Only self‐generated actions create sensori‐motor systems in the developing brain

Abstract

Previous research shows that sensory and motor systems interact during perception, but how these connections among systems are created during development is unknown. The current work exposes young children to novel ‘verbs’ and objects through either (a) actively exploring the objects or (b) by seeing an experimenter interact with the objects. Results demonstrate that the motor system is recruited during auditory perception only after learning involved self-generated interactions with objects. Action observation itself led to above-baseline activation in one motor region during visual perception, but was still significantly less active than after self-generated action. Therefore, in the developing brain, associations are built upon real-world interactions of body and environment, leading to sensori-motor representations of both objects and words.

Using the axis of elongation to align shapes: Developmental changes between 18 and 24months of age

“…For example, planning an action on an object has been shown to prime (and in some cases alter) the subsequent visual recognition of that object (e.g., Helbig, Graf, & Kiefer, 2006; see Smith 2005 for similar evidence from children). Evidence from neuroimaging studies supports these behavioral findings by showing activation in motor and premotor areas both in adults (e.g., Buxbaum & Kalenine, 2010; Martin & Chao, 2001; Cross et al, 2012) and in children (Dekker et al, 2011; James & Swain, 2011; James & Bose, 2011) when manipulable objects are viewed. These ideas are consistent with the many developmental demonstrations of the mutual influences between visual processes involved in action and in object recognition and are consistent with the growing evidence on links between action and visual object in infants and children (e.g., James et al, 2013; Ruff & Saltarelli, 1993; Smith, 2005; Perone, et al, 2008; Soska, Adolph & Johnson, 2010).…”

Active Learning of Novel Sound-producing Objects: Motor Reactivation and Enhancement of Visuo-motor Connectivity

“…Finally, the results of the current study clarify and extend our own previous work (Butler et al, 2011) by providing several novel findings and highlighting the task-based nature of motor reactivation and retrieval after active learning. James & Swain, 2011Milner & Goodale, 2006 …”

Gesture as representational action: A paper about function

“…When physics students are given the chance to feel the properties of angular momentum first-hand (by holding a system of two bicycle wheels spinning around an axel), they score higher on a test of their understanding of force than their counterparts who simply had access to a visible depiction of the angular momentum (i.e., watching the deflection of a laser pointer connected to the bicycle system) (Kontra, Lyons, Fischer, & Beilock, 2015). Finally, neuroimaging data suggest that active experience manipulating objects leaves a lasting neural signature that is found when learners later view the objects without manipulating them (James, 2010; James & Swain, 2011; Longcamp et al, 2003; Prinz, 1997). For example, children given active experience writing letters later show greater activation in motor regions when just passively looking at letters in the scanner, compared to children who were given practice looking at letters without writing them (James, 2010).…”

“…Theories rooted in embodied cognition maintain that action experiences have profound effects on how we view objects (James & Swain 2011), perceive other’s actions (Casile & Giese, 2006), and even understand language (Beilock, Lyons, Mattarella-Micke, Nusbaum, & Small, 2008). The Gesture as Simulated Action (GSA) framework grew out of the embodied cognition literature.…”