From hands to handles: How objects’ orientation affects grasp descriptions

Many behavioural and brain imaging studies reveal that visually perceived objects automatically activate affordances, intended as the motor information incorporated into the object representation that is able to influence subsequent actions. However, affordances change depending on specific physical properties of objects. In particular, sensory-motor simulations are potentiated when subjects are able to perceive the affording part of a graspable object (i.e. the part of an object that more than others affords action, e.g. a handle), especially when it is spatially aligned with the hand for which brain activity is measured. Behavioural experiments, mostly based on compatibility paradigms, provide further evidence for the effect of spatial alignment on affordances activation. This paper explores the possibility that object orientation not only modulates sensory-motor responses, but also affects the linguistic description of possible grasp types provided by subjects.