1
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Wang S, Djebbara Z, Sanches de Oliveira G, Gramann K. Human brain dynamics dissociate early perceptual and late motor-related stages of affordance processing. Eur J Neurosci 2024; 60:4639-4660. [PMID: 39034404 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.16461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Revised: 04/24/2024] [Accepted: 06/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/23/2024]
Abstract
Affordances, the opportunities for action offered by the environment to an agent, are vital for meaningful behaviour and exist in every interaction with the environment. There is an ongoing debate in the field about whether the perception of affordances is an automated process. Some studies suggest that affordance perception is an automated process that is independent from the visual context and bodily interaction with the environment, whereas others argue that it is modulated by the visual and motor context in which affordances are perceived. The present paper aims to resolve this debate by examining affordance automaticity from the perspective of sensorimotor time windows. To investigate the impact of different forms of bodily interactions with an environment, that is, the movement context (physical vs. joystick movement), we replicated a previous study on affordance perception in which participants actively moved through differently wide doors in an immersive 3D virtual environment. In the present study, we displayed the same environment on a 2D screen with participants moving through doors of different widths using the keys on a standard keyboard. We compared components of the event-related potential (ERP) from the continuously recorded electroencephalogram (EEG) that were previously reported to be related to affordance perception of architectural transitions (passable and impassable doors). Comparing early sensory and later motor-related ERPs, our study replicated ERPs reflecting early affordance perception but found differences in later motor-related components. These results indicate a shift from automated perception of affordances during early sensorimotor time windows to movement context dependence of affordance perception at later stages, suggesting that affordance perception is a dynamic and flexible process that changes over sensorimotor stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng Wang
- Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Zakaria Djebbara
- Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Architecture, Design and Media Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark
| | | | - Klaus Gramann
- Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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2
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Pastor A, Bourdin-Kreitz P. Comparing episodic memory outcomes from walking augmented reality and stationary virtual reality encoding experiences. Sci Rep 2024; 14:7580. [PMID: 38555291 PMCID: PMC10981735 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-57668-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Episodic Memory (EM) is the neurocognitive capacity to consciously recollect personally experienced events in specific spatio-temporal contexts. Although the relevance of spatial and temporal information is widely acknowledged in the EM literature, it remains unclear whether and how EM performance and organisation is modulated by self-motion, and by motor- and visually- salient environmental features (EFs) of the encoding environment. This study examines whether and how EM is modulated by locomotion and the EFs encountered in a controlled lifelike learning route within a large-scale building. Twenty-eight healthy participants took part in a museum-tour encoding task implemented in walking Augmented Reality (AR) and stationary Virtual Reality (VR) conditions. EM performance and organisation were assessed immediately and 48-hours after trials using a Remember/Familiar recognition paradigm. Results showed a significant positive modulation effect of locomotion on distinctive EM aspects. Findings highlighted a significant performance enhancement effect of stairway-adjacent locations compared to dead-end and mid-route stimuli-presentation locations. The results of this study may serve as design criteria to facilitate neurocognitive rehabilitative interventions of EM. The underlying technological framework developed for this study represents a novel and ecologically sound method for evaluating EM processes in lifelike situations, allowing researchers a naturalistic perspective into the complex nature of EM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alvaro Pastor
- XR-Lab, Research-HUB, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
- Computer Science, Multimedia and Telecommunication Department, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Pierre Bourdin-Kreitz
- XR-Lab, Research-HUB, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain.
- Computer Science, Multimedia and Telecommunication Department, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain.
