Spatial Schemas and Abstract Thought

Humans and other animals depend on their ability to perceive and represent spatialaspects of the world. We learn spatial schemas by observing the locations and movements of objects(including people) and the configuration of our environment. This book explores the role thesespatial schemas play in abstract, nonspatial tasks. Evidence suggests that we adapt spatial schemasfor three basic purposes in abstract cognition: to structure memory, to structure communication, andto structure reasoning.Are spatial schemas mere metaphors that help us to understand cognitiveprocesses or are they actual internal mechanisms? Evidence for the latter suggests that thecognitive structures we develop to perceive, navigate, and remember space are the indispensablefoundation of more abstract cognitive tasks. This book proposes the means by which spatialstructures might be adapted for nonspatial purposes, and it considers alternatives to spatial codingas a basis for abstract thought.The book is organized into three parts: the representation and useof space, spatial schemas in cultural contexts, and the kinds of computational and neurologicalstructures that might be involved in abstract thought. The contributors include cognitivepsychologists, developmental psychologists, linguists, anthropologists, and computerscientists.

Merideth Gattis is Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Sheffield, UK.