Embodied Social Cognition and the Decision to Act

我们如何确定某人是否构成威胁？ 为了做出这种评估，我们不仅要利用外部线索（例如，个人和周围环境），但我们也使用我们自己的内部线索（例如，我们的个性，情况和背景）来指导这些感知和判断。具身社会认知理论认为，一个人的身体状态（例如，衣服或配饰）和行为全集（例如，技能和能力）影响我们对环境中其他人的看法和想法。因此，简单的线索，如我们穿什么或拿什么，可以塑造我们如何解释和理解我们的社会世界。本研究将探讨持有不同意义的物体如何改变我们对他人意图的感知。 例如，如果我们拿着枪和拿着电话，我们对别人的看法是否不同？ 这项研究将研究个体差异和特定情境因素的作用，这些因素影响持枪对他人行为产生错误认知的可能性;例如，他们是否错误地认为另一个人拿着枪而不是另一个物体。 如果这种类型的误解发生在真实的生活情况下，它可能是昂贵的。错误地认为别人拿着枪可能会导致消极后果，包括煽动对不构成重大威胁的手无寸铁的个人的暴力行为。当暴力或其他犯罪是由于对威胁的误解而产生时，这项研究可能对法律和司法系统有意义。此外，研究结果可以用来教育那些可能携带枪支作为其职业的一部分的人，这如何改变他们的观察和判断，这可以减少误解。总体而言，拟议的工作将有助于我们理解的个体差异和情境的重要性，我们如何感知和理解我们的社会环境。当所涉背景对误解他人的恶意意图有影响时，这一点尤其重要。

How do we determine if someone poses a threat? To make this assessment, not only do we draw on external cues (e.g., the individual and surrounding environment), but we also use our own internal cues (e.g., our personalities, situations, and contexts) to guide these perceptions and judgments. Theories of embodied social cognition posit that the state of one's body (e.g., clothing or accessories) and behavioral repertoire (e.g., skills and abilities) influence our perceptions and thoughts about other people in our environment. Therefore, simple cues such as what we are wearing or holding can shape how we interpret and understand our social world. The present investigation will examine how holding objects with different meanings can change how we perceive the intentions of others. For example, do we perceive others differently if we are holding a gun versus holding a phone? This research will examine the role of individual differences and situation-specific factors that affect the likelihood that holding a gun will produce false perceptions about the actions of others; for example, whether they incorrectly believe another person is holding a gun instead of another object. If this type of misperception occurs in real life situations, it could be costly. Falsely perceiving that someone else is holding a gun could lead to negative consequences, including instigating violence towards unarmed individuals who do not pose a significant threat. This research could be relevant for the law and judicial system when violence or other crime results from misunderstandings of threat. Additionally, the findings could be used to educate those who might carry a gun as part of their occupation on how this could shift their observations and judgments, which could mitigate misperceptions. Overall, the proposed work will contribute to our understanding on the importance of individual differences and situational contexts for how we perceive and understand our social surroundings. This is particularly important when the context in question has implications for misperceiving malicious intent of others.