Spontaneous Perspective Taking in Humans?

Abstract

A number of social cognition studies posit that humans spontaneously compute the viewpoint of other individuals. This is based on experiments showing that responses are shorter when a human agent, located in a visual display, can see the stimuli relevant to the observer's task. Similarly, responses are slower when the agent cannot see the task-relevant stimuli. We tested the spontaneous perspective taking theory by incorporating it within two classic visual cognition paradigms (i.e., the flanker effect and the Simon effect), as well as reassessing its role in the gaze cueing effect. Results showed that these phenomena (e.g., the Simon effect) are not modulated according to whether a gazing agent can see the critical stimuli or not. We also examined the claim that previous results attributed to spontaneous perspective taking are due to the gazing agent's ability to shift attention laterally. Results found no evidence of this. Overall, these data challenge both the spontaneous perspective taking theory, as well as the attentional shift hypothesis.

The Role of Perspective Taking on Attention: A Review of the Special Issue on the Reflexive Attentional Shift Phenomenon

“…Participants were, in fact, faster on consistent trials (the number of target dots visible to participants equal to the number of dots visible to the gazer) rather than inconsistent trials (where the number of dots visible to the gazer differ from the number of dots visible to the participant) in both a seeing and non-seeing condition in the two experiments. On another contribution to this special issue, Cole et al's findings [19] supported Langton's results [28] in favour of the "Perceptual theory." Cole et al [19] pointed out how the choice of specific tasks and cues may influence the alter-centric intrusion phenomenon.…”

“…On another contribution to this special issue, Cole et al's findings [19] supported Langton's results [28] in favour of the "Perceptual theory." Cole et al [19] pointed out how the choice of specific tasks and cues may influence the alter-centric intrusion phenomenon. In their work, Cole et al [19] argued that, to attribute RAS to social factors, the interference should take place in all settings in which the avatar sees the same stimuli as the participants.…”

“…Cole et al [19] pointed out how the choice of specific tasks and cues may influence the alter-centric intrusion phenomenon. In their work, Cole et al [19] argued that, to attribute RAS to social factors, the interference should take place in all settings in which the avatar sees the same stimuli as the participants. To test this assumption, the authors incorporated the presence of an avatar within two other classic visual cognition tests.…”

“…Directional cueing effects emerged in the authors' study only when more perceptually salient cues were used, such as a schematic representation of a face ( Figure 4). Overall, Cole et al [19] showed that the "perspective taking" effect observed in the dot perspective task does not generalize to other paradigms. Cole et al's results [19], therefore, supported Gardner's position [21] that the avatar itself it is not sufficient to generate spontaneous attribution of visual perspective at least when the target is presented within a short interval after the avatar.…”

“…Further research has focused on whether the perspective may not be a spontaneous phenomenon. If this is the case, then RAS would be only modulated by perceptual characteristics of the cue, while perspective taking would be due to top-down processes [18][19][20][21]. These authors noted that the human avatar employed by Samson et al [7] was unable to generate an attentional shift when the target discs were presented within 300 ms from the presentation of the cue.…”