Spontaneous Gestures Influence Strategy Choices in Problem Solving

Psychological Science - Tập 22 Số 9 - Trang 1138-1144 - 2011
Martha W. Alibali1, Robert C. Spencer2, Lucy Knox3, Sotaro Kita3
1Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1202 W. Johnson St., Madison, WI 53706, USA
2University of Wisconsin, Madison
3University of Birmingham

Tóm tắt

Do gestures merely reflect problem-solving processes, or do they play a functional role in problem solving? We hypothesized that gestures highlight and structure perceptual-motor information, and thereby make such information more likely to be used in problem solving. Participants in two experiments solved problems requiring the prediction of gear movement, either with gesture allowed or with gesture prohibited. Such problems can be correctly solved using either a perceptual-motor strategy (simulation of gear movements) or an abstract strategy (the parity strategy). Participants in the gesture-allowed condition were more likely to use perceptual-motor strategies than were participants in the gesture-prohibited condition. Gesture promoted use of perceptual-motor strategies both for participants who talked aloud while solving the problems (Experiment 1) and for participants who solved the problems silently (Experiment 2). Thus, spontaneous gestures influence strategy choices in problem solving.

Từ khóa


Tài liệu tham khảo

10.1111/1467-9280.00163

10.1006/cogp.1993.1012

10.1075/gest.10.1.02ali

10.1080/016909600750040571

10.1348/000712602162526

10.1177/0956797610385353

10.1111/j.1467-7687.2009.00905.x

10.1037/0096-3445.136.4.539

10.1037/a0021790

10.1016/0010-0277(86)90053-3

de Ruiter J.P. (1998). Gesture and speech production (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

10.1006/drev.1997.0444

10.1023/A:1021487510204

10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02297.x

10.1207/s15427633scc0504_3

10.3758/PBR.15.3.495

10.1037/a0017022

10.1017/CBO9780511620850.011

10.1016/j.jecp.2008.09.007

10.1207/s15516709cog0000_15

10.1037/0012-1649.40.6.1059

10.1111/j.1467-9280.1996.tb00364.x

10.1207/s15516709cog2004_1

10.1093/oso/9780195077872.001.0001

10.1207/s15427633scc0601_1

10.2307/1423612

Thông tin
Thông tin xuất bản

Psychological Science

Tập 22 Số 9

1138-1144

Thông tin tác giả