Affective space and motor response: the impact of proprioceptive/tactile cues on movement organization
摘要
This study explores whether action organization is optimized when the affective marked space (up positive and down negative) is primarily perceived through vision (target position: up or down) or proprioception (movement direction: upward or downward). Sixty-four right-handed participants performed pointing movements on a graphic tablet while seated in front of a vertical computer screen. The tablet was positioned either horizontally or vertically, and participants used a stylus to trigger the appearance of either a positive or negative outcome (affective pictures). The findings reveal that motor response coding strongly depends on the affective marking of the space in which the movement occurs, that this affective space coding is primarily driven by predictions based on proprioceptive and tactile information rather than visual cues, and that movement organization is more efficient when the affective coding of the space aligns with the affective coding of the movement’s outcome compared to when they are incompatible. By analyzing the temporal and spatial aspects of movements through kinematic analysis, this study provides new insights into the affective coding of motor responses.