A neuropsycholinguistic chronometric embodied cognition investigation of the vertical representation of affect in visuo-spatial target detection

In two psychophysical experiments we investigated if experimentally induced affective states (positive vs. negative mood induced by film-clips) bias subsequent performance in a computerised visual singleton target detection task. Neuropsycholinguistic research indicates that affective conceptual metaphors consistently associate positive affect with elevated vertical spatial positions and negative affect with depressed spatial positions. According to the generic neuronal theory of thought and language, these semantic percept-concept association are neurocomputationally encoded in Gestalt circuits according to Hebbian principles of long-term potentiation/depression (LTP/LTD) and spike-timing depended plasticity (STDP), inter alia. Based on this theoretical background we predicted a priori that positive experimental mood induction facilitates reaction times (RTs) for target detection in the superior visual field (VFS) relative to the orthogonal inferior visual field (VFI). Vice versa, we expected that negative mood induction facilitates target detection RTs in VFI relative to VFS (Experiment 1 and 2). In addition, Experiment 1 explicitly tested the prediction that affective states bias perceptual judgments on the horizontal axis. Ex hypothesi, we predicted that positive mood induction facilitates target detection RTs in the right temporal visual field (VFR) compared to the contralateral left field (VFL). Per contrast, we predicted the inverse effect for target detection RTs in VFL versus VFR. Impetus for the last hypothesis was derived from the neuropsychological valence model of hemispheric processing of emotion perception which postulates asymmetric neuronal lateralisation for specific classes of emotions. The data did not corroborate our directional predictions. All a priori formulated hypotheses were falsified in a quasi-Popperian sense (in support of the urgently needed open-science revolution we provide a URL to the raw data for the purpose of statistical cross-validation and/or analytical reviews). Implications of the findings are discussed in the generic theoretical framework of embodied cognition and we will expound the crucial importance of negative results in a meta-analytic context (e.g., big-data AI machine learning / publication & confirmation bias). Furthermore, the de facto irrational epistemological basis of current publishing praxis is criticised from a universal philosophy of science vantage point. We will close with a critical embodied cognition discussion of the detrimental effects of constant screen exposure (e.g., ocular fixation on *smart*phones) on the development of the neuroplastic sensorimotor architecture of children.

本研究通过两项心理物理实验（psychophysical experiments），探究了实验诱导的情绪状态——由影片片段诱发的积极与消极情绪——是否会对后续计算机化视觉单例目标检测任务（computerised visual singleton target detection task）的作业绩效产生偏倚影响。神经心理语言学研究（neuropsycholinguistic research）表明，情感概念隐喻（affective conceptual metaphors）始终将积极情绪与垂直空间高位相关联，消极情绪与垂直空间低位相关联。根据思维与语言的通用神经元理论（generic neuronal theory of thought and language），这类语义知觉-概念联结（semantic percept-concept association）依据赫布长期增强/抑制（LTP/LTD）原则、脉冲时序依赖可塑性（STDP）等机制，在格式塔回路（Gestalt circuits）中以神经计算方式进行编码。基于上述理论背景，我们预先提出假设：相较于正交的下方视野（VFI），积极情绪诱导会提升上方视野（VFS）内目标检测的反应时（RTs）。反之，我们预期相较于上方视野（VFS），消极情绪诱导会提升下方视野（VFI）内的目标检测反应时（实验1与实验2）。此外，实验1专门检验了情绪状态是否会对水平轴上的知觉判断产生偏倚这一预测。依据该假设，我们预期相较于对侧左侧视野（VFL），积极情绪诱导会加快右侧颞侧视野（VFR）内的目标检测反应时；与之相反，我们预测左侧视野（VFL）相较于右侧颞侧视野（VFR）的目标检测反应时会出现反向效应。这一最终假设的提出，源于情绪感知半球加工的神经心理效价模型（neuropsychological valence model of hemispheric processing of emotion perception），该模型提出特定情绪类别存在神经元偏侧化不对称现象。本研究数据并未验证我们的定向假设，所有预先提出的假设均在拟波普尔意义上被证伪。为支持亟需推进的开放科学革命（open-science revolution），我们提供了原始数据的链接，以供统计交叉验证及/或分析性复现。我们在具身认知（embodied cognition）的通用理论框架下讨论了本研究发现的启示，并将在元分析语境中阐述阴性结果的关键重要性（例如大数据人工智能机器学习、发表偏倚与确认偏倚）。此外，我们从一般科学哲学视角，批判了当前出版实践实则非理性的认识论基础。最后，我们将批判性地从具身认知角度讨论持续暴露于屏幕（例如紧盯*smart*phones的眼球注视）对儿童神经可塑性感觉运动架构发育的有害影响。