Cervetto Sabrina, Birba Agustina, Pérez Gonzalo, Amoruso Lucía, García Adolfo M
Departamento de Educación Física y Salud, Instituto Superior de Educación Física, Universidad de la República, Uruguay; Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Neuroscience. 2022 Dec 15;507:52-63. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2022.10.024. Epub 2022 Nov 8.
Embodied cognition research indicates that sensorimotor training can influence action concept processing. Yet, most studies employ isolated (pseudo)randomized stimuli and require repetitive single-effector responses, thus lacking ecological validity. Moreover, the neural signatures of these effects remain poorly understood. Here, we examined whether immersive bodily training can modulate behavioral and functional connectivity correlates of action-verb processing in naturalistic narratives. The study involved three phases. First, in the Pre-training phase, 32 healthy persons listened to an action text (rich in movement descriptions) and a non-action text (focused on its characters' perceptual and mental processes), completed comprehension questionnaires, and underwent resting-state electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings. Second, in the four-day Training phase, half the participants completed an exergaming intervention (eliciting full-body movements for 60 min a day) while the remaining half played static videogames (requiring no bodily engagement other than button presses). Finally, in the Post-training phase, all participants repeated the Pre-training protocol with different action and non-action texts and a new EEG session. We found that exergaming selectively reduced action-verb outcomes and fronto-posterior functional connectivity in the motor-sensitive ∼ 10-20 Hz range, both patterns being positively correlated. Conversely, static videogame playing yielded no specific effect on any linguistic category and did not modulate functional connectivity. Together, these findings suggest that action-verb processing and key neural correlates can be focally influenced by full-body motor training in a highly ecological setting. Our study illuminates the role of situated experience and sensorimotor circuits in action-concept processing, addressing calls for naturalistic insights on language embodiment.
具身认知研究表明，感觉运动训练可以影响动作概念加工。然而，大多数研究采用孤立的（伪）随机刺激，并要求重复性的单效应器反应，因此缺乏生态效度。此外，这些效应的神经特征仍知之甚少。在这里，我们研究了沉浸式身体训练是否能调节自然主义叙事中动作动词加工的行为和功能连接相关性。该研究包括三个阶段。首先，在预训练阶段，32名健康受试者听取一篇动作文本（富含动作描述）和一篇非动作文本（聚焦于人物的感知和心理过程），完成理解问卷，并进行静息态脑电图（EEG）记录。其次，在为期四天的训练阶段，一半参与者完成了一款体感游戏干预（每天引发全身运动60分钟），而另一半则玩静态电子游戏（除了按按钮外不需要身体参与）。最后，在训练后阶段，所有参与者使用不同的动作和非动作文本以及新的EEG记录重复预训练方案。我们发现，体感游戏选择性地降低了动作动词的反应结果以及运动敏感的约10 - 20Hz范围内的前后功能连接，这两种模式呈正相关。相反，玩静态电子游戏对任何语言类别都没有产生特定影响，也没有调节功能连接。总之，这些发现表明，在高度生态化的环境中，全身运动训练可以重点影响动作动词加工及其关键神经相关性。我们的研究阐明了情境体验和感觉运动回路在动作概念加工中的作用，回应了对语言具身化进行自然主义洞察的呼吁。
