Perception of pointing gestures in 3D space

Abstract Pointing gestures are often used to refer to distant referents by indicating in which vertical and horizontal direction the referent is located relative to the pointer. In the present manuscript, we address whether and how both dimensions interact when people spatially interpret pointing ge...

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Main Authors: Lisa-Marie Krause, Oliver Herbort
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2024-11-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78129-4
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author Lisa-Marie Krause
Oliver Herbort
author_facet Lisa-Marie Krause
Oliver Herbort
author_sort Lisa-Marie Krause
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Pointing gestures are often used to refer to distant referents by indicating in which vertical and horizontal direction the referent is located relative to the pointer. In the present manuscript, we address whether and how both dimensions interact when people spatially interpret pointing gestures, or whether both dimensions are processed independently as reflected in many current models. We found that both dimensions interact on different levels. First, cross-dimensional effects were found on a between-gestures level. That is, the perception of the vertical position implied by a pointing gesture depended on horizontal arm and finger orientation. Conversely, the horizontal interpretation depended on vertical arm and finger orientation. Second, we found cross-dimensional interactions on the level of intra-individual biases. That is, participants’ horizontal perceptual biases in interpretations (e.g., perceiving a gesture as directed more rightward than others) were related to their vertical perceptual biases. Third, we found cross-dimensional interactions on the level of intra-individual variability. That is, the vertical and horizontal interpretations of the same pointing gestures were correlated within participants and gestures. Together, these findings indicate that human spatial pointing perception is based on configural processing of a gesture on different levels of information processing.
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spelling doaj-art-a40f43fafbc64c4796de865c79ad19352024-11-17T12:20:14ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-11-0114111310.1038/s41598-024-78129-4Perception of pointing gestures in 3D spaceLisa-Marie Krause0Oliver Herbort1Department of Psychology, Julius-Maximilians-Universität WürzburgDepartment of Psychology, Julius-Maximilians-Universität WürzburgAbstract Pointing gestures are often used to refer to distant referents by indicating in which vertical and horizontal direction the referent is located relative to the pointer. In the present manuscript, we address whether and how both dimensions interact when people spatially interpret pointing gestures, or whether both dimensions are processed independently as reflected in many current models. We found that both dimensions interact on different levels. First, cross-dimensional effects were found on a between-gestures level. That is, the perception of the vertical position implied by a pointing gesture depended on horizontal arm and finger orientation. Conversely, the horizontal interpretation depended on vertical arm and finger orientation. Second, we found cross-dimensional interactions on the level of intra-individual biases. That is, participants’ horizontal perceptual biases in interpretations (e.g., perceiving a gesture as directed more rightward than others) were related to their vertical perceptual biases. Third, we found cross-dimensional interactions on the level of intra-individual variability. That is, the vertical and horizontal interpretations of the same pointing gestures were correlated within participants and gestures. Together, these findings indicate that human spatial pointing perception is based on configural processing of a gesture on different levels of information processing.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78129-4Pointing gesturesVisual perceptionDeixisVirtual realityNon-verbal communication
spellingShingle Lisa-Marie Krause
Oliver Herbort
Perception of pointing gestures in 3D space
Scientific Reports
Pointing gestures
Visual perception
Deixis
Virtual reality
Non-verbal communication
title Perception of pointing gestures in 3D space
title_full Perception of pointing gestures in 3D space
title_fullStr Perception of pointing gestures in 3D space
title_full_unstemmed Perception of pointing gestures in 3D space
title_short Perception of pointing gestures in 3D space
title_sort perception of pointing gestures in 3d space
topic Pointing gestures
Visual perception
Deixis
Virtual reality
Non-verbal communication
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78129-4
work_keys_str_mv AT lisamariekrause perceptionofpointinggesturesin3dspace
AT oliverherbort perceptionofpointinggesturesin3dspace