Effective Rotations: Action Effects Determine the Interplay of Mental and Manual Rotations

Abstract

The last decades have seen a growing interest in the impact of action on perception and other concurrent cognitive processes. One particularly interesting example is that manual rotation actions facilitate mental rotations in the same direction. The present study extends this research in two fundamental ways. First, Experiment 1 demonstrates that not only manual rotations facilitate mental rotations but that mental rotations also facilitate subsequent manual rotations. Second, Experiments 2 and 3 targeted the mechanisms underlying this interplay. Here, manual steering wheel rotations produced salient visual effects, namely the rotation of either a plane or a horizon in an aviation display. The rotation direction of these visual effects either did or did not correspond to the direction of the manual rotation itself. These experiments clearly demonstrate an impact of sensory action effects: Mental rotations facilitate manual rotations with visual effects of the same direction (as the mental rotation), irrespective of the direction of the manual rotation. These findings highlight the importance of effect anticipation in action planning. As such they support the contentions of ideomotor theory and shed new light on the cognitive source of the interplay between visual imagery and motor control.

Differentiating two- from three-dimensional mental rotation training effects

“…In line with this idea, studies have pointed out similarities between manual rotation and virtual rotation (Ruddle & Jones, 2001), thus emphasizing the pertinence of virtual environments for real-life applications (Waller, 2000). Consistent with research showing the effect of haptic experiences on mental simulation (White, 2012), transfer might depend on active manipulation in an egocentric referential through physical or virtual interactions (Janczyk, Pfister, Crognale, & Kunde, 2012), a lacking component of paper-and-pencil training. Therefore, the dynamic features of block videogames might be underlining their efficacy to train mental rotation, as suggested by recent research on the relation between higher cognition and the motor system.…”

Manual training of mental rotation performance: Visual representation of rotating figures is the main driver for improvements

“…Those studies, and also the study of Wexler et al (1998) who demonstrated that compatible manual and mental rotation results in faster reaction times and fewer errors have triggered studies on the importance of motor processes in mental rotation and suggested a link between motor preparation and mental rotation. However, Janczyk et al (2012) demonstrated in a series of studies that the connection between manual rotation movements and mental rotation could instead be the anticipated sensory output of the manual rotation.…”

Attitude Indicator Format

“…Another theoretical explanation of the assumed advantages of the MA versus MH format relates to ideomotor theory (Greenwald, 1970) and effects of response-effect compatibility (Janczyk, Pfister, Crognale, & Kunde, 2012;Janczyk, Yamaguchi, Proctor, & Pfister, 2015). According to this theory, "it is easier to produce actions that predictably produce consequences that are compatible rather than incompatible with the action itself" (Janczyk et al, 2012, p. 2).…”