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Touch me if you can: The intangible but grounded nature of abstract concepts

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 June 2020

Anna M. Borghi Open the ORCID record for Anna M. Borghi [Opens in a new window]  and
Luca Tummolini Open the ORCID record for Luca Tummolini [Opens in a new window]
Anna M. Borghi
Affiliation:
Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Via degli Apuli 1, 00185Rome, Italy [email protected] Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, Italian National Research Council, Via San Martino della Battaglia 44, 00185Rome, Italy. [email protected]
Luca Tummolini
Affiliation:
Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, Italian National Research Council, Via San Martino della Battaglia 44, 00185Rome, Italy. [email protected]
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Abstract

Thinking about what the senses cannot grasp is one of the hallmarks of human cognition. We argue that “intangible abstracta” are represented differently from other products of abstraction, that goal-derived categorization supports their learning, and that they are grounded also in internalized linguistic and social interaction. We conclude by suggesting different ways in which abstractness contributes to cement group cohesion.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 43 , 2020 , e123
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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