How emotions are metaphorically embodied: measuring hand and head action strengths of typical emotional states

ABSTRACT

This study measured hand and head action strengths of eight typical emotional states using an authentic but implicit emotion elicitation task. Participants listened to and then retold five stories in which eight typical emotional states were experienced by the narrators. The number of hand and head gestures that occur naturally while experiencing an emotional state was used as an index to determine the hand and head action strength of that emotional state. Results showed a larger number of head gestures than hand gestures, suggesting that head action strengths of the eight emotional states are stronger than their hand action strengths. These findings are consistent with the data extracted from Lancaster Sensorimotor Norms (LSN), although the two sets of data were gathered in two completely different experimental conditions and in two different languages. Furthermore, our data showed a prototypical directionality effect for the typical emotional states, specifically, happiness, anger and pride were primarily accompanied by upward gestures but downward gestures for sadness and shame; surprise was primarily accompanied by forward gestures but backward gestures for fear and disgust.

KEYWORDS:

• Emotional state
• embodied cognition
• action strength
• hand gesture
• head gesture

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in Figshare at 10.6084/m9.figshare.20460729

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Code availability

Not applicable.

Ethics approval

The study was carried out according to the declaration of Helsinki (WMA, 2013) and was approved by the local committee.

Consent to participate

All participants either received course credit or participated voluntarily and gave their written informed consent.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Foreign Expert Program with Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China (G202000230036).