Hand-object interaction in perspective. Neuroscience Letters

We investigated the effect of perspective on the recognition of actions, without using motor preparation. Photographs of a hand wearing a glove were presented as primes, followed by photographs of the same hand interacting with an object. Both primes and targets were shown in ego- or non-egocentric perspective. Participants had to decide whether or not the hand interacted with the object in a sensible way. In order to increase the similarity between the perceived and the enacted movement, half of the participants were required to wear a glove while responding. We found an advantage of the egocentric over the non-egocentric perspective for targets in the Glove condition. The advantage of the egocentric perspective was present for primes as well, even though the effect was limited to the No Glove condition. Results are discussed in the framework of the recent literature on mirror neurons and body schema.