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3
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Charalambous E, Djebbara Z. On natural attunement: Shared rhythms between the brain and the environment. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 155:105438. [PMID: 37898445 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/30/2023]
Abstract
Rhythms exist both in the embodied brain and the built environment. Becoming attuned to the rhythms of the environment, such as repetitive columns, can greatly affect perception. Here, we explore how the built environment affects human cognition and behavior through the concept of natural attunement, often resulting from the coordination of a person's sensory and motor systems with the rhythmic elements of the environment. We argue that the built environment should not be reduced to mere states, representations, and single variables but instead be considered a bundle of highly related continuous signals with which we can resonate. Resonance and entrainment are dynamic processes observed when intrinsic frequencies of the oscillatory brain are influenced by the oscillations of an external signal. This allows visual rhythmic stimulations of the environment to affect the brain and body through neural entrainment, cross-frequency coupling, and phase resetting. We review how real-world architectural settings can affect neural dynamics, cognitive processes, and behavior in people, suggesting the crucial role of everyday rhythms in the brain-body-environment relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Zakaria Djebbara
- Aalborg University, Department of Architecture, Design, Media, and Technology, Denmark; Technical University of Berlin, Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Germany.
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4
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Presti P, Galasso GM, Ruzzon D, Avanzini P, Caruana F, Rizzolatti G, Vecchiato G. Architectural experience influences the processing of others' body expressions. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2302215120. [PMID: 37782807 PMCID: PMC10576150 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2302215120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The interplay between space and cognition is a crucial issue in Neuroscience leading to the development of multiple research fields. However, the relationship between architectural space and the movement of the inhabitants and their interactions has been too often neglected, failing to provide a unifying view of architecture's capacity to modulate social cognition broadly. We bridge this gap by requesting participants to judge avatars' emotional expression (high vs. low arousal) at the end of their promenade inside high- or low-arousing architectures. Stimuli were presented in virtual reality to ensure a dynamic, naturalistic experience. High-density electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded to assess the neural responses to the avatar's presentation. Observing highly aroused avatars increased Late Positive Potentials (LPP), in line with previous evidence. Strikingly, 250 ms before the occurrence of the LPP, P200 amplitude increased due to the experience of low-arousing architectures, reflecting an early greater attention during the processing of body expressions. In addition, participants stared longer at the avatar's head and judged the observed posture as more arousing. Source localization highlighted a contribution of the dorsal premotor cortex to both P200 and LPP. In conclusion, the immersive and dynamic architectural experience modulates human social cognition. In addition, the motor system plays a role in processing architecture and body expressions suggesting that the space and social cognition interplay is rooted in overlapping neural substrates. This study demonstrates that the manipulation of mere architectural space is sufficient to influence human social cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo Presti
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, Parma43125, Italy
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Parma43125, Italy
| | - Gaia Maria Galasso
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Parma43125, Italy
| | - Davide Ruzzon
- Dipartimento di Culture del Progetto, IUAV University, Venice30135, Italy
- TUNED, Lombardini22 s.p.a., Milan20143, Italy
| | - Pietro Avanzini
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, Parma43125, Italy
| | - Fausto Caruana
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, Parma43125, Italy
| | - Giacomo Rizzolatti
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, Parma43125, Italy
| | - Giovanni Vecchiato
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, Parma43125, Italy
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Parma43125, Italy
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5
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Djebbara Z, Kalantari S. Affordances and curvature preference: The case of real objects and spaces. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2023; 1527:14-19. [PMID: 37429830 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.15038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/12/2023]
Abstract
Chuquichambi and colleagues recently questioned the prevailing belief that a universal human visual preference exists for curved shapes and lines. Their comprehensive meta-analysis demonstrated that while curvature preference is widespread, it is not universally constant or invariant. By revisiting their dataset, we made an intriguing discovery: a negative relationship between curvature preference and an object's "affordances." Taking an embodiment perspective into account, we propose an explanation for this phenomenon, suggesting that the diminished curvature preference in objects with abundant affordances can be understood through the lens of embodied cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zakaria Djebbara
