-
The Aesthetic Dimension of Reading: An Embodied-Ecological Approach Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2024-03-18 Juan Toro, Sarah Bro Trasmundi
This paper aims at integrating insights from ecological psychology, pragmatism, and embodied cognitive science to shed light on the aesthetic dimension underlying daily activities. For this purpose...
-
The Problem of Coordination in Movement and Art Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2024-03-13 Nathaniel F. Barrett
In this paper, I explore the possibility that the creation of art involves a version of the coordination problem that lies at the center of the ecological approach to movement. Both movement and ar...
-
The Visual Information Available in Virtual Reality Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2024-03-03 Edward Baggs, Paweł Grabarczyk, Zuzanna Rucińska
Perception in virtual reality is often compared to the perception of pictures. There are, however, important differences. A virtual reality environment, unlike a picture, is interactive and immersi...
-
The Haptic Moving Room Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2024-03-03 Carlos de Paz, Nicole S. Carver, Scott G. Fasone, Jorge Ibáñez-Gijón, David M. Jacobs, Paula L. Silva
In the moving room paradigm, visually perceived movements of the walls of a room affect the postural sway of individuals in the room. In this experiment, we used a virtual reality (VR) headset to p...
-
Multifractal Auditory Stimulation Promotes the Effect of Multifractal Torso Sway on Spatial Perception: Evidence from Distance Perception by Blindwalking Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2023-12-07 Damian Kelty-Stephen, Oliver Drew Similton, Emma Rabinowitz, Marty Allen
Stimulation and movement interact non-linearly across multiple scales—a point empirically and quantitatively available through multifractal structure. Multifractal movements might implicate multifr...
-
Attractive Stepping Stones Landscapes: Preference for Stone Height Variation Appears to Be Age Independent Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2023-08-09 Amy M. Jeschke, Rob Withagen, Frank T. J. M. Zaal, Simone R. Caljouw
An earlier study on the attractiveness of stepping stones configurations revealed that children like variation in stone height better than variation in stone size or gap width. In the present study...
-
The Field of Invitations Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2023-07-13 Rob Withagen
Abstract In my recent book Affective Gibsonian Psychology (2022), I made a relatively sharp distinction between affordances and invitations. I argued that to understand (some of) our behavior, we need to distinguish between the two. In the present paper, I develop the argument for this distinction a little further. It is argued that the concept of affordances aids in capturing the ecological values
-
Ecological Optics as the Conceptual Basis for the Interpersonal Self and Social Interaction Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2023-04-05 Nam-Gyoon Kim, Judith A. Effken, Ho-Won Lee
Abstract Agency, the ability to negotiate one’s surroundings to bring about changes, is the defining feature of animacy. Because agency is embodied in each individual’s self, inquiry into agency is necessarily an inquiry into selfhood. William James divided selfhood into the self as “I” and the self as “me” with the I self being, in essence, an active agent responsible for thoughts and actions. In
-
Investigating What Variables People Pick Up When Perceiving Other People’s Maximum Vertical One Degree-of-Freedom Reach Heights to Inform the Design of Assistive Robots Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2023-04-03 Keith S. Jones, Nicholas A. Garcia, Dana L. Wilder
Abstract We aim to design assistive robots that perceive people’s affordances in ways that are similar to how people perceive other people’s affordances. Toward that end, two experiments investigated what variables people pick up when perceiving actors’ maximum vertical one degree-of-freedom reach heights. In Experiment 1, point-light displays depicted actors who moved, were either tall or short, and
-
Gibson and Time: The Temporal Framework of Direct Perception Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2023-02-02 Stephen E. Robbins
Abstract The serious import of Gibson’s statement warning that physics “abstractions” of space and time “are not appropriate to psychology,” has not been understood. Underlying the space and time of physics is a largely unexamined metaphysic, what can be termed the “classic” (or spatial) metaphysic. This metaphysic is what Gibson implicitly rejected. His concept of direct perception, and necessarily
-
Effect of Texture on the Perception of Axis of Rotation of Rotating Panels Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-11-20 Balagopal Raveendranath, Christopher C. Pagano, Moloud Nasiri, Andrew C. Robb, Sabarish V. Babu
