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Pictures and Words
Behavioral Decision Making: Building Approaches fromLaboratory Insights
October 31th 2011
Elinor Amit
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How do we think about things?...
The 3 main approaches:
Words (inner speech) (e.g., Vygotsky, 1934; Oppenheim & Dell, 2010)
Pictures (mental imagery) (e.g., Kosslyn et al)
Abstract, a-modal representations (e.g., Caramazza, Hillis,Rapp, & Romani, 1990; Lambon Ralph, Graham, Patterson, & Hodges, 1999; Rapp, Hillis, & Caramazza,1993; Tyler & Moss, 2001; Mahon & Caramazza, 2008)
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the two most vivid forms of working memory
are mental images... and snatches of inner
speech
Pinker, 2008
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Apple
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Red apple
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Apple
Red apple
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Differences between words and pictures
Red apple
Medium
words pictures
Dissimilar to the object:
Cognized
Arbitrary
Abstract
Gist
Simple
Similar to the object:
Perceived
Not arbitrary
Concrete
Peripheral
Complex
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- The association between medium and
psychological distance
- The implications of the medium of representation
to moral judgment
We will discuss today
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- The association between medium and
psychological distance
- The implications of the medium of representation
to moral judgment
We will discuss today
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The medium/morality hypothesis
Proximal event Visual
representation
Distal event Verbal
representation
It depends
Amit, Algom, & Trope, 2009
How do we think about things?...
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What is psychological distance?
The distance between an individual and a target.
Subjective Egocentric
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What is psychological distance?
Temporal: How much time separatesbetween the individuals present and the
target event
Spatial: How far in space is the eventfrom the individual
Social: How different is the socialtarget from the individual
Bar Anan, Liberman & Trope, 2006
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Why is medium associated with
distance? Pictures and words serves different cognitive
functions:
Wordspreserve the invariant & essential
properties of the item for a distal use
Picturespreserve the stimulus in details for
an immediate use.
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Construal Level Theory (CLT)
Mental construal processes serve to traverse psychological distancesand switch between perspectives.
Trope & Liberman, 2003; 2010
Distal events not so much information =>
Proximal events there is information =>
abstract representation, entailing the essence, invariant
features of the referent.
concrete, subordinate representation.
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Main hypothesis
Pictures and words are associated with psychologicaldistance:
People elect to represent close targets in pictures and
distal targets in words.
Pictures impart a feeling of proximity, whereas wordsimpart a feeling of distance.
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cognitive processing:
- Identification
- Categorization
- Selective attention
- Memory
Social cognition:
- Interpersonal communication
- Moral judgment
Neural correlates
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cognitive processing:
- Identification
- Categorization
- Selective attention
- Memory
Social cognition:
- Interpersonal communication
- Moral judgment
Neural correlates
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Speeded Identification: Social distance
football
soccer
Amit, Algom, & Trope, 2009, Jep: General
Socially proximal
Socially distal
Medium: pictures, words
Distance: socially near, farTask: speeded identification
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Speeded Identification: Social distance
570
590
610
630
650
picture word
ReactionTim
e(ms)
proximaldistal
F(1,13)=7.63, p < .05Amit, Algom, & Trope, 2009, Jep: General
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Speeded Identification: Spatial distance
Medium: pictures, words
Distance: spatially near, farTask: speeded identification
Amit, Algom, & Trope, 2009, Jep: General
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Speeded Identification: Spatial distance
Amit, Algom, & Trope, 2009, Jep: General
600
620
640
660
680
700
picture word
ReactionTime(ms)
proximaldistal
F(1,15)=6.3, p < .05
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Amit, Rim, Greene, & Trope, in prep
+
Tomorrow
CHAIR
+
10 years
APPLE
+
20 sec
1 sec
Mental travel
Exp.1: event related design, 11 subjects
Exp.2: block design, 10 subjects
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near>far
N=10, p =.001
calcarine
far>near
BA 21 L
Language regions Visual regions
Fusiform L
BA47L
precuneus
Fusiform R
Mental travel (Harvard sample)
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Interim conclusion
Pictures are associated with proximity, whereaswords are associated with distance.
- This association influence performance invarious cognitive tasks (e.g., identification)
- People spontaneously elect to representproximal things visually (embodied cognition),and distal things verbally.
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Implications of the medium/distance
association for public policy
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paths
cost
air pollution
convenience for
costumers
pressure
from the
government
bus drivers
union demands
location of
businesses
existing routes
location ofmain public
services
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Walk a lot
Wait a little
Walk a little
Wait a lot?
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- The association between medium and
psychological distance
- The implications of the medium of representation
to moral judgment
We will discuss today
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- The association between medium and
psychological distance
- The implications of the medium of representation
to moral judgment
We will discuss today
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The medium/morality hypothesis
Proximal event Visual
representation
Distal event Verbal
representation
The medium/distance hypothesis
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The medium/morality hypothesis
Proximal eventVisual
representation
Distal eventVerbal
representation
The medium/distance hypothesis
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The medium/morality hypothesis
Proximal eventVisual
representation
Distal eventVerbal
representation
The medium/distance hypothesis
If you see something
Do something!
