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Functional fixedness and body-part-as-object production in pantomime
Megan England1, Elena Nicoladis1
1University of Alberta, Canada.
Acta Psychologica
|August 20, 2018
Summary
Understanding how people pantomime tool use reveals insights into cognitive flexibility. Conceptualizing objects with a single function, rather than multiple, predicts using a body part as the object (BPO) during pantomime.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Human Motor Control
Background:
- Pantomiming tool use involves either using a body part as the object (BPO) or imagining the object (IO).
- The cognitive underpinnings of BPO production in non-clinical adults remain an area of investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of object conceptualization in body part as object (BPO) production during tool pantomime.
- To determine if functional fixedness influences BPO production.
Main Methods:
- Four studies were conducted with non-clinical adult participants.
- Methods included varying tool familiarity, visual-motor experience, object presentation (2D vs. reality), and experimentally manipulating functional fixedness.
Main Results:
- Tool familiarity and prior visual-motor experience did not impact BPO production.
- A trend suggested higher BPO production for 2D images versus real objects.
- Participants produced significantly more BPOs when unfamiliar tools were presented as having only one function compared to five.
Conclusions:
- Conceptualizing objects as having a fixed, singular function predicts increased body part as object (BPO) production.
- Functional fixedness, the tendency to perceive an object with only its typical use, is a key factor in BPO production during tool pantomime.
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