Abstract Planar, orthogonal structures are very common in man-made environments. We often interact with rectangular structures such as doors and walls in our environment. When a rigid, rectangular structure rotates about a pivot axis, there is information in the ambient optic array, that specifies what the rotating structure affords to the observer. Previous studies identified optical information available
-
Perceptual-Motor Regulations and Visual Exploration Strategies Allowing Older Drivers to Intercept a Moving Inter-Vehicular Gap Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-09-27 Lola Tran Van, Catherine Berthelon, Jordan Navarro, Cédric Goulon, Gilles Montagne
Abstract The aim of this study was to characterize the behavior of older people when intercepting a moving gap, with reference to that produced by younger people. Participants were asked to intercept a moving inter-vehicular space within a train of vehicles, by modulating their speed if necessary. Five initial distances to the interception location were manipulated (Offset), without the knowledge of
-
Distance over Time in a Maximal Sprint: Understanding Athletes’ Action Boundaries in Sprinting Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-09-10 Dees B. W. Postma, Martijn B. Wieling, Koen A. P. M. Lemmink, Frank T. J. M. Zaal
Abstract The present study examined the kinematics of maximal effort sprint running, mapping the relations among a person’s maximal running speed, maximum running acceleration and the distance coverable in a certain amount of time by this person. Thirty-three participants were recruited to perform a simple sprint task. Both forward and backward running were considered. Participants’ position, velocity
-
Height, Size, and/or Gap Width Variation in Jumping Stone Configurations: Which Form of Variation Attracts Children the Most? Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-06-23 Amy M. Jeschke, Simone R. Caljouw, Frank T. J. M. Zaal, Rob Withagen
Abstract Earlier studies revealed that children prefer nonstandardized jumping stone configurations to standardized ones. In the present study, we examined whether children playing on jumping stones prefer variation in stone height, stone size, and/or gap width. In Experiment 1, children could play freely on one standardized configuration and three configurations in which one of the aforementioned
-
Lower Extremity Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy Increase Variability in the Intra-Limb Coordination during Walking in Chronic Post-Stroke Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-06-15 Luisa Fernanda García-Salazar, Matheus Maia Pacheco, Carolina Carmona Alcantara, Thiago Luiz Russo, Natalia Duarte Pereira
Abstract This study aimed to assess the effect of the Lower Extremity Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy (LE-CIMT) intervention on the intra-limb hip-knee coordination and its variability in walking in chronic post-stroke individuals considering the lenses of the dynamic systems approach to motor behavior. Twelve chronic post-stroke individuals received the LE-CIMT intervention for 10 days following
-
How to Take a “Portrait” of Interpersonal Synergies Formation? – Exemplar Data with Expert Badminton Doubles Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-05-16 P. Passos, E. Lacasa, J. Milho, A. Diniz, C Torrents
Abstract In the last decades, previous research regarding interpersonal synergies formation has emerged under the Uncontrolled Manifold concept, identifying synergies formation based on a single combination of task elements. However, in social systems with redundant degrees of freedom, several combinations to stabilize a performance goal may be the most common picture. Thus, the main goal of this explorative
-
Cold Entropy: Assessing Individual Differences in Cognitive Adaptability during Cold Stress Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-04-01 Timothy L. Dunn, Douglas M. Jones, Jay H. Heaney
Abstract Human cognition unfolds in a multitude of environments, including those that are associated with extreme stressors. Successfully measuring and modeling behaviors in such environments is inherently difficult. The current effort aimed to assess variation in stability and flexibility of cognitive performance during cold stress, individual differences in errors, and physiological correlates. Fifty-seven
-
Ecological Mechanistic Research and Modelling Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-03-16 Andrew D. Wilson
Abstract A recent philosophical literature has developed a taxonomy of scientific explanations, models, and the two basic research programmes that produce them. The first programme takes some capacity of a system and maps out how it works by breaking it down into various sub-capacities, each with their own distinct characteristics. The end goal is a functional model, a ‘how-possibly’ box-and-arrow
-