- Department of Architecture, Design, Media, and Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark
- Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Saleh Kalantari
- Department of Human Centered Design, College of Human Ecology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
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6
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Maselli A, Gordon J, Eluchans M, Lancia GL, Thiery T, Moretti R, Cisek P, Pezzulo G. Beyond simple laboratory studies: Developing sophisticated models to study rich behavior. Phys Life Rev 2023; 46:220-244. [PMID: 37499620 DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2023.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
Psychology and neuroscience are concerned with the study of behavior, of internal cognitive processes, and their neural foundations. However, most laboratory studies use constrained experimental settings that greatly limit the range of behaviors that can be expressed. While focusing on restricted settings ensures methodological control, it risks impoverishing the object of study: by restricting behavior, we might miss key aspects of cognitive and neural functions. In this article, we argue that psychology and neuroscience should increasingly adopt innovative experimental designs, measurement methods, analysis techniques and sophisticated computational models to probe rich, ecologically valid forms of behavior, including social behavior. We discuss the challenges of studying rich forms of behavior as well as the novel opportunities offered by state-of-the-art methodologies and new sensing technologies, and we highlight the importance of developing sophisticated formal models. We exemplify our arguments by reviewing some recent streams of research in psychology, neuroscience and other fields (e.g., sports analytics, ethology and robotics) that have addressed rich forms of behavior in a model-based manner. We hope that these "success cases" will encourage psychologists and neuroscientists to extend their toolbox of techniques with sophisticated behavioral models - and to use them to study rich forms of behavior as well as the cognitive and neural processes that they engage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonella Maselli
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, Rome, Italy
| | - Jeremy Gordon
- University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, 94704, United States
| | - Mattia Eluchans
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, Rome, Italy; University of Rome "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy
| | - Gian Luca Lancia
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, Rome, Italy; University of Rome "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy
| | - Thomas Thiery
- Department of Psychology, University of Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Riccardo Moretti
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, Rome, Italy; University of Rome "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy
| | - Paul Cisek
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Giovanni Pezzulo
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, Rome, Italy.
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7
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Presti P, Ruzzon D, Avanzini P, Caruana F, Rizzolatti G, Vecchiato G. Measuring arousal and valence generated by the dynamic experience of architectural forms in virtual environments. Sci Rep 2022; 12:13376. [PMID: 35927322 PMCID: PMC9352685 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-17689-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 07/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The built environment represents the stage surrounding our everyday life activities. To investigate how architectural design impacts individuals' affective states, we measured subjective judgments of perceived valence (pleasant and unpleasant) and arousal after the dynamic experience of a progressive change of macro visuospatial dimensions of virtual spaces. To this aim, we developed a parametric model that allowed us to create 54 virtual architectural designs characterized by a progressive change of sidewalls distance, ceiling and windows height, and color of the environment. Decreasing sidewalls distance, ceiling height variation, and increasing windows height significantly affected the participants' emotional state within virtual environments. Indeed, such architectural designs generated high arousing and unpleasant states according to subjective judgment. Overall, we observed that valence and arousal scores are affected by all the dynamic form factors which modulated the spaciousness of the surrounding. Showing that the dynamic experience of virtual environments enables the possibility of measuring the emotional impact of macro spatial architectural features, the present findings may lay the groundwork for future experiments investigating the effects that the architectural design has on individuals' mental state as a fundamental factor for the creation of future spaces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo Presti
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, 43125, Parma, Italy.,Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, 43125, Parma, Italy
| | - Davide Ruzzon
- TUNED, Lombardini22, 20143, Milan, Italy.,Dipartimento Culture del Progetto, IUAV, 30125, Venice, Italy
| | - Pietro Avanzini
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, 43125, Parma, Italy
| | - Fausto Caruana
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, 43125, Parma, Italy
| | - Giacomo Rizzolatti
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, 43125, Parma, Italy
| | - Giovanni Vecchiato
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy, 43125, Parma, Italy.
