ASEAN Students’ Perceptions of Contemporary Chinese Mixed Media Painting Art via Rice Paper Courses: A SOR Model Analysis

This study, based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model, examines how technological immersion, cultural novelty, and aesthetic complexity influence Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) students’ learning feedback in contemporary Chinese mixed media art courses (specifically rice paper painting) through the mediating roles of cognitive and emotional perception. The results show that cognitive perception significantly mediates the relationships between all stimulus variables and learning feedback, while emotional perception only has a significant effect on technological immersion and aesthetic complexity. This indicates that cognitive engagement plays a critical role in shaping learning outcomes in art education, whereas emotional engagement depends on specific types of stimuli and cultural backgrounds. Theoretically, this study provides a new perspective on cognitive and emotional mechanisms in cross-cultural art education, expanding the understanding of their interaction in the art learning process. Practically, the findings offer guidance for art teaching, curriculum design, and educational internationalization, particularly in enhancing students’ cognitive and emotional engagement through immersive technologies. The study is limited by the sample’s focus on ASEAN students, lacking broader applicability to other cultural backgrounds. Future research should expand the sample to include more diverse groups and adopt longitudinal designs to explore the long-term effects on learning feedback.