Complex Postural Sway is Related to Perception of Stand-on-Ability Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2022-02-04 Alen Hajnal, Tyler Surber, Tyler Overstreet, Hannah Masoner, Catherine Dowell, Ashley Funkhouser, Jack Shelley-Tremblay, Krisztian Samu
Abstract Body movements during perceptual tasks can be considered as exploratory activity that facilitate perception. In the present study we tested whether the complexity of postural sway is related to perception of affordances. Effort-to-compress (ETC), a novel measure of complexity, was shown to be related to perception as compared to gross measures of body sway (mean magnitude and variability)
-
How Do People Perceive Other People’s Affordances, and How Might That Help Us Design Robots That Can Do So? Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-08-17 Keith S. Jones, Nicholas A. Garcia
Abstract A considerable amount of research has worked toward enabling robot caregivers to perform various tasks for individuals in need of assistance. However, little, if any, research has aimed to enable robot caregivers to determine when individuals need help performing tasks. One way to develop such robots is to start with what is already known about people determining whether other people can perform
-
Communication as Socially Extended Active Inference: An Ecological Approach to Communicative Behavior Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-08-17 Remi Tison, Pierre Poirier
Abstract In this paper, we introduce an ecological account of communication according to which acts of communication are active inferences achieved by affecting the behavior of a target organism via the modification of its field of affordances. Constraining a target organism’s behavior constitutes a mechanism of socially extended active inference, allowing organisms to proactively regulate their inner
-
Does Perceiving Throwabiliy Require a Task Specific Device? Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-08-17 Donghao Chen, Geoffrey P. Bingham, Jing Samantha Pan
Abstract Throwing performance, throwability perception and subjectively felt heaviness all depend on object size and weight. Here we investigate how size and weight must be detected to perceive throwability. In previous studies, the size-weight relation was detected by hefting an object in the hand and looking at it. Thus, it could be that detecting the size-weight relation and perceiving throwability
-
All Affordances Are Social: Foundations of a Gibsonian Social Ontology Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-08-17 Edward Baggs
Abstract Ecological psychology is built on a perception-oriented ontology. The primary focus has been on explaining the perception and action behavior of individual animals. To accommodate social phenomena within the ecological approach, it is necessary to expand the ontology, however theorists have been unclear about how to do this. The paper presents a negative argument and a positive programmatic
-
Establishing and Applying Measurement Reliability in Perceptual-Motor Coordination Tasks Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-08-26 Caleb D. Johnson, Shawn R. Eagle, Alice D. LaGoy, Aaron M. Sinnott, Gert-Jan Pepping, Christopher Connaboy
Abstract Over a large body of literature focused on perceptual-motor coordination for action-based affordance tasks, little regard has been given for measurement reliability. The purpose of this paper was to outline this issue and provide an example reliability study for a measure of an individual’s ability to perceive action opportunities for leaping. Ten participants completed three testing sessions
-
“You Look at an Ocean; I See the Rips, Hear the Waves, and Feel the Currents”: Dwelling and the Growth of Enskiled Inhabitant Knowledge Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-08-16 Carl T. Woods, Keith Davids
Abstract This inquiry explores a theoretical question, of applied practical relevance in fields like sport science, relating to how people come to know the performance landscapes they inhabit, and the dynamic opportunities for action they present. Here, we propose that how people come to know their performance landscapes, and how they learn to correspond with available affordances in them, is through
-
Searching Strategies in Practice: The Role of Stability in the Performer-Task Interaction Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-06-22 Matheus M. Pacheco, Fernando G. Santos, Go Tani
Abstract Through the view of the search strategies approach to skill acquisition–and its dynamic systems theoretical background–non-local changes in behavior are expected to emerge through a process of decreased stability (increased variability) of the ongoing movement pattern as to allow exploration of new regions of the perceptual-motor workspace. However, previous studies have not found such relation;
-
