Abstract concepts

How do we use and represent in the brain abstract concepts, as "freedom" and "fantasy"? How do we acquire them? How can an embodied and grounded cognition approach explain them?

I'm interested in investigating this problem. Our idea is that, since abstract concepts do not refer to single and concrete objects, for their acquisition the social and linguistic input is more important than for acquiring concrete concepts, as"cup". Linguistic networks should be more activated in the brain for abstract than for concrete concepts, and abstract concepts should be more influenced by linguistic variability than concrete ones. This activation of linguistic network should have an embodied counterpart, the activation of the mouth during conceptual processing. A special case is represented by concepts of numbers and emotions.

Papers on abstract concepts (since 2004) (including numbers and emotions)

• Borghi, A.M. , Binkofski, F., Cimatti, F., Scorolli, C., Tummolini, L. (in press, 2017).The challenge of abstract concepts. Psychological Bulletin. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/bul0000089. pre-print to download
• Borghi, A.M. , Zarcone, E. (2016).Grounding abstractness: Abstract concepts and the activation of the mouth. Frontiers in Psychology.7:1498. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01498. link to download
• Cimatti, F., Flumini, A., Vittuari, M., Borghi, A.M. (2016). Odors, words and objects. RIFL- Rivista Italiana di Filosofia del linguaggio.pdf to download
• Borghi, A.M., Caramelli, N., Setti, A. (2016). How abstract is risk for workers? Expertise, context and introspection in abstract concepts. Reti, saperi, linguaggi 1/2016, 5 (9), 95-118, doi: 10.12832/83920.ISSN 2279-7777. Reti, saperi, linguaggi. Italian Journal of Cognitive Science, special issue "Mind and language in action" (https://www.rivisteweb.it/issn/2279-7777). pdf to download
• Borghi, A.M. (2015). An Embodied and Grounded perspective on concepts. In Bianca, M., Piccari, P. (eds.). Epistemology of ordinary knowledge. (pp. 181-194). Cambridge Scholar. ISBN (10): 1-4438-8052-3; ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-8052-7. pre-print
• Borghi, A.M., Cimatti, F. (2015). WAT (Words As social Tools): una prospettiva socio-corporea sulla cognizione umana. Sistemi intelligenti, 27(2), 361-372. pre-print
• Mazzuca, C., Borghi, A.M. (2015). Comprensione e ricordo di parole astratte: quando la "fantasia" passa per la bocca. Neascience, Ann.2, Vol. 9, Nea Science ISSN 2282-6009, http://issuu.com/neascience/docs/neascienca_a2_vol9_aisc_2015/1?e=9948397/31731856
• Scorolli, C., Borghi, A.M., Tummolini, L. (2015). Indici visivi e giudizi impliciti di proprietà: Uno studio sperimentale.Visual cues and implicit judgments of ownership: An experimental study.) Sistemi intelligenti, 1, 209-220, DOI: 10.1422/79695. pre-print
• Granito, C., Scorolli, C., Borghi, A.M. (2015). Naming a Lego world. The role of language in the acquisition of abstract concepts. PLoS ONE 10(1): e0114615. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0114615. pdf to download
• Borghi, A.M., Capirci, O., Gianfreda, G., Volterra, V. (2014). The body and the fading away of abstract concepts and words: A sign language analysis. Frontiers in Psychology 5:811. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00811. pdf to download
• Granito, C., Scorolli, C., Borghi, A.M. (2014). Alice in Legoland: A study on acquisition of abstract concepts and words. In M. Cruciani & A. Rega (Eds.). Corpi, strumenti e cognizione. Anno 1 - Volume n° 5 - Atti del convegno internazionale dell'Associazione Italiana di Scienze Cognitive (pp. 211-215). pre-print
• Anelli, F., Lugli, L., Baroni, G., Borghi, A.M., Nicoletti, R. (2014). Walking boosts your performance in making additions and subtractions. Frontiers in Psychology 5:1459. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01459.pdf to download
