Form and Function in Motor Mimicry Topographic Evidence that the Primary Function Is Communicative

Abstract

Motor mimicry is behavior by an observer that is appropriate to the situation of the other person, for example, wincing at the other's injury or ducking when the other does. Traditional theories of motor mimicry view this behauior as an indicator ofa vicarious cognitive or empathic experience, that is, of taking the role ofthe other or of"fee1ingoneselfinto"the other person. However, Bavelas, Black, Lemery, andMullett (1986) have shown that motor mimicry ofpain is affected by communicative variables and acts as a nonverbal message indicating that the observer is aware of and concerned about the other's situation. This raises a more general question: Is communication its primary or secondary junction? We propose (i) that motor mimicry functions as a nonverbal, analogk, relationship message about similarity between observer and other and (ii) that this message is encoded according to Gestalt principles of form, in that the observer physically mirrors the other. In other words, the observer maintains a relationship with the other. The special case of left/right leaning when observer and other are facing each other permits a test of our theory against two theories that treat motor Janet Beavin Bavelas (Ph.D., Stanford University, 1970) is professor of psychology at the (Mathematics) helped us settle on the terms for reflection and rotation symmetry; Oak Bay Recreational Centre permitted us to use their premises; and two HCR reviewers provided useful comments on the manuscript. Order of authors is alphabetical. o 1988 International Communication Association 275 276 HUMAN COMMUNICATION RESEARCH / Spring 1988 mimicry as an indicator of vicarious experience. The results of three experiments showed that when motor mimicy by an observerfacing someone who is leaning left or right occurs, it is both displayed and decoded in theform consistent with a communication theory; this form is called reflection symmetry. We conclude that, because of the topography of the response, the primayfunction of motor mimicry must be communicative and that any relationship to vicarious processes is secondary.A similar analysis of other nonverbal behaviors may well reveal that they are also expressions another person rather than expressions of intrapsychic states.

Gestures and some key issues in the study of language development

“…Goldin-Meadow, 2003). This is in line with the well documented observation that interlocutors synchronise or accommodate to each other in interaction also as regards gestures (Bavelas, Black, Chovil, Lemery, & Mullett, 1988;Condon & Ogston, 1971;Kimbara, 2006;Wallbott, 1995). It is an open question to what extent such synchronisation might affect language learning (cf.…”

Mental Imagery of Self-Location during Spontaneous and Active Self–Other Interactions: An Electrical Neuroimaging Study

“…For this, we adapted the traditional psychological approach, an approach focusing on elementary mimicry (Bavelas et al, 1988) that is used to investigate, from the body posture, how individuals act together without explicit task instructions (Scheflen, 1964;O'Toole and Dubin, 1968;Stotland, 1969;Bavelas et al, 1986aBavelas et al, ,b, 1987Bavelas et al, , 1988Chartrand and Bargh, 1999;Tessari et al, 2002). This rotation and reflection symmetry paradigm (Bavelas et al, 1988;Thirioux et al, 2009) was adapted and merged with a paradigm using embodied and disembodied self-location during mental own-body imagery.…”

“…Finally, participants are generally instructed explicitly to perform own-body or perspective mental transformations (Zacks et al, 1999;Decety, 2001, 2004;Vogeley et al, 2004;Blanke et al, 2005;Arzy et al, 2006). It is thus unclear whether and how the standing position as well as spontaneous versus explicit transformations affect mental imagery re-lated to self-location (Scheflen, 1964;Bavelas et al, 1987Bavelas et al, , 1988Thirioux et al, 2009). Accordingly, the mechanisms of "spontaneous" mental body transformations in "naturalistic" and "ecologically more valid" conditions are still unknown.…”

“…Here, we adapted a spontaneous motor paradigm (Bavelas et al, 1988) and investigated, using electrical neuroimaging, the neural mechanisms of spontaneous and explicit changes in selflocation. This was done in standing and moving participants interacting with an avatar that was standing and moving.…”

Symmetry building and symmetry breaking in synchronized movement

“…To the extent that cognitive or emotional states are correlated with physical postures, gestures and facial expressions, one may be able to trigger the experience of an internal state by placing one's body in a particular position, making a particular gesture or expression. Thus, one might expect that the formation of symmetry in conversation might signify common internal states and thus facilitate communication (Bavelas, Black, Chovil, Lemery, & Mullett, 1988).…”