Elsevier

Cognitive Psychology

Volume 19, Issue 3, July 1987, Pages 342-368
Cognitive Psychology

Hand movements: A window into haptic object recognition

https://doi.org/10.1016/0010-0285(87)90008-9Get rights and content

Abstract

Two experiments establish links between desired knowledge about objects and hand movements during haptic object exploration. Experiment 1 used a match-to-sample task, in which blindfolded subjects were directed to match objects on a particular dimension (e.g., texture). Hand movements during object exploration were reliably classified as “exploratory procedures,” each procedure defined by its invariant and typical properties. The movement profile, i.e., the distribution of exploratory procedures, was directly related to the desired object knowledge that was required for the match. Experiment 2 addressed the reasons for the specific links between exploratory procedures and knowledge goals. Hand movements were constrained, and performance on various matching tasks was assessed. The procedures were considered in terms of their necessity, sufficiency, and optimality of performance for each task. The results establish that in free exploration, a procedure is generally used to acquire information about an object property, not because it is merely sufficient, but because it is optimal or even necessary. Hand movements can serve as “windows,” through which it is possible to learn about the underlying representation of objects in memory and the processes by which such representations are derived and utilized.

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    The research reported in this paper was supported by the Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada (Grant A9854 awarded to SJL) and by the National Science Foundation (Grant BNS84-21340 awarded to RLK).

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