Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex01:23

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

The somatosensory cortex in the parietal lobes is crucial for interpreting sensory data such as touch, temperature, and proprioception. The somatosensory cortex, situated in the parietal lobes, plays a vital role in interpreting sensory information like touch, temperature, and proprioception—awareness of body position. This specialized brain region features an organized structure wherein neurons at the top primarily process sensations originating from the lower body. In contrast, those at the...
Somatosensation01:33

Somatosensation

The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.
Association Areas of the Cortex01:21

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association areas are regions of the cerebral cortex that do not have a specific sensory or motor function. Instead, they integrate and interpret information from various sources to enable higher cognitive processes such as memory, learning, and decision-making. Some key association areas include the following:
Prefrontal Association Area: This area is located in the frontal lobe and is involved in planning, decision-making, and moderating social behavior. It connects with primary motor areas,...
Sensory Perception: Organization of the Somatosensory System01:11

Sensory Perception: Organization of the Somatosensory System

The somatosensory system is the central and peripheral nervous system component that senses and processes touch, pressure, pain, temperature, and body position or proprioception. The process of sensation takes place at three levels:
The receptor level:
The receptor level is the first stage of sensation. It involves the detection of a stimulus by specialized sensory receptors. The stimulus must arrive within the receptor's receptive field. Next, the receptor converts the energy of the stimulus...
Functional Brain Systems: Limbic System01:15

Functional Brain Systems: Limbic System

The limbic system, often called the "emotional brain," is a complex set of structures located deep within the brain. The intricate network of the limbic system supports a wide range of psychological functions, from emotional regulation to memory formation and sensory processing. This functional brain region encompasses specific parts of the diencephalon and the cerebrum, integrating the higher mental functions of the cerebral cortex with the primitive emotional responses of the deep brain...
Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language01:10

Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language

Language is a system of communication that allows the expression of thoughts, ideas, and feelings. The brain processes language in both hemispheres.
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Who gets it? Explaining variability in children's written irony comprehension.

Journal of child language·2026
Same author

Distinguishing abstraction from abstractness: Specificity norms for 8,500 English words.

Behavior research methods·2026
Same author

Individual differences in mentalizing skills and their relationship to concept processing.

Acta psychologica·2026
Same author

Developing Associations to the Sounds of a Name.

Developmental science·2025
Same author

The status of women cognitive scientists in Canada 6 years later: Insights from publicly available Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) funding data.

Canadian journal of experimental psychology = Revue canadienne de psychologie experimentale·2025
Same author

Reward as a facet of word meaning: Ratings of motivation for 8,601 English words.

Behavior research methods·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 24, 2026

Brain Imaging Investigation of the Neural Correlates of Observing Virtual Social Interactions
10:45

Brain Imaging Investigation of the Neural Correlates of Observing Virtual Social Interactions

Published on: July 6, 2011

The neural correlates of the body-object interaction effect in semantic processing.

Ian S Hargreaves1, Gemma A Leonard, Penny M Pexman

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary AB, Canada.

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
|March 1, 2012
PubMed
Summary

This study investigated body-object interaction (BOI) and its effect on brain activity during word processing. High BOI words activated brain regions associated with sensorimotor information and kinesthetic memory, supporting their role in semantic processing.

Keywords:
body-object interactionfMRIsemantic categorization tasksemantic processingsemantic richnesssensorimotor

More Related Videos

Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology
05:38

Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology

Published on: June 29, 2021

Decoding Natural Behavior from Neuroethological Embedding
08:00

Decoding Natural Behavior from Neuroethological Embedding

Published on: October 3, 2025

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 24, 2026

Brain Imaging Investigation of the Neural Correlates of Observing Virtual Social Interactions
10:45

Brain Imaging Investigation of the Neural Correlates of Observing Virtual Social Interactions

Published on: July 6, 2011

Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology
05:38

Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology

Published on: June 29, 2021

Decoding Natural Behavior from Neuroethological Embedding
08:00

Decoding Natural Behavior from Neuroethological Embedding

Published on: October 3, 2025

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Psycholinguistics
  • Neuroimaging

Background:

  • Body-object interaction (BOI) is a semantic dimension reflecting physical interactability with word referents.
  • Prior research suggests high BOI words facilitate lexical and semantic processing.
  • The neural basis of BOI effects, particularly in sensorimotor areas, remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the neural correlates of body-object interaction (BOI) during semantic processing.
  • To examine if BOI influences activation in perceptual or sensorimotor brain regions.

Main Methods:

  • Event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was employed.
  • Participants performed a semantic categorization task (SCT).
  • Sixteen healthy adults were scanned during the task.

Main Results:

  • Words with high body-object interaction (BOI) elicited greater activation in the left inferior parietal lobule (supramarginal gyrus, BA 40).
  • This region is known to be involved in kinesthetic memory and sensory association.
  • Activation patterns linked high BOI words to sensorimotor information availability.

Conclusions:

  • The findings provide neural evidence that the body-object interaction (BOI) dimension reflects sensorimotor information availability.
  • This sensorimotor information contributes to the semantic processing of words.
  • The study supports an embodied cognition perspective in word recognition.