Thorsten Michael Erle

Necker’s smile: Immediate affective consequences of early perceptual processes

Current theories assume that perception and affect are separate realms of the mind. In contrast, we argue that affect is a genuine online-component of perception instantaneously mirroring the success of different perceptual stages. Consequently, we predicted that the success (failure) of even very early and cognitively encapsulated basic visual processing steps would trigger immediate positive (negative) affective responses. To test this assumption, simple visual stimuli that either allowed or obstructed early visual processing stages without participants being aware of this were presented briefly. Across 5 experiments, we found more positive affective responses to stimuli that allowed rather than obstructed Gestalt completion at certain early visual stages (Experiments 1-3; briefest presentation 100 ms with post-mask), and visual disambiguation in possible vs. impossible Necker cubes (Experiments 4 and 5; briefest presentation 100 ms with post-mask). This effect was observed both on verbal preference ratings (Experiments 1, 2, and 4) and as facial muscle responses occurring within 2-4 s after stimulus onset (zygomaticus activity; Experiments 3 and 7). For instance, in participants unaware of spatial possibility we found affective discrimination between possible and impossible Necker cubes (the famous Freemish Crate) for 100 ms presentation timings, although a conscious discrimination took more than 2000 ms (Experiment 4).

Matching between oral inward–outward movements of object names and oral movements associated with denoted objects

ABSTRACT In eight experiments, we explored matching effects between oral approach–avoidance movements triggered by word articulation and meaning of the objects the words denoted. Participants (total N = 1264) rated their liking for words that featured consonantal muscle stricture spots either wandering inwards (e.g., BODIKA, resembling ingestion movements) or outwards (e.g., KODIBA, resembling expectoration movements). These words were labelled as names for various objects. For objects the use of which entails ingestive oral actions (lemonade and mouthwash) inward words were preferred over outward words. For objects that trigger expectorative oral actions (toxical chemical, pill, and bubble gum) this preference was attenuated or even reversed (outward words were liked more than inward). Valence of the denoted object did not play a role in these modulations. Thus, the sagittal direction of mouth movements during silent reading meaningfully interacted with direction of oral actions associated with the denoted objects.

Can I cut the Gordian tnok? The impact of pronounceability, actual solvability, and length on intuitive problem assessments of anagrams

When assessing a problem, many cues can be used to predict solvability and solving effort. Some of these cues, however, can be misleading. The present approach shows that a feature of a problem that is actually related to solving difficulty is used as a cue for solving ease when assessing the problem in the first place. For anagrams, it is an established effect that easy-to-pronounce anagrams (e.g., NOGAL) take more time to being solved than hard-to-pronounce anagrams (e.g., HNWEI). However, when assessing an anagram in the first place, individuals use the feature of pronounceability to predict solving ease, because pronounceability is an instantiation of the general mechanism of processing fluency. Participants (total N=536) received short and long anagrams and nonanagrams and judged solvability and solving ease intuitively without actually solving the items. Easy-to-pronounce letter strings were more frequently judged as being solvable than hard-to-pronounce letters strings (Experiment 1), and were estimated to require less effort (Experiments 2, 4-7) and time to be solved (Experiment 3). This effect was robust for short and long items, anagrams and nonanagrams, and presentation timings from 4 down to 0.5s, and affected novices and experts alike. Spontaneous solutions did not mediate this effect. Participants were sensitive to actual solvability even for long anagrams (6-11 letters long) presented only for 500 ms.

