Body Specificity Hpothesis: Different Bodies Develop Correspondingly Different Brains and Minds

DOI

10.2991/assehr.k.211220.034How to use a DOI?

Keywords

body-specificity hypothesis (BSH); concepts; embodied cognition; handedness

Abstract

This electronic document is a “live” template. In the current research of cognitive psychology, the field of embodied cognition has become an important part of cognitive science. The introduction of the body-specific hypothesis adds important pieces to the puzzle of the theoretical structure of embodied cognition. The body-specific hypothesis (Casasanto, 2009) suggests that the content of our mind depends to a great extent on our body structure. In this article, we reviewed studies for neurological and brain imaging and behavioral evidence to support the body-specific hypothesis based on the hands and other body parts including foot laterality, general fluency and pain perception. In terms of handedness, we mainly focused on the perspective of action verbs, action and emotion valence, approach motivation and motor control, visuospatial attention and metaphor explanation. In terms of some studies, though did not mention the body specific theory explicitly, they provided supportive results towards the theory. For evidence of other parts of the body, we try to find the relationship between metaphors and other body experiences other than handedness, so as to expand the boundaries of the body specificity hypothesis. While providing evidence for the body specificity hypothesis (BSH), we also try to prove that the body experience influences human cognition through the above content, that is, cognition is embodied. Additionally, we also offered possible research directions for the further exploration and application of the hypothesis, including cross-cultural examination, motivational or emotional factors, and the effect of neuro abnormality.

Copyright

© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press SARL.

Open Access

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

Download article (PDF)

TY  - CONF
AU  - Quan Tang
AU  - Tingjun Li
AU  - Junyan Fang
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/12/24
TI  - Body Specificity Hpothesis: Different Bodies Develop Correspondingly Different Brains and Minds
BT  - Proceedings of the 2021 4th International Conference on Humanities Education and Social Sciences (ICHESS 2021)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 198
EP  - 206
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.211220.034
DO  - 10.2991/assehr.k.211220.034
ID  - Tang2021
ER  -