The Micro-Genesis of Interpersonal Synergy. Insights from Improvised Dance Duets Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-04-15 Michael Kimmel
Abstract This article introduces a micro-phenomenological method for interpersonal synergy research, which operates on a sub-second timescale or slightly higher. This is illustrated by two short sequences of joint creativity from Contact Improvisation (CI), a dance where duets produce spontaneous interaction patterns in constant flow and with deep connection of their bodies – their synergies stretch
-
In a Heartbeat: Prospective Control of Cardiac Responses for Upcoming Action Demands during Biathlon Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-02-18 Silje Dahl Benum, F. R. (Ruud) van der Weel, Audrey L. H. van der Meer
Abstract Biathlon is an Olympic winter sport combining the endurance sport of cross-country skiing with precision rifle shooting. Here, the need to prepare the body for upcoming events is particularly evident. As a high heart rate can be detrimental to shooting performance, it might be beneficial for biathletes to decrease their heart rate when approaching the shooting range, whereas heart rate should
-
Affordances in a Multispecies Entanglement Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2021-02-17 Ludger van Dijk
Abstract As plastics circulate the oceans and animals lose their place in the world, the fragile and indeterminate aspects of the shared world become palpable. The concept of affordances, central to ecological psychology, means to capture the possibilities for action that the world offers. It suggests a pragmatic conceptualization of the world for human and non-human animals alike. As such it is perfectly
-
Action Coordination in Non-Human Self-Organizing Collectives: Multidisciplinary Lessons From Living and Nonliving Systems Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-11-11 Megan Chiovaro, Alexandra Paxton
Abstract While interpersonal coordination, collective intelligence, and self-organization have been fundamental in the study of human social interaction over the past several decades, these phenomena have a rich history in non-human systems as well. This special issue aims to unite disciplines studying inter-entity coordination of action in shared conversation. Here, we bring together ecological psychologists
-
Behavioral Consequences of Sensory System Constraints in the Firefly Photinus carolinus Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-11-19 Andrew Moiseff, Jonathan Copeland
Abstract Fireflies use bioluminescent flashes to establish a dialogue between conspecific males and females. Through this dialogue, receptive females attract conspecific males for mating. In most firefly species, the males act as independent agents. That is, as they fly and flash in search of a responding female they do not appear to coordinate their activities with other males. In marked contrast
-
A Brief Review on the Application of Lanchester’s Models of Combat in Nonhuman Animals Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-11-12 Elizabeth Clifton
Abstract The Lanchester models of combat were originally created for human warfare. These models were inspired by advances in technology and automatic weaponry at the turn of the 20th century. They parameterize army group size and individual fighting ability to explain the mortality rate of soldiers in a group during battle. In the last few decades, they have been applied to conflicts involving interactions
-
Ecological Psychology Meets Ecology: Apis mellifera as a Model for Perception-Action, Social Dynamics, and Human Factors Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-11-08 Megan Chiovaro, Alexandra Paxton
Abstract Previous ecological research on social dynamics has largely been conducted on human dyads; however, to provide support for Hume's touchstone, ecological psychologists must also investigate the perception-action and collective action capabilities of non-humans. This approach allows us to circumvent possible cognitivist interpretations of complex social phenomena by exploring social dynamics
-
Educating Older Adults’ Attention towards and Away from Gap-Specifying Information in a Virtual Road-Crossing Task Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-10-13 James Stafford, Matthew Rodger
Abstract Previous research has shown age-related declines in the use of specifying perceptual information to guide action decisions in traffic environments. In the present study, we investigated the effects of cross-modal cueing on perceptual training with older adults in a virtual road-crossing task. Specifically, we tested whether the visual information used to decide which inter-car gaps afforded
-
Effects of Surface Luminance and Texture Discontinuities on Reachableness in Virtual Reality Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-10-08 Jonathan K. Doyon, Joseph D. Clark, Alen Hajnal, Gabor Legradi
