Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 10, 2026
07:14
Virtual Agent for Real-Time Motivational Interviewing by Integrating Adaptive Nonverbal Behavior and Language Models
Published on: December 23, 2025
How to bootstrap a human communication system
Nicolas Fay1, Michael Arbib, Simon Garrod
1School of Psychology, University of Western Australia.
Cognitive Science
|June 15, 2013
Summary
Gesture is a more effective and efficient method for bootstrapping communication systems than vocalization. This study shows gesture
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Science
- Linguistics
- Evolutionary Psychology
Background:
- Human communication systems are complex and rely on language.
- The origins of language and early communication remain debated.
- Motivated signs, linked by resemblance or association, may aid early communication.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how human communication systems can emerge without conventional language.
- To compare the effectiveness of non-linguistic vocalization and gesture in bootstrapping communication.
- To determine the role of motivated signs in establishing novel communication.
Main Methods:
- An experimental study involving participants communicating items without using existing language.
- Three communication conditions: non-linguistic vocalization, gesture, and combined vocalization/gesture.
- Communication success and efficiency (time) were measured.
Main Results:
- Gesture was more effective and efficient than non-linguistic vocalization for communication.
- Performance varied across item categories (emotion, object, action).
- Combining gesture and vocalization did not enhance communication over gesture alone.
Conclusions:
- Gesture is a superior modality for bootstrapping a communication system in the absence of language.
- Gesture's effectiveness is attributed to its suitability for producing motivated signs.
- This provides experimental evidence supporting the role of gesture in early human communication.
Related Concept Videos
01:24Bootstrapping
The term "bootstrap" originated in the 19th century as a metaphor for self-improvement or achieving something independently, without external assistance. This concept extends to statistical bootstrapping, a self-contained method for estimating population parameters through resampling, even though it can be computationally intensive. Developed by the American statistician Dr. Bradley Efron in 1979, bootstrapping provides a robust way to perform inference when the original sample size is small or...
01:28Communication
Sharing information, concepts, and emotions to foster mutual understanding is communication. The sender, recipient, and transaction must be considered in this manner. The sender is the person who shares the message, the recipient is the person who receives and understands the message, and the transaction is the method used to deliver the message and the variables that affect the communication's context and surroundings. The nurse-client connection is built on therapeutic communication.
Within...
Within...
01:03Communication
Communication between two animals occurs when one animal transmits an information signal that causes a change in the animal that receives the information. Organisms communicate with one another in a host of different ways. Signals can be auditory, chemical, visual, tactile, or a combination of these. Communication is a critical behavioral adaptation that promotes survival, growth, and reproduction.
01:23Design Example
The innovation of touch-tone telephony revolutionized the telecommunications industry by replacing the traditional rotary dial with a dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) signaling system. This system uses a matrix-style keypad with buttons arranged in four rows and three columns, creating 12 distinct signals each assigned to a pair of frequencies. Each button press results in a simultaneous generation of two sinusoidal tones – one from a low-frequency group (697 to 941 Hz) and one from a...
01:30Barriers to Effective Communication I
A communication barrier is any distortion or interruption during a conversation, resulting in miscommunication of the message. A good communicator should know these barriers and continuously check for the listener's understanding by obtaining feedback.
Communication barriers include the following:
Physiological barriers: They are limitations caused by a person's health condition or disability, such as hearing loss, poor eyesight, illness, or unconsciousness. An example to overcome this barrier...
Communication barriers include the following:
Physiological barriers: They are limitations caused by a person's health condition or disability, such as hearing loss, poor eyesight, illness, or unconsciousness. An example to overcome this barrier...
01:21Barriers to Effective Communication II
The barriers to effective communication also include cultural barriers, semantic barriers, gender barriers, and time constraints.
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...