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8
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Djebbara Z, Jensen OB, Parada FJ, Gramann K. Neuroscience and architecture: Modulating behavior through sensorimotor responses to the built environment. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 138:104715. [PMID: 35654280 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2022] [Revised: 05/23/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
As we move through the world, natural and built environments implicitly guide behavior by appealing to certain sensory and motor dynamics. This process can be motivated by automatic attention to environmental features that resonate with specific sensorimotor responses. This review aims at providing a psychobiological framework describing how environmental features can lead to automated sensorimotor responses through defined neurophysiological mechanisms underlying attention. Through the use of automated processes in subsets of cortical structures, the goal of this framework is to describe on a neuronal level the functional link between the designed environment and sensorimotor responses. By distinguishing between environmental features and sensorimotor responses we elaborate on how automatic behavior employs the environment for sensorimotor adaptation. This is realized through a thalamo-cortical network integrating environmental features with motor aspects of behavior. We highlight the underlying transthalamic transmission from an Enactive and predictive perspective and review recent studies that effectively modulated behavior by systematically manipulating environmental features. We end by suggesting a promising combination of neuroimaging and computational analysis for future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zakaria Djebbara
- Department of Architecture, Design, Media, and Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark; Biopsychology and Neuroergonomics, Technical University Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Ole B Jensen
- Department of Architecture, Design, Media, and Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Francisco J Parada
- Centro de Estudios en Neurociencia Humana y Neuropsicología, Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Diego Portales, Santiago, Chile
| | - Klaus Gramann
- Biopsychology and Neuroergonomics, Technical University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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9
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Wang S, Sanches de Oliveira G, Djebbara Z, Gramann K. The Embodiment of Architectural Experience: A Methodological Perspective on Neuro-Architecture. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 16:833528. [PMID: 35615743 PMCID: PMC9124889 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.833528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
People spend a large portion of their time inside built environments. Research in neuro-architecture-the neural basis of human perception of and interaction with the surrounding architecture-promises to advance our understanding of the cognitive processes underlying this common human experience and also to inspire evidence-based architectural design principles. This article examines the current state of the field and offers a path for moving closer to fulfilling this promise. The paper is structured in three sections, beginning with an introduction to neuro-architecture, outlining its main objectives and giving an overview of experimental research in the field. Afterward, two methodological limitations attending current brain-imaging architectural research are discussed: the first concerns the limited focus of the research, which is often restricted to the aesthetic dimension of architectural experience; the second concerns practical limitations imposed by the typical experimental tools and methods, which often require participants to remain stationary and prevent naturalistic interaction with architectural surroundings. Next, we propose that the theoretical basis of ecological psychology provides a framework for addressing these limitations and motivates emphasizing the role of embodied exploration in architectural experience, which encompasses but is not limited to aesthetic contemplation. In this section, some basic concepts within ecological psychology and their convergences with architecture are described. Lastly, we introduce Mobile Brain/Body Imaging (MoBI) as one emerging brain imaging approach with the potential to improve the ecological validity of neuro-architecture research. Accordingly, we suggest that combining theoretical and conceptual resources from ecological psychology with state-of-the-art neuroscience methods (Mobile Brain/Body Imaging) is a promising way to bring neuro-architecture closer to accomplishing its scientific and practical goals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng Wang
- Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Zakaria Djebbara
- Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Architecture, Design and Media Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Klaus Gramann
- Biological Psychology and Neuroergonomics, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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10
