Embodied Counting: Touching Objects Reduces Errors in Counting Under Cognitive Load

Abstract

The framework of embodied cognition argues that cognitive operations are closely linked to physical states of the body, and that movement acts can support cognition if they are meaningfully related to the task. The current study asked young adults (N = 54) to repeatedly count different arrays of colored chocolate lentils and to either report the results immediately for each color (“no load”), or only after all five colors had been counted (“load”). In “embodied” trials, participants were free to point at, touch, and re-arrange the lentils. In the “look only” trials, subjects were not allowed to use their hands. Participants performed all possible task combinations in a repeated-measures design. There were no differences in counting times or error rates between “embodied” and “look only” trials in the no load conditions, when reporting each number immediately. When the cognitive load was added, errors rates were reduced in the “embodied” as compared to the “look only” condition, without increments in counting times. It is assumed that touching and re-arranging the lentils enabled participants to “off-load” cognitive load onto the environment (Wilson, Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 9, 625–636, 2002). Although counting objects is a rather easy task for young adults, embodiment can support cognitive performances when task difficulty is increased by introducing a cognitive load.