Reading “Sun” and Looking Up: The Influence of Language on Saccadic Eye Movements in the Vertical Dimension

Abstract

Traditionally, language processing has been attributed to a separate system in the brain, which supposedly works in an abstract propositional manner. However, there is increasing evidence suggesting that language processing is strongly interrelated with sensorimotor processing. Evidence for such an interrelation is typically drawn from interactions between language and perception or action. In the current study, the effect of words that refer to entities in the world with a typical location (e.g., sun, worm) on the planning of saccadic eye movements was investigated. Participants had to perform a lexical decision task on visually presented words and non-words. They responded by moving their eyes to a target in an upper (lower) screen position for a word (non-word) or vice versa. Eye movements were faster to locations compatible with the word's referent in the real world. These results provide evidence for the importance of linguistic stimuli in directing eye movements, even if the words do not directly transfer directional information.

Dutch modality exclusivity norms: Simulating perceptual modality in space

“…For example, smoke can be smelled from a distance but cumin cannot, yet they are both from the olfactory category. It is therefore likely that mental simulation of distance for perceptual modality is a less robust relationship than, for example, simulation of spatial height based on real-world location (e.g., Dudschig, Souman, Lachmair, de la Vega, & Kaup, 2013;Estes, Verges, & Barsalou, 2008).…”

“…We simulate such spatial locations based on our real-world experiences with objects. There are a number of experiments providing evidence for the perceptual simulation of spatial features (e.g., Dudschig, Souman, Lachmair, de la Vega, & Kaup, 2013;Estes, Verges, & Barsalou, 2008). Estes et al (2008) demonstrated simulation of height using a target detection task.…”

The conceptual cueing database: Rated items for the study of the interaction between language and attention

“…Of these, 364 were collated from items used in previous studies (Ansorge, et al, 2013;Chasteen, et al, 2010;Dudschig, et al, 2013;Estes, et al, 2008;Goodhew, McGaw, & Kidd, 2014;Gozli, Chasteen, & Pratt, 2013;Gozli, Chow, et al, 2013;Meier & Robinson, 2004;Setic & Domijan, 2007), and were items classified as having associations with up, down, or no clear vertical spatial association (neutral). A further 134 items were included that we developed and selected as likely to have associations with up, down, or no clear vertical spatial associations.…”

“…A growing body of studies documents the entwined relationship between concepts and space, in particular, how activating word meaning can systematically shift visual attention in space (e.g., Ansorge, Khalid, & Konig, 2013;Chasteen, Burdzy, & Pratt, 2010;Dudschig, De la Vega, & Kaup, 2015;Dudschig, Souman, Lachmair, de la Vega, & Kaup, 2013;Estes, Verges, & Barsalou, 2008;Fischer, Castel, Dodd, & Pratt, 2003;Gozli, Chow, Chasteen, & Pratt, 2013;Louwerse & Jeuniaux, 2010;Meier & Robinson, 2004;Santiago, Lupianez, Perez, & Funes, 2007;Setic & Domijan, 2007;Weger & Pratt, 2008;Zwaan & Yaxley, 2003). For example, after reading a word associated with up (such as Bsun^or Bjoy^), participants are faster to respond to subsequent visual targets above the center of the screen and slower to respond to targets below the center, whereas the reverse is true after reading a word associated with down (such as Bbasement^or Bbleak^).…”

“…Conceptual cueing not only affects target response efficiency, it can also affect saccade trajectories. That is, when participants' task is to move their eyes from the center of the screen to a horizontally displaced target, the path of their eye movement will veer upwards after exposure to a word associated with up, and downwards after reading a word associated with down (Dudschig, et al, 2013;Dunn, Kamide, & Scheepers, 2014;Gozli, Chow, et al, 2013). In short, the meaning of the words has a potent impact on visual-attentional processes.…”