<p>Yes! The International Affective Picture System (IAPS) is widely used.</p>

<p>From the <a href="http://www.hsp.epm.br/dpsicobio/Nova_versao_pagina_psicobio/adap/instructions.pdf">IAPS instruction manual</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>The International Affective Picture System (IAPS) is being developed
  to provide a set of normative emotional stimuli for experimental
  investigations of emotion and attention. The goal is to develop a
  large set of  standardized, emotionally-evocative, internationally
  accessible, color photographs that includes contents across  a wide
  range of semantic categories. The IAPS (pronounced EYE-APS), along
  with the International Affective Digitized Sound system (IADS), the
  Affective Lexicon of English Words (ANEW), as well as other
  collections of  affective stimuli, are being developed and distributed
  by the NIMH Center for Emotion and Attention (CSEA) at  the University
  of Florida in order to provide standardized materials that are
  available to researchers in the study  of emotion and attention</p>
</blockquote>

<p>The stimuli are completely free, but a request must be made by a faculty member (rather than a student). The reason they give for this is that "Making these materials familiar to the general public can seriously compromise their value as stimuli in many research projects."</p>

<p>You can request the stimuli <a href="http://csea.phhp.ufl.edu/media/iapsmessage.html">here</a>.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Lang, P.J., Bradley, M.M., &amp; Cuthbert, B.N. (2008). International
  affective picture system (IAPS): Affective ratings of pictures and
  instruction manual. Technical Report A-8. University of Florida,
  Gainesville, FL.</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-11-13T07:01:08.823Z
Note to the OP that this lab also a database of "emotional sounds" that you can request (International Affective Digital Sounds; IADS). I have used IAPS extensively but have never really looked at the IADS and so can't make any comments about how useful it is.
Jake Westfall
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-11-12T18:21:06.380Z
2012-11-12T18:21:06.380Z
Jeff
<p>For my research I need to use emotional stimuli to use for habituation to certain emotion.</p>

<p>Are there any databases available (preferably free or not expensive) of non-linguistic stimuli I could use? (example: music, pictures, videos)</p>

<measurement><experimental-psychology><emotion>
Is there a database of emotional stimuli available?
Oriesok Vlassky
# Is there a database of emotional stimuli available?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2012-11-12)

For my research I need to use emotional stimuli to use for habituation to certain emotion.

Are there any databases available (preferably free or not expensive) of non-linguistic stimuli I could use? (example: music, pictures, videos)

**Tags:** measurement, experimental-psychology, emotion


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2012-11-12. Score: 8 | Accepted answer

Yes! The International Affective Picture System (IAPS) is widely used.

From the [IAPS instruction manual](http://www.hsp.epm.br/dpsicobio/Nova_versao_pagina_psicobio/adap/instructions.pdf):

> The International Affective Picture System (IAPS) is being developed
> to provide a set of normative emotional stimuli for experimental
> investigations of emotion and attention. The goal is to develop a
> large set of standardized, emotionally-evocative, internationally
> accessible, color photographs that includes contents across a wide
> range of semantic categories. The IAPS (pronounced EYE-APS), along
> with the International Affective Digitized Sound system (IADS), the
> Affective Lexicon of English Words (ANEW), as well as other
> collections of affective stimuli, are being developed and distributed
> by the NIMH Center for Emotion and Attention (CSEA) at the University
> of Florida in order to provide standardized materials that are
> available to researchers in the study of emotion and attention

The stimuli are completely free, but a request must be made by a faculty member (rather than a student). The reason they give for this is that "Making these materials familiar to the general public can seriously compromise their value as stimuli in many research projects."

You can request the stimuli [here](http://csea.phhp.ufl.edu/media/iapsmessage.html).

> Lang, P.J., Bradley, M.M., & Cuthbert, B.N. (2008). International
> affective picture system (IAPS): Affective ratings of pictures and
> instruction manual. Technical Report A-8. University of Florida,
> Gainesville, FL.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Note to the OP that this lab also a database of "emotional sounds" that you can request (International Affective Digital Sounds; IADS). I have used IAPS extensively but have never really looked at the IADS and so can't make any comments about how useful it is.  

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