Neurocognition and Action Research Group, Center for Cognitive Interaction Technology (CITEC), Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany; Faculty of Psychology and Sports Science, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany.
Acta Psychol (Amst). 2022 Oct;230:103719. doi: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103719. Epub 2022 Aug 23.
Human movements are dynamic and continuous in nature. However, how the spatiotemporal continuity influences working memory for movements is still unclear. Specifically, spatiotemporal continuity of movements may facilitate integrative processing ("integration") and enhance memory performance by optimizing the encoding process, but it may also diminish memory benefits from distinctive processing ("separation"). In this study, we manipulated the continuity state (continuous/discontinuous) (Experiment 1) and its predictability (Experiment 2) of whole-body movement sequences and tested participants' working memory for observed movements with a single-probe recognition task. We formulated potential influence from spatiotemporal (dis)continuity by two opposite forces - integration vs. separation, and demonstrated a conflict between these two processes across space and time. Moreover, we found that the seemingly stimulus-driven perceptual effects from spatiotemporal (dis)continuity might be supported by a prediction-based mechanism, which guided the selection of an optimal processing strategy. Overall, our finding illustrates an interweaving relationship between spatial and temporal processing during action observation and highlights the importance of considering the dynamic and continuous nature of human movements in visual perception and working memory research.
人的运动本质上是动态和连续的。然而，时空连续性如何影响运动的工作记忆尚不清楚。具体来说，运动的时空连续性可以通过优化编码过程来促进整合处理（“整合”）并提高记忆表现，但它也可能会降低从独特处理中获得的记忆益处（“分离”）。在这项研究中，我们通过两种相反的力——整合与分离，来操纵全身运动序列的连续性状态（连续/不连续）（实验 1）及其可预测性（实验 2），并用单探针识别任务来测试参与者对观察到的运动的工作记忆。此外，我们发现，时空（不）连续性的看似刺激驱动的知觉效应可能是由基于预测的机制支持的，该机制指导了最优处理策略的选择。总的来说，我们的发现说明了在动作观察过程中空间和时间处理之间的交织关系，并强调了在视觉感知和工作记忆研究中考虑人类运动的动态和连续性的重要性。