The grounded nature of psychological perspective-taking

Psychological perspective-taking is a powerful social cognition that helps us to understand other people. It creates feelings of closeness and sympathy, motivates us to help others, and is important for positive social relationships. In contrast to the impressive knowledge about its consequences, relatively little is known about how exactly people achieve them. The present paper addresses this question from a grounded cognition perspective, drawing on recent findings on the embodiment of visuospatial perspective-taking. Visuospatial perspective-taking involves a mental transformation of one’s body schema into the physical location of another person. We argue that when people psychologically “put themselves in another person’s shoes,” this simulation of physical proximity happens, too, and is one source of perceived closeness. In five experiments (total N = 1067), participants completed a visuospatial perspective-taking task. During half of the trials, angular disparity between the target person and the participant was high and participants had to adopt the target’s visual perspective (which involves an embodied simulation). During the remaining trials, angular disparity was low and participants could solve the task egocentrically. Taking another’s perspective led participants to adopt the thoughts of the target person more strongly (Experiments 1–3) and increased the perceived similarity of that person to the self (Experiment 4) and participants’ liking of that person (Experiment 5). These effects were independent of task difficulty (Experiment 2), and only present during trials where an embodied transformation happened (i.e., at high angular disparities; Experiment 3). Implications for psychological and visuospatial perspective-taking research and related phenomena are discussed.

Affect from mere perception: Illusory contour perception feels good

Can affect be evoked by mere perception? Earlier work on processing fluency, which manipulated the dynamics of a running perceptual process, has shown that efficient processing can indeed trigger positive affect. The present work introduces a novel route by not manipulating the dynamics of an ongoing perceptual process, but by blocking or allowing the whole process in the first place. We used illusory contour perception as one very basic such process. In 5 experiments (total N = 422), participants briefly (⩽100 ms) viewed stimuli that either allowed illusory contour perception, so-called Kanizsa shapes, or proximally identical control shapes that did not allow for this process to occur. Self-reported preference ratings (Experiments 1, 2, and 4) and facial muscle activity (Experiment 3) showed that participants consistently preferred Kanizsa over these control shapes. Moreover, even within Kanizsa shapes, those that most likely instigated illusory contour perception (i.e., those with the highest support ratio) were liked the most (Experiment 5). At the same time, Kanizsa stimuli with high support ratios were objectively and subjectively the most complex, rendering a processing fluency explanation of this preference unlikely. These findings inform theorizing in perception about affective properties of early perceptual processes that are independent from perceptual fluency and research on affect about the importance of basic perception as a source of affectivity.

Are target-shooters more aggressive than the general population?

Although psychological research shows that guns are aggressive cues, proponents of liberal gun control argue that people rather than guns are to blame for gun-related violence. For instance, athletic target-shooters might classify guns as athletic rather than aggressive stimuli and thus should not be more aggressive than the general population. The present work investigated aggression and emotion-regulation in target-shooters. A longitudinal study found that initial self-reported aggression in target-shooters was higher than in the general population and further increased over 1 year. Additionally, the sample exhibited deficient emotion-regulation strategies, and this was related to self-reported aggression. In contrast, their implicit self-construct became more peaceful over time but was unrelated to all other measures. Two further cross-sectional experiments explored the causal impact of athletic target-shooting and other athletic activities (shooting a basketball) on aggression. Target-shooters and basketball players were tested before and after their regular team practice and aggressive thoughts and feelings were measured. Target-shooting but not basketball practice activated aggressive and anxiety-related thought more strongly than positive thought. Future research avenues, implications for the indirect measurement of aggression, and possible interventions to decrease aggression in target-shooters are discussed. Aggr. Behav. 43:3-13, 2017.

Shocking action: Facilitative effects of punishing electric shocks on action control.

Four experiments examined motivational effects of response-contingent electric shocks on action initiation. Although the shock was unambiguously aversive for the individual in line with subjective and functional criteria, results showed that the shock-producing action was initiated faster relative to a response producing no shock. However, no facilitation effect was found when strong shocks were delivered, ruling out increased emotional arousal as an explanation. The action was initiated faster even when the response discontinued to generate a shock. Furthermore, a control experiment with affectively neutral vibrotactile stimulations at homologous sites showed an analogous response facilitation effect. Overall, the results contradict the widespread belief that a contingency with a punishing response effect is sufficient for a response suppression. Instead, the results suggest that punishing action effects can facilitate action initiation via anticipatory feedback processes. Implications for theories and applications of punishment are discussed.