Visual perception of force: comment on White (2012)

White (2012) proposed that kinematic features in a visual percept are matched to stored representations containing information regarding forces (based on prior haptic experience) and that information in the matched, stored representations regarding forces is then incorporated into visual perception. Although some elements of White's (2012) account appear consistent with previous findings and theories, other elements do not appear consistent with previous findings and theories or are in need of clarification. Some of the latter elements include the (a) differences between perception and impression (representation of force; relationship of force and resistance; role and necessity of stored representations and of concurrent simulation; roles of rules, cues, and heuristics), (b) characteristics of object motion and human movement (whether motion is internally generated or externally generated and whether motion is biological or nonbiological; generalization of human action and the extent to which perceived force depends upon similarity of object movement to human patterns of movement), (c) related perceptual and cognitive phenomena (representational momentum, imagery, psychophysics of force perception, perception of causality), and (d) scope and limitations of White's account (attributions of intentionality, falsifiability).