Implications for behavior
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Picturesemergency
reaction
Wordsnot so much
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Visual
processingHigh emotional
reaction
Verbal
processing
Low emotional
reaction
5 >1
Psychologically
proximal
Psychologically
distal
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Visual
processingHigh emotional
reaction
Verbal
processing
Low emotional
reaction
5 >1
Psychologically
proximal
Psychologically
distal
Emotionally-driven
judgments
cognitive-driven
judgments
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Dual-Process Moral Cognition
5 >1 Yes
?
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Dual-Process Moral Cognition
5 >1
No
Yes
?
XGreene et al, Cognition, 2009
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Visual processingdeontological judgments
(rely on emotional reactions)
Verbal processingutilitarian judgments
(rely on controlledreaction)
Predictions
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Another rationale for the medium/moral judgment prediction
Picturesthinking about means (consistent with
deontological moral reasoning)
Wordsthinking about end-goals (consistent withutilitarian moral reasoning)
Exp 1: How media preferences are related to moral judgments?
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Exp1: How media preferences are related to moral judgments?
L.A. Times Wall Street journal
Exp 1: How media preferences are related to moral judgments?
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r(108) = 0.233, p = 0.011*
After controlling for level of education: r(107) = .22, p = 0.018*
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Exp1: How media preferences are related to moral judgments?
More utilitarian
Exp 1: How media preferences are related to moral judgments?
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R(170) = -0.18, p = 0.017*
After controlling for education: r(169) = -0.18, p = 0.01**
Hours/day of TV watching
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Exp1: How media preferences are related to moral judgments?
More utilitarian
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Conclusions from Experiment 1:
Media consumption preferences are associated
with moral judgments tendencies:
Visualdeontological styleVerbalutilitarian style
* Cannot be accounted for by education
Exp 2: How cognitive style is related to moral judgments?
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Exp 2: How cognitive style is related to moral judgments?
Amit & Greene, under revision
Exp 2: How cognitive style is related to moral judgments?
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Verbal - Visual Accuracy
utilitarian
N = 50
r= .35
p= .01
R(50)=.346, p < .01
Exp 2: How cognitive style is related to moral judgments?
More utilitarian
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Conclusions from Experiment 2:
Cognitive style is associated with moral
judgments tendencies:
Visual styledeontologicalVerbal styleutilitarian
Amit & Greene, under revision
Exp 3: How visual and verbal interference affect moral judgments?
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Enemy soldiers
have taken overyour village.
Is it appropriate
to smother your
baby?
2.5 secno..yes
5 sec
Exp 3: How visual and verbal interference affect moral judgments?
5 sec
Amit & Greene, under revision
You are standing
near afootbridge
Is it appropriate
to smother your
baby?
no..yes
Condition 1 Condition 2
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Prediction:
pictorial interference prevents representing
the dilemma visually, thus leads to more
utilitarian judgment.
Verbal interference prevents representing the
dilemma verbally, thus leads to more
deontological judgment.
Amit & Greene, under revision
Exp 3: How visual and verbal interference affect moral judgments?
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0.4
0.42
0.44
0.46
0.48
0.5
0.52
0.54
0.56
0.58
picture word control
Interference type
* n.s
p j g
More utilitarian
Amit & Greene, under revision
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Conclusions from Experiment 3:
Visual imagery creates more deontological
judgments.
No effect for words (compared to control)suggests that the default mode of thinking
about moral dilemmas is visual.
Amit & Greene, under revision
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Exp. 4
Subjects read mean vs. side dilemma.
Than made moral permissibility judgment
And reported whether they imagined the one
to be killed or the five to be saved.
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0
1
2
3
4
5
side mean
F(1,331) = 15.1, p< .0001
What did you imagine more?
The 5
The one
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Dilemma
(mean, side)
imagery
Moral judgment
P = .000*** P = .001**
P = .000***
Sobel = -2.04, p = .004
k h
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Take-home message
Intriguing implications for the differences between
pictures and words
- People think about proximal things in pictures
and about distal things in words
- They think about means in pictures and about
end-goals in words
- Thinking in pictures lead to deontological moral
judgments, and thinking in words lead to
utilitarian moral judgments.
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Thanks
Joshua Greene
Yaacov Trope
Daniel Algom
Galit Yovel Evelina Fedorenko
SoYon Rim
Georg Halbeisen
Nobuhito Abe
Alek Chakroff
Fiery Cushman
Joe Paxton
Steven Frenkland
David RandRegan Bernhard
Ryan Halprin
Sara Gottlieb
Allison Gofman
Rebecca FineWarren Winter
Paul Lively
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Thanks!