Perception of Action 1 Flashcards
(16 cards)
Perception Action Mapping (PAM)
The process by which visual information is transferred to motor actions.
Active Intermodal Matching (AIM) Model (Meltzoff and Moore, 1997)
This model specifically explains how infants imitate facial gestures and other actions through a five-stage process
AIM process….
- Visual perception of target adult facial acts
- Supramodal Representation of Acts: The visual input is converted into an abstract mental representation.
- Equivalence detector: comparison of the supra modal representation (what the infant sees) with propriaceptive information (internal sense of movement)
- Infant motor acts: once the match is detected the infant attempts to reproduce the action they saw
Ideomotor (IM) Theory
- When you see an action the brain automatically activates the motor commands associated with that action.
- This happens because you have previously experienced these actions and outcomes being linked together.
IM theory process…..
- Sensory representation: Visual input activates a sensory network that recognises the shape and motion
- Priming via similarity: These sensory activations automatically prime corresponding motor patterns based on prior learning
- Motor program: The motor representation activates a specific pattern of movement
Associative Sequence learning (ASL) model
- Imitation abilities develop through associative learning rather than through a specialised imitation module
- We learn to associate visual inputs with motor outputs through experience
How does the AIM model differ from both IM and ASL model
AIM model suggests: perception and action are represented independently.
IM and ASL model suggest: common coding for perception and action.
Dual Route Model of Imitation (Rumitati & Tessari, 2002)
An integrative approach to perception action connection, by proposing that both mechanisms exist but serve different purposes depending on the nature of the action being imitated
Dual Route Model of Imitation proposes….
Humans imitate actions based on two pathways
- Semantic Route: for MEANINGFUL actions. Aligns with AIM perspective - The action’s representation is tied to its meaning and goal rather than just its visual properties
- Visuomotor route: for MEANINGLESS actions. Aligns with IM and ASL perspectives - It involves direct mapping between visual input and motor output, mirror neurones provide the neural basis for this mapping
Mirror Neurones
Neural underpinning for imitation and common coding
Where are Mirror Neurones in the human brain?
Broca’s area, ventral inferior frontal gyrus, posterior parietal lobe and superior temporal lobe
Behavioural Evidence for Human Mirror Neurones
Faster responses when there is compatibility between observed and executed movements (Brass et al, 2000, 2001)
Neurological Evidence for Human Mirror Neurones
Buccino et al. (2001): fMRI study of participants who watched videos of different body parts moving, somatotopic (for corresponding body part) activation of the premotor and parietal cortex was observed. Areas corresponded to observations of different body parts.
Perception-Action Overlap evidence for Human Mirror Neurones
A meta analysis conducted by Hardwick et al. (2018) to investigate the overlap in activity between observed, imagined and executed movements. It was found that these all shared areas of activation in the brain
Mirror Neurones - species specific differences - Monkeys
- Action must be goal-directed (and involve a real object)
- Cannot learn novel and complex acts, they do not imitate.
Mirror Neurones - species specific differences - Humans
- Action does not need to be goal-directed or contain an object, for us to observe these kinds of effects.
- Meaningless movements are represented and can be copied.
