Do you have a point? Exploring kinematic and electrophysiological correlates of communicative intentions in pointing gestures
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2019-03-29
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en
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Abstract
On a day-to-day basis, our numerous communicative and non-communicative acts are driven by a myriad of intentions.This study investigated whether there was an influence of communicative intentions on the behavioural (kinematic) and electrophysiological correlates (in the period preceding movement onset) of pointing gestures. Kinematic and electrophysiological data were recorded, while the communicative intention motivating the production of the gesture was varied. It was found that the time taken to initiate the gesture, the hold duration of the gesture and the mean velocity of the produced gesture varied when the information encoded by the communicative intention varied quantitatively and qualitatively. Frontal and post-P200 effects observed in the ERPs were suggestive of the role of attentional mechanisms early on in the planning phase of pointing gestures. This further indicated the influence of information encoded in the types of communicative intentions on the gesture produced. In retrospect it confirms the age-old distinction between Declarative and Imperative pointing. The results of the study further contribute to a better picture of the role of socio-cognitive processes, action and attention in the production of communicative gestures.
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Faculteit der Sociale Wetenschappen