(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- The way a person walks can say a lot about who they
are. Whether a person is a ballerina or a linebacker, their strut can provide
cues to their age, gender and even mood.
Researchers have now revealed a new biological perception of movement -- males
are perceived as motion coming toward an observer, while females are perceived
as moving away.
The research was done by illuminating only the joints of model walkers and
asking observers to identify various characteristics about the figures they saw.
While the illuminated joints were still, they were almost completely
unrecognizable as a human structure.
“If you look at someone with just their joints illuminated when they aren’t
moving, it’s difficult to tell what it is you are looking at. But as soon as
they move, instantaneously, you can tell that it’s a person and perceive their
nature. You can tell if it’s a boy or a girl, young or old, angry or happy. You
can discern all these qualities about their state, affect, and actions with no
cues at all about what they look like -- with no form at all, just motion,” Rick
van der Zwan of Southern Cross University in Australia, was quoted as saying.
Participants viewed sets of both male and female joint movements. Results showed
walking male figures appeared to be facing toward the observer, while walking
female figures appeared to be facing away. This shows a link between the
perception of gender from biological motion cues and the perception of
orientation.
SOURCE: Current Biology, 2008;18:R728-R729
