Notes on Perception and Action Podcast: J.J. Gibson's Affordance Theory

Introduction

• Host: Rob Gray from Arizona State University
• Series: Contributions of J.J. Gibson to perception in action
• Focus: Affordance theory and its application to sports
• Concept: Understanding how we use perceptual information for motor control

Gibson's Affordance Theory

• Definition: Surfaces afford or provide opportunities for actions (e.g., flat surfaces afford rest).
• Direct Perception: We perceive affordances directly from the environment.
• Invariance: Despite changes in the retinal image, we pick up direct information relevant to action (e.g., time to contact, speed).

Cognitive Processing vs. Direct Perception

• Indirect Perception: Involves cognitive processing, memory use, and inference.
• Gibson's View: Cognitive processing displaces the problem from the environment to the brain; prefers explaining behavior control without relying on cognition.

Application to Sports

• Example: A baseball infielder uses affordances to catch a ball based on direct perception of information.
• Affordances as Action Opportunities: Instead of abstract physical properties, perception is of meaningful units of action.

Affordances Specific to Individuals

• Action Capabilities: Affordances are relative to an individual's capabilities (e.g., bat speed affects hitting affordance).
• Dispositional vs. Relational: Debate on whether affordances are independent properties or emergent from interactions with the environment.

Key Aspects of Affordances

• Creativity in Behavior: Affordances allow perceiving actions beyond designed uses (e.g., sitting on tables).
• Dynamic Nature: Affordances change moment-to-moment (e.g., passability in sports).
• Prospective Control: Affordances use the same information for decision-making and action execution.
• Misperception: Errors occur if misinformation is picked up.

Implications for Sports Coaching

• Training Design: Use affordances to influence decision-making and control in practice.
• Practice Adjustments: Modify constraints to manipulate information and action capabilities (e.g., player numbers, fatigue).
• Control for Free: Teaching decisions using information needed for action execution.
• Task Difficulty: Design activities based on affordances (e.g., passability, shootability) rather than physical units.

Conclusion

• Affordances provide a framework for understanding perception and action in terms of functional semantics.
• Emphasizes ecological approach—understanding behavior through direct interaction with environment.

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For more information, contact Rob Gray at [email protected] or follow on Twitter @shakyweights. Support the podcast at patreon.com/perceptionaction.