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Ramanoël S, Durteste M, Delaux A, de Saint Aubert JB, Arleo A. Future trends in brain aging research: Visuo-cognitive functions at stake during mobility and spatial navigation. AGING BRAIN 2022; 2:100034. [PMID: 36908887 PMCID: PMC9997160 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbas.2022.100034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2022] [Revised: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Aging leads to a complex pattern of structural and functional changes, gradually affecting sensorimotor, perceptual, and cognitive processes. These multiscale changes can hinder older adults' interaction with their environment, progressively reducing their autonomy in performing tasks relevant to everyday life. Autonomy loss can further be aggravated by the onset and progression of neurodegenerative disorders (e.g., age-related macular degeneration at the sensory input level; and Alzheimer's disease at the cognitive level). In this context, spatial cognition offers a representative case of high-level brain function that involves multimodal sensory processing, postural control, locomotion, spatial orientation, and wayfinding capabilities. Hence, studying spatial behavior and its neural bases can help identify early markers of pathogenic age-related processes. Until now, the neural correlates of spatial cognition have mostly been studied in static conditions thereby disregarding perceptual (other than visual) and motor aspects of natural navigation. In this review, we first demonstrate how visuo-motor integration and the allocation of cognitive resources during locomotion lie at the heart of real-world spatial navigation. Second, we present how technological advances such as immersive virtual reality and mobile neuroimaging solutions can enable researchers to explore the interplay between perception and action. Finally, we argue that the future of brain aging research in spatial navigation demands a widespread shift toward the use of naturalistic, ecologically valid experimental paradigms to address the challenges of mobility and autonomy decline across the lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen Ramanoël
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, 17 rue Moreau, F-75012 Paris, France.,Université Côte d'Azur, LAMHESS, Nice, France
| | - Marion Durteste
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, 17 rue Moreau, F-75012 Paris, France
| | - Alexandre Delaux
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, 17 rue Moreau, F-75012 Paris, France
| | | | - Angelo Arleo
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, 17 rue Moreau, F-75012 Paris, France
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11
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The road towards understanding embodied decisions. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 131:722-736. [PMID: 34563562 PMCID: PMC7614807 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.09.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2021] [Revised: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Most current decision-making research focuses on classical economic scenarios, where choice offers are prespecified and where action dynamics play no role in the decision. However, our brains evolved to deal with different choice situations: "embodied decisions". As examples of embodied decisions, consider a lion that has to decide which gazelle to chase in the savannah or a person who has to select the next stone to jump on when crossing a river. Embodied decision settings raise novel questions, such as how people select from time-varying choice options and how they track the most relevant choice attributes; but they have long remained challenging to study empirically. Here, we summarize recent progress in the study of embodied decisions in sports analytics and experimental psychology. Furthermore, we introduce a formal methodology to identify the relevant dimensions of embodied choices (present and future affordances) and to map them into the attributes of classical economic decisions (probabilities and utilities), hence aligning them. Studying embodied decisions will greatly expand our understanding of what decision-making is.
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12
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Skov M, Vartanian O, Navarrete G, Modroño C, Chatterjee A, Leder H, Gonzalez-Mora JL, Nadal M. Differences in regional gray matter volume predict the extent to which openness influences judgments of beauty and pleasantness of interior architectural spaces. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2021; 1507:133-145. [PMID: 34480374 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.14684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Hedonic evaluation of sensory objects varies from person to person. While this variability has been linked to differences in experience, little is known about why stimuli lead to different evaluations in different people. We used linear mixed-effects models to determine the extent to which the openness, contour, and ceiling height of interior spaces influenced the beauty and pleasantness ratings of 18 participants. Then, by analyzing structural brain images acquired for the same group of participants, we asked if any regional gray matter volume (rGMV) covaried with these differences in the extent to which the three features influence beauty and pleasantness ratings. Voxel-based morphometry analysis revealed that the influence of openness on pleasantness ratings correlated with rGMV in the anterior prefrontal cortex (Brodmann area (BA)-10), and the influence of openness on beauty ratings correlated with rGMV in the temporal pole (BA38) and cluster, including the posterior cingulate cortex (BA31) and paracentral lobule (BA5/6). There were no significant correlations involving contour or ceiling height. Our results suggest that regional variance in gray matter volume may play a role in the computation of hedonic valuation and account for differences in the way people weigh certain attributes of interior architectural spaces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Skov
- Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Centre for Functional and Diagnostic Imaging and Research, Copenhagen University Hospital - Amager and Hvidovre, Copenhagen, Denmark.,Decision Neuroscience Research Group, Copenhagen Business School, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Oshin Vartanian
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Gorka Navarrete
- Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago de Chile, Chile