• Lugli, L., Baroni, G., Anelli, F., Borghi, A.M., Nicoletti, R. (2013). Body movements affect counting. Proceedings of the cognitive science society, 35th Annual Cognitive Science Conference, p.2944-2948. Berlin, Germany, July 31-August 3. pdf
• Borghi, A.M. (2013). Embodied cognition and word acquisition: The challenge of abstract words In: Cornelia Müller, Alan Cienki, Ellen Fricke, Silva H. Ladewig, David McNeill & Jana Bressem (Eds.) Body-Language-Communication: An International Handbook on Multimodality in Human Interaction. Handbooks of Linguistics and Communication Science (HSK) 38/2 Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter: Mouton. pre-print
• Roversi, C., Borghi, A.M., Tummolini, L. (2013). A Marriage is an Artefact and not a Walk that We Take Together: An Experimental Study on the Categorization of Artefacts. Review of Philosophy and Psychology, 4, 3, 527-542. pre-print
• Borghi, A.M., Scorolli, C., Caligiore, D., Baldassarre, G. & Tummolini, L. (2013). The embodied mind extended: Words as social tools. Frontiers in Psychology 4:214. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00214. pdf to download
• Sakreida, K., Scorolli, C., Menz, M.M., Heim, S., Borghi, A.M., & Binkofski, F. (2013) Are abstract action words embodied? An fMRI investigation at the interface between language and motor cognition.Frontiers in Human Neurosciences 7:125. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00125. pdf to download
• Tummolini, L. Scorolli, C., Borghi, A.M. (2013). Disentangling the sense of ownership from the sense of fairness. Commentary on Baumard, André and Sperber, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 36, pp 101-102. doi:10.1017/S0140525X1200088X. . pre-print
• Scorolli, C., Jacquet, P., Binkofski, F., Nicoletti, R., Tessari, A., Borghi, A.M. (2012). Abstract and concrete phrases processing differently modulates cortico-spinal excitability. Brain Research, 1488, 60-71. doi: 10.1016/j.brainres.2012.10.004. . pre-print
• Borghi, A.M., Cimatti, F. (2012). Words are not just words: the social acquisition of abstract words. RIFL - ISSN: 2036-6728. doi: . 10.4396/20120303. pre-print - link
• Gianelli, C., Ranzini, M., Marzocchi M., Rettore Micheli L., Borghi, A.M. (2012). Influence of numerical magnitudes on the free choice of an object position. Cognitive Processing, 13,1, 185-188. pre-print.
• Scorolli, C., Binkofski, F., Buccino, G., Nicoletti, R., Riggio, L., Borghi, A.M. (2011). Abstract and concrete sentences, embodiment, and languages. Frontiers in Psychology, 2, 227. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00227. link to download the pdf.
• Ranzini, M., Lugli, L., Anelli, M., Carbone, R., Nicoletti, R., Borghi, A.M. (2011). Graspable objects shape number processing.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 5, art.147, doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2011.00147. pre-print
• Borghi, A.M., Flumini, A., Cimatti, F., Marocco, D. & Scorolli, C. (2011).Manipulating objects and telling words: A study on concrete and abstract words acquisition. Frontiers in Psychology, 2:15. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00015, special issue on Embodied and Grounded Cognition (editors: A.M. Borghi, D. Pecher). pre-print. link to download the pdf.
• Ferri, F., Stoianov, I. P., Gianelli, C., D'Amico, L., Borghi, A.M. & Gallese, V. (2010).When action meets emotions. How facial displays of emotion influence goal-related behavior. PLoS ONE 5(10): e13126. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0013126. link
• Borghi, A.M., Cimatti, F.(2009). Words as tools and the problem of abstract words meanings. In N. Taatgen & H. van Rijn (eds.). Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society (pp. 2304-2309). Amsterdam: Cognitive Science Society. pre-print; slides
• Freina, L., Baroni, G., Borghi, A.M., Nicoletti, R.(2009).Emotive Concept-Nouns and Motor Responses: Attraction or Repulsion? Memory and Cognition, 37, 493-499. Materials. pre-print