Influences of embodied interactions on the affective evaluation of digital pictures: Developing novel experimental multi-touch paradigms to examine the interplay of space-valence associations, action-contexts, and hand-proximity effects

• Applicant: Dr. Sergio Cervera-Torres
• Subject Area: General, Cognitive and Mathematical Psychology
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 466076299

The current proposal aims at advancing our theoretical understanding of how space-valence associations (up/right - positive; down/left - negative), action contexts, and hand-proximity effects together shape affective evaluations of affective digital pictures in the context of spatial multi-touch interactions. To do so, however, this proposal builds upon several open issues that were raised by our own prior studies based on sequential "touch-and-swipe" interactions and that need to be clarify. These issures can be synthesized in three main research questions (RQ):a) Our findings suggested that touch interactions influenced valence evaluations more than swipe interactions. However, since both interactions were performed in a sequence, it remains unclear whether disentangling touches from swipes will result in similar results, or whether on the contrary both, touches and swipes, will yield independent causal effects on valence evaluations (RQ 1 on action contexts). Accordingly, touches and swipes will be investigated independently.b) Since in our prior studies, all pictures were displayed at vertical or lateral margins of the touchscreen monitor, it was very difficult to determine whether effects on valence evaluations depended on (1) directional movements or (2) stimulus locations. This is a question that needs to be clarified (RQ 2 on action context).c) Finally, our studies did not investigate whether and how valence evaluations after swipe and touch interactions would substantially differ from evaluations of the same stimuli characterized by spatial locations or directional motion when no prior manual interaction is involved. Therefore, the current proposal aims at clarifying this question (RQ on hand-proximity effects).Based on these considerations, a total of 6 studies (S1-S6) will be necessary to systematically examine the interplay between space-valence associations, interaction-contexts, and hand-proximity effects. The number of studies required to respond to the need of addressing (1) touch or swipe interactions across the (2) vertical or lateral spatial dimensions with the (3) dominant right or non-dominant left hand (for lateral interactions).

• DFG Programme: Research Grants