Abstract Perceiving distance is at the heart of everyday actions like reaching for a cup of coffee. This action depends on at least the biomechanical restrictions of the actor (i.e., arm-length) and the physical distance between the cup and the actor. Environmental variables may also impact perceived distances for reaching. For a given perceptual judgment, these variables might be thought of as static
-
Collective Dissipative Structures, Force Flow Reciprocity, and the Foundations of Perception–Action Mutuality Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-09-21 Benjamin De Bari, Dilip K. Kondepudi, Bruce A. Kay, James A. Dixon
Abstract Physical systems maintained far from equilibrium exhibit self-organization of structure and behavior. These dissipative structures can exhibit life-like qualities and activities, such as collective and coordinated behaviors. We review such collective behaviors in electrical and chemical dissipative structures. Electrical dissipative structures can functionally coordinate their behaviors to
-
Affordance-Based Surgical Design Methods Considering Biomechanical Artifacts Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-07-21 Wangdo Kim, Duarte Araujo, Sean S. Kohles, Sang-Gook Kim, Helard Henry Alvarez Sanchez
Abstract Surgical design in personalized medicine is often based on native anatomy, which may not accurately reflect the interaction between native musculoskeletal tissues and biomechanical artifacts. To overcome this problem, researchers have developed alternative methods based on affordance-based design. The design process can be viewed in terms of action possibilities provided by the (biological)
-
Search Strategies in Practice: Testing the Effect of Inherent Variability on Search Patterns Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-06-24 Matheus M. Pacheco, Charley W. Lafe, Karl M. Newell
Abstract To execute a motor solution to a given task, individuals search through the space of movement possibilities guided by information that arises from the interaction with task and environment. Through this search, individuals seek to avoid inappropriate solutions through local minima in the task space. The processes that lead to some but not all individuals avoiding local minima and finding solutions
-
Predictability and Variability of a Dynamic Environment Impact Affordance Judgments Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-03-27 Kathryn M. Lucaites, Roshan Venkatakrishnan, Rohith Venkatakrishnan, Ayush Bhargava, Christopher C. Pagano
Abstract A crucial component of locomotion and mobility is the successful navigation of apertures (e.g., doorways, lanes, corridors). While much research has studied perceptions of action capabilities in a static environment, far less work has considered how action capabilities change in a dynamic environment, particularly when the environment moves in unpredictable ways. The current experiment assessed
-
Are Children Attracted to Play Elements with an Open Function? Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-03-09 A. Lynn van der Schaaf, Simone R. Caljouw, Rob Withagen
Abstract The present study aimed to determine the degree to which play elements have an “open function”, and whether children are attracted to them. The architect van Eyck hypothesized that play elements with an open function attract playing children because such elements do not suggest a certain type of behavior and are, thus, likely to stimulate the children’s creativity. Children of three different
-
Human Odometry with a Two-Legged Hopping Gait: A Test of the Gait Symmetry Theory Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2020-01-08 Steven J. Harrison
Abstract Biological odometry refers to the capacity for perceptually measuring distances traveled during locomotion. In the case of haptic odometry, information about distance traversed is generated from the movements of the legs, with coordinated leg motions (i.e., gait patterns) producing patterns of tissue deformation detectable by the haptic perceptual system. The gait symmetry theory of haptic
-
Collective Affordances Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-11-26 Martin Weichold, Gerhard Thonhauser
Abstract This article develops an ecological framework for understanding collective action. This is contrasted with approaches familiar from the collective intentionality debate, which treat individuals (with collective intentions) as fundamental units of collective action. Instead, we turn to social ecological psychology and dynamical systems theory and argue that they provide a promising framework
-
Persons and Affordances Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-11-18 Patrizio Lo Presti
Abstract Interdisciplinary interest in affordances is increasing. This paper is a philosophical contribution. The question is: Do persons offer affordances? Analysis of the concepts ‘person’ and ‘affordance’ supports an affirmative answer. On a widely accepted understanding of what persons are, persons exhibit many of the features typical of socionormative affordances. However, to understand persons
