Action verbs and demonstrative pronouns affect volumetric affordance activation

Memory and Cognition. 2026. Vol. 54. No. 3. P. 835–851.

T. Ledneva, Y. Shtyrov, O. Shevtsov, A. Myachykov

Whereas the influence of visual information on the activation of manual affordances is well-documented, far less attention has been given to the specific role of language in modulating affordance activation. Several studies have shown that nouns referring to graspable objects can trigger affordance simulations, whereas action verbs may facilitate related motor responses. However, there is little research exploring the role of other word classes, such as pronouns, in modulating affordance activation; of these, demonstrative pronouns are of special interest due to their role in marking spatial relations. Demonstrative pronouns (e.g., this, that) denote the object’s position in space relative to the interlocutor’s perspective (proximal or distal), therefore indicating its availability for action, which predicts their potential involvement in modulating action affordances. To test this hypothesis, we employed a stimulus-response compatibility paradigm with auditory linguistic phrase primes comprising a verb (action/observation) and a demonstrative (proximal/distal), followed by a target word denoting a manipulable object. First, our data confirmed the previously demonstrated potential of action verbs to activate manual affordances. Second, and most important, our data showed that proximal demonstratives had a similar capacity, particularly when paired with an action verb. These findings have significant implications for theories of language comprehension, supporting the view that language processing is deeply intertwined with sensorimotor systems and that demonstratives are integral components of spatial cognition, modulating the perceived affordances of objects.

Keywords: embodied cognition, воплощенное познание, demonstratives, указательные местоимения, ecological psychology, экологическая психология, affordances, аффордансы

Publication based on the results of: Multidisciplinary study of behavior and decision-making in health population and patients using behavioral, economic, neurocognitive, neuroeconomic, neurocomputational and neural network approaches (2025)