional mental imagery is not just a cognitive novelty—it’s a clinically promising, emotionally intelligent pathway to engage young people in mental health care. The field is still growing, but the early signs are clear: mental imagery could become a cornerstone in next-generation youth therapy.
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