-
An Ecological Approach to Modeling Vision: Quantifying Form Perception Using the Circle Map Equation Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-09-17 Ascher Munion, Jonathan Butner, Jeanine Stefanucci, Michael Geuss, T. N. Story
Abstract Object perception occurs within a dynamic world, where the environment and the observer (both body and eyes) are continually moving, shifting and changing. We seek to characterize and quantify this process from a perspective accounting for the interconnected system of motion in the environment, the perceiver and the eye, unfolding through time. Specifically, we build a mathematical representation
-
Looming Paradoxes: Optical Array Yin-Yang and the Global Array Hypothesis Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-22 Patrick A. Cabe
Abstract Some idealized three-dimensional objects approaching a fixed observation point along a symmetrical radial track yield invariant, but paradoxical, optical geometrical effects. Texture elements on a sphere are progressively self-occluded by the visible boundary of the sphere, until, at contact with the observation point, only a single element (point) is available; paradoxically, that single
-
Infants’ Brain Responses to Looming Danger: Degeneracy of Neural Connectivity Patterns Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 F. R. (Ruud) van der Weel, Seth B. Agyei, Audrey L. H. van der Meer
Abstract A fundamental property of most animals is the ability to see whether an object is approaching on a direct collision course and, if so, when it will collide. Using high-density electroencephalography in infants and a looming stimulus approaching under three different accelerations, we previously found how visual information for impending collision is sustained in the young human nervous system
-
Radical Embodied Cognitive Neuroscience Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 Vicente Raja, Michael L. Anderson
Abstract A radical embodied cognitive neuroscience (RECN) based on ecological psychology requires the understanding of the brain, its structure, and its functions to be compatible with the main tenets of the Gibsonian theory. In this paper, we propose neural reuse as a promising candidate to achieve such understanding. We base our proposal on two fundamental ideas. In section two, we review what we
-
What Are Nervous Systems For? Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 Martin Fultot, P. Adrian Frazier, M. T. Turvey, Claudia Carello
Abstract An underlying bias of contemporary cognitive science is that the brain and nervous system are in the business of carrying out computations and building representations. Gibson’s ecological approach, in contrast, is decidedly noncomputational and nonrepresentational. How, then, are we to construe the role of brain and nervous system? We consider this question against the backdrop of evidence
-
Ecological Neuroscience: From Reduction to Proliferation of Our Resources Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 Ludger van Dijk, Erik Myin
Abstract In one common view, human activity is explained by neural processes, because these implement psychological functions that underlie overt behavior. In the ecological approach, such accounts are taken to be nonexplanatory, because they reify the phenomena they wish to explain. We argue that ecological psychology offers an antidote to such reification with concepts such as resonance, attunement
-
What’s Inside Your Head Once You’ve Figured Out What Your Head’s Inside Of Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 Jelle Bruineberg, Erik Rietveld
Abstract In this article, we investigate the foundations for a Gibsonian neuroscience. There is an increasingly influential current in neuroscience based on pragmatic and selectionist principles, which we think can contribute to ecological psychology. Starting from ecological psychology, we identify three basic constraints any Gibsonian neuroscience needs to adhere to: nonreconstructive perception
-
What Should A “Gibsonian Neuroscience” Look Like? Introduction to the Special Issue Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 Matthieu M. de Wit, Rob Withagen
Abstract Ecological psychology has been criticized for ignoring the brain in its theory formation. In recent years, however, a number of researchers have started asking ecologically-inspired questions about the ways in which not only the embodied activity of the organism in its environment, but also the particulars of the organism's nervous system matter. This work has typically appeared in neuroscience
-
Ecological Representations Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 Sabrina Golonka, Andrew D. Wilson