| | - Cristian Modroño
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain.,University Institute of Neuroscience, Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain
| | - Anjan Chatterjee
- Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Helmut Leder
- Faculty of Psychology & Cognitive Science Research Platform, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - José L Gonzalez-Mora
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain.,University Institute of Neuroscience, Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain
| | - Marcos Nadal
- University of the Balearic Islands, Palma de Mallorca, Spain
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13
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Chatterjee A, Coburn A, Weinberger A. The neuroaesthetics of architectural spaces. Cogn Process 2021; 22:115-120. [PMID: 34448969 DOI: 10.1007/s10339-021-01043-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Accepted: 06/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
People in developed countries spend over 90% of their time in built environments. Yet, we know little about its pervasive and often hidden effects on our mental state and our brain. Despite growing interest in the neuroscience of architecture, much of this scholarship has been descriptive. The typical approach is to map knowledge of the brain onto constructs important to architecture. For a programmatic line of research, how might descriptive neuroarchitecture be transformed into an experimental science? We review the literature outlining how one might consider experimental architecture first by examining the role of natural features in architectural settings. We then turn to the human experience of occupants, and hypothesized that aesthetic responses to architectural interiors reduce to key psychological dimensions. Conducting Psychometric Network Analysis (PNA) and Principal Components Analysis (PCA) on responses to curated images, we identified three components: coherence (ease of organizing and comprehending a scene), fascination (informational richness and generated interest), and hominess (personal ease and comfort). Coherence and fascination are well-established dimensions for natural scenes. Hominess was a new dimension related to architectural interiors. Central to all three communities in the PNA was emotional valence. We also reanalyzed data from an earlier fMRI study in which participants made beauty and approach-avoidance decisions while viewing the same images. Regardless of task, the degree of fascination covaried with neural activity in the right lingual gyrus. In contrast, coherence covaried with neural activity in the left inferior occipital gyrus only when participants judged beauty, and hominess covaried with neural activity in the left cuneus only when they made approach-avoidance decisions. The visual brain harbours hidden sensitivities to architectural interiors that are captured by the dimensions of coherence, fascination, and hominess. These findings represent first steps towards an experimental neuroarchitecture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anjan Chatterjee
- Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA.
| | - Alex Coburn
- University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Adam Weinberger
- Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA.,Georgetown Laboratory for Relational Cognition, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA
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14
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Fingerhut J. Enacting Media. An Embodied Account of Enculturation Between Neuromediality and New Cognitive Media Theory. Front Psychol 2021; 12:635993. [PMID: 34113285 PMCID: PMC8185019 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.635993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This paper argues that the still-emerging paradigm of situated cognition requires a more systematic perspective on media to capture the enculturation of the human mind. By virtue of being media, cultural artifacts present central experiential models of the world for our embodied minds to latch onto. The paper identifies references to external media within embodied, extended, enactive, and predictive approaches to cognition, which remain underdeveloped in terms of the profound impact that media have on our mind. To grasp this impact, I propose an enactive account of media that is based on expansive habits as media-structured, embodied ways of bringing forth meaning and new domains of values. We apply such habits, for instance, when seeing a picture or perceiving a movie. They become established through a process of reciprocal adaptation between media artifacts and organisms and define the range of viable actions within such a media ecology. Within an artifactual habit, we then become attuned to a specific media work (e.g., a TV series, a picture, a text, or even a city) that engages us. Both the plurality of habits and the dynamical adjustments within a habit require a more flexible neural architecture than is addressed by classical cognitive neuroscience. To detail how neural and media processes interlock, I will introduce the concept of neuromediality and discuss radical predictive processing accounts that could contribute to the externalization of the mind by treating media themselves as generative models of the world. After a short primer on general media theory, I discuss media examples in three domains: pictures and moving images; digital media; architecture and the built environment. This discussion demonstrates the need for a new cognitive media theory based on enactive artifactual habits-one that will help us gain perspective on the continuous re-mediation of our mind.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joerg Fingerhut
- Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Department of Philosophy, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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