Body Talk

Anyone remember reading Amelia Bedelia books when you were young?  Amelia Bedelia was a maid who wore crazy hats and took things literally - throwing a tent away after being asked to pitch it, putting clothes on the chicken she was asked to dress, and decorating the curtains she was asked to draw. Funny stuff to a 6-year old.

Amelia Bedelia did not understood that conversations are not supposed to be taken literally. We all make extensive use of metaphors in speech - we can think of talking about our troubles weighing us down, or feeling like we are on cloud nine; of someone who has a cold heart, or who warms our soul; of feeling puffed up with pride, or in the case of unwelcome events, very small.  As we get older, we understand that these are symbolic in nature.  However, as it turns out, we may not have left all that literalism behind with our youth. 

A series of recent studies suggest that many of our abstract cognitions may be interpreted literally.  In other words, our bodies may in some cases mirror and reflect our abstract thoughts.  Many of us still hold to the concept of mind-body dualism; the idea there is something unique and special and separate about our minds versus our bodies.  This series of clever studies suggest that this dichotomy is even more false than it is generally acknowledged to be. 

"Researchers at the University of Aberdeen found that when people were asked to engage in a bit of mental time travel, and to recall past events or imagine future ones, participants’ bodies subliminally acted out the metaphors embedded in how we commonly conceptualized the flow of time. As they thought about years gone by, participants leaned slightly backward, while in fantasizing about the future, they listed to the fore. "

In a similar fashion, other studies in this newly emerging field of embodied cognition suggest that we might find people friendlier when we are holding a warm drink, or might be more likely to use handiwipes when we're reminded of the wrongs we have committed, and think heavier textbooks contain more vital information.  

“How we process information is related not just to our brains but to our entire body,” said Nils B. Jostmann of the University of Amsterdam. “We use every system available to us to come to a conclusion and make sense of what’s going on.”

These physical accompaniments to the metaphors in language suggest that we think, not just with our heads, but also with our bodies.   They also suggest a number of fascinating areas for future research.  It remains to be seen whether the effects found in the laboratory translate into an influence in the real world.  There are also implications with respect to cross-cultural differences.  Would cultures with different metaphors show different  physical correlates?  In Chinese, the past is thought of as being in front of you, and the future behind you.  Would Chinese subjects lean in the opposite direction to American samples?  And last, and perhaps more importantly - can we influence people's thoughts by influencing their bodies?

Five Quick Takes

1.  Often, I get asked about sleeping issues with young children, and whether or not sleep training techniques such as cry-it-out (CIO) are damaging to young children.  Well, research suggests not, and that while consistency in technique used is the key variable of influence, CIO works most effectively.  However, using it is like ripping your heart out in pieces and throwing it down on a crowded subway somewhat difficult for most parents, and many simply can't do it.

I was pleased, by the way, to see this addressed in one of my new favorite shows, Modern Family.



2.  I used to have a crazy dog.  She not once, but TWICE jumped out of second stories windows for no apparent reason.  She was also very obsessive and would focus on one thing (like a tennis ball or a patch of light) and have a difficult time pulling away from it.  Well, as it turns out, she may have had a recently discovered gene associated with compulsive behaviors.  How does this apply to psychology?  Well, a similar gene may be responsible for these behaviors in both humans and dogs.  Either way, it kind of sucked as her owner as she was really quite neurotic.

She WAS pretty cute though.

3.  Sometimes humans can be pretty nasty.  We can be aggressive and selfish and mean.  But humans can also at times demonstrate an amazing amount of altruism and be moved to give and help others in truly significant, beautiful ways.  Well, there are some suggestions that some of this may be innate, start early, and presumably be a consequence of our hypersocial nature, as demonstrated in the linked clips to the PBS show, The Human Spark.  Check them out - they're cute and pretty cool to boot.

4.  An interesting article here on the liberal bias in academia.  What these scholars suggest is that the question is not so much why academia has a liberal bias, but why so many liberals want to be professors.  The answer, apparently, has a little to do with history, a little with our desire to fit in, and quite a bit with what could be termed a stereotype of what professors are like.

5.  You may have realized that even with the copious amounts of coffee I drink, my memory still sometimes leaves something to be desired.  Perhaps you might have experienced the same thing?  Well - here - some information on how to keep the aging mind agile.