Abstract Representations feature heavily in cognitive science theories about our behavioral repertoire. Their critical feature is its ability to designate (stand in for) spatially or temporally distant properties, so that organizing our behavior with respect to mental/neural representations means organizing our behavior with respect to the otherwise unavailable property they designate. Representations
-
Grand Unified Theories of the Brain Need Better Understanding of Behavior: The Two-Tiered Emergence of Function Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-07-11 Viktor K. Jirsa, Anthony R. McIntosh, Raoul Huys
Abstract Over the last few decades, neuroscience and various associated disciples have expanded enormously in terms of output, tools, methods, concepts, and large-scale projects. In spite of these developments, the principles underlying brain function and behavior are yet only partially understood. We claim that brain functioning requires the elucidation of the rules associated with all possible task
-
Experience Influences Affordance Perception for Low Crawling Under Barriers With Altered Body Dimensions Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-05-29 Shaziela Ishak, Adam B. Assoian, Steve Rincon
Abstract We examined the role of experience in affordance perception for low crawling with altered body dimensions under barriers of different heights. Adults decided which of five backpacks (10–30 cm thick) they would be able to wear while low crawling under barriers. Participants were assigned to one of three experience conditions. Participants in the Pre/Post-choice experience condition crawled
-
von Uexküll’s Theory of Meaning and Gibson’s Organism–Environment Reciprocity Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-05-29 Martin Fultot, Michael T. Turvey
Abstract Jakob von Uexküll is mostly known for his concept of Umwelt—the meaningful surrounding of animals. von Uexküll insisted vehemently on the fact that Umwelt vindicated Kant’s subjectivist epistemology in the biological domain. However, we argue that a crucial yet widely overlooked development in von Uexküll’s theory of meaning implies a more radical vision strikingly germane to J. J. Gibson’s
-
Affordances Guide Choice Behavior between Equal Schedules of Reinforcement in Rats Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-05-08 Ángel Andrés Jiménez, Denisse A. Ochoa, Polemnia G. Amazeen, Eric L. Amazeen, Felipe Cabrera
Abstract Operant choice theories pose that behavior distribution between options is ruled by the consequences related with these options. Evidence suggests that rats’ performance is attuned to the affordances that the operant setting provides, such as lever height. Our aim was to explore in rats whether lever press distribution was influenced by the affordances furnished by two levers. Lever pressing
-
Swinging Door Invariants: Optical Information from Rotating Panels Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-01-23 Patrick A. Cabe
Abstract Ecological perceptual research focuses on stimulus array invariants as information that might guide organismic (particularly human) actions. Constructed by human agency, built environments entail structural regularities (e.g., planarity, verticality, horizontality, orthogonality) that constrain stimulus array information; here the emphasis is optical information (invariants). Built environments
-
Emotional Processes of Foreign-Language Learning Situated in Real-Time Teacher Support Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-01-22 Naomi M. P. De Ruiter, Majid Elahi Shirvan, Nahid Talebzadeh
Abstract The dynamic turn in the field of psychology of foreign-language learning has inspired researchers to capture the nitty-gritty dynamics of development in inter- or intraindividual variables. Despite the growing number of techniques for analyzing dynamics, there is still a need for techniques that capture how intraindividual dynamics are situated in a changing context. One of the techniques
-
Weather as Ecological Events Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2019-01-16 Alan E. Stewart, Julia J. C. Blau
Abstract Gibson’s (1979 Gibson, J. J. (1979/1986). The ecological approach to visual perception. New York: Psychology Press. (Original work published 1979) [Google Scholar]/1986) definition of ecological events suggests that they are different types of change. Weather events exemplify all three varieties that Gibson outlined and can: (1) change the layout of surfaces, (2) change the color or texture
-
All Perception Engages the Tensegrity-Based Haptic Medium Ecological Psychology (IF 1.688) Pub Date : 2018-11-05 Patrick A. Cabe
Abstract Structurally, bodies of organisms can be described as tensegrity systems, fractally self-similar from whole-body to cellular levels. Sensory receptors embedded within such somatic tensegrity systems comprise haptic perceptual systems. Because the elements of the organismic tensegrity system are all interconnected, that system becomes the medium for haptic perception. Forces acting on any element