Here are notes on what I learned about embodied cognition at the London School of Economics.

I’m learning a lot in my course, and the readings for this last week made me rethink a lot about what I thought I knew about cognition. In the US and the UK, I feel like we have a clean break in how we think about mind vs body. This week, professor Frederic Basso introduced me to a completely new way of looking at the mind vs the body- embodied cognition. “The main idea underlying all theories of embodied cognition is that cognitive representations and operations are fundamentally grounded in their physical context.” (Niedenthal et all 2005) What this means is simple- yet profound. Even when you think of something you’ve never seen before, say an imaginary chair, the neurons that fire in your mind are the neurons that would fire if you were actually sitting on a chair. To an extent, your brain doesn’t differentiate between when you are doing something and when you are thinking about doing it. Our thoughts are intrinsically linked to our physical experiences. A lot of real world evidence backs this theory:

When choosing between two advertisements with an identical bowl and spoon. If the spoon is on the right, right handed people are much more likely to buy than if the spoon is on the left. (Elder and Krishna 2011)
Right-Handed people prefer bottles when they have handles to the right than the left. (Eelen, Dewihe & Warlop 2013)
Even the metaphors we use, “He’s a solid guy” or “With a heavy heart” are tied to and affected by physical experiences.
When comparing CV’s, the weight of a clipboard leads can make someone see the candidate as “more solid” and “serious.”
    “Each dimension was associated with cognitions reflected in common metaphors: Heaviness produced impressions of importance and seriousness, as well as a preference for finding solutions to important problems; roughness led to impressions of decreased coordination and increased donations as a compensatory response; hardness made others appear more strict and stable but less emotional, and also decreased negotiation flexibility.”   (Ackerman, Nocera & Bargh 2010)
Experiencing physical warmth can make you a metaphorically “warmer person” (Williams & Bargh 2008)

Your mind and body are linked. Our thoughts and physical experiences are tied together and reinforced each other. For the past century, psychology moved away from ancient ways of thought that saw the mind and body as linked. Cognitive psychologists aren’t the first to think of this theory. In fact, it was common knowledge until 100 years ago. Aristotle and even Darwin wrote about the links between mind and body. The idea can be found in many traditional systems of thought and religions (Zen). It turns out that Aristotle, American shamans, and Hindu wise men might be right all along! Based on Lecture for PS 443- Frederic Basso