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Sensorimotor and interoceptive dimensions in concrete and abstract concepts
Caterina Villani1, Luisa Lugli1, Marco Tullio Liuzza2
1Department of Philosophy and Communication, University of Bologna, via Azzo Gardino, 23, Bologna 40122, Italy.
Journal of Memory and Language
|September 21, 2020
Summary
Abstract concepts are more linked to bodily feelings (interoception) than concrete concepts, which rely less on language processing. Different abstract concepts draw on distinct sensory and motor experiences.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Linguistics
Background:
- Abstract concepts may involve more interoceptive, social, and linguistic processing than concrete concepts.
- Understanding the representation of diverse abstract concept subtypes is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how different types of abstract and concrete concepts are grounded in sensory and motor experiences.
- To test interference effects on conceptual processing using motor and interoceptive tasks.
Main Methods:
- Participants rated the difficulty of concrete (objects, tools, food) and abstract (Philosophical/Spiritual, Physical Space/Time/Quantity, Emotional/Mental/Social) concepts.
- Interference tasks included hand motor activation (ball squeezing), mouth motor activation (chewing gum), interoception (heartbeat estimation), and inner speech.
Main Results:
- Abstract concepts showed greater grounding in interoception; concrete concepts showed less grounding in linguistic (mouth motor) experience.
- Interoception was key for Emotional/Mental/Social and Philosophical/Spiritual concepts.
- Physical Space/Time/Quantity concepts were most concrete among abstract concepts, engaging manual sensorimotor experience.
Conclusions:
- Conceptual representation varies significantly across abstract and concrete concept types.
- Findings support theories suggesting abstract concepts rely more on interoception and less on sensorimotor grounding than concrete concepts.
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