Hearing mouth shapes: Sound symbolism and the reverse McGurk effect. — Department of Experimental Psychology Cookies on this website We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings. Accept all cookies Reject all non-essential cookies Find out more Accessibility Cookies Contact us Log in Web Learn Intranet Home About us People Research Publications Research Impact Research Groups Study with us News Read Our Blogs Events Get Involved Participate Public Engagement COVID-19 COVID-19: Our Mental Health COVID-19 Resources COVID-19 Research & Other Activities EPICS More... Early Career Researchers (ECR) Search Publications Hearing mouth shapes: Sound symbolism and the reverse McGurk effect. Hearing mouth shapes: Sound symbolism and the reverse McGurk effect. Spence C., Deroy O. In their recent article, Sweeny, Guzman-Martinez, Ortega, Grabowecky, and Suzuki (2012) demonstrate that heard speech sounds modulate the perceived shape of briefly presented visual stimuli. Ovals, whose aspect ratio (relating width to height) varied on a trial-by-trial basis, were rated as looking wider when a /woo/ sound was presented, and as taller when a /wee/ sound was presented instead. On the one hand, these findings add to a growing body of evidence demonstrating that audiovisual correspondences can have perceptual (as well as decisional) effects. On the other hand, they prompt a question concerning their origin. Although the currently popular view is that crossmodal correspondences are based on the internalization of the natural multisensory statistics of the environment (see Spence, 2011), these new results suggest instead that certain correspondences may actually be based on the sensorimotor responses associated with human vocalizations. As such, the findings of Sweeny et al. help to breathe new life into Sapir's (1929) once-popular "embodied" explanation of sound symbolism. Furthermore, they pose a challenge for those psychologists wanting to determine which among a number of plausible accounts best explains the available data on crossmodal correspondences. Original publication DOI 10.1068/i0558ic Type Journal article Journal Iperception Publication Date 2012 Volume 3 Pages 550 - 552 Keywords audition, crossmodal correspondence, multisensory integration, sound symbolism, vision Freedom of Information Privacy Policy Copyright Statement Accessibility Cookies Contact us Log in Web Learn Intranet About us Contact Information Oxford Experimental Psychology Evaluation of the Department Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Supporting Our Staff The Athena SWAN Charter Our Athena SWAN Committee EP Inspires In Conversation with EP Faculty Job Opportunities In Memoriam 120 Years of Psychology at Oxford Anne Treisman Lectures Accessibility Cookie Statement Data Privacy Policy People Research Perception and Cognition Behavioural Neuroscience Developmental Psychology Psychological and Brain Health Theoretical Neuroscience & Artificial Intelligence Cognition, Learning & Plasticity News Language & Cognitive Development Current Research Projects Children's Communication Impairments Current Research Projects Recent Publications News Professor Dorothy Bishop OSCCI Newsletters Alumni External links Speech & Brain Speech & Brain News Tools Decisions & Action Emotion & Social Relations Research Funding Information Mathematical Development & Disabilities Research Projects Emotions & Affective Neuroscience Human Information Processing Thalamus, Cortex & Cognition Scientific meetings Crossmodal Perception Anxiety and Trauma (OxCADAT) Anxiety Disorders Recent Publications Learning & Memory Research News and Events Cognitive Development in Infancy Research Overview Current Research Grants Recent Research Grants Your Visit to the BabyLab BabyLab News BabyLab Downloads Neurochemistry, Action and Control Research Projects Brain & Cognition Attention & Cognitive Control Computational Psychopathology Attention, Brain & Cognitive Development Research Projects Kid and Parent Corner Our Partners Perception and Autism Consciousness & Cognition Cognitive Neurology Attention & Working Memory Brain & Behaviour Brain & Flexible Cognition Perception OxVis High-resolution retinal imaging Material perception Reading & Language Wellcome Language and Reading Project CRL Projects External links Translational Neuropsychology INDIREA Cognitive Screening Stroke Awareness Risk & Safety Research Projects Risk & Resilience Clinical Social Cognition Research Impact Motivation & Social Neuroscience Social Development Social & Affective Psychology Publications TOPIC Research Group Co-Space Study: Supporting Parents, Adolescents and Children during Epidemics Research Groups Memory and Sleep Neurophysiology of Reward Study with us Graduate Courses in Psychology Entry Requirements for Our Courses MSc in Psychological Research DPhil (PhD) in Experimental Psychology MSc by Research in Experimental Psychology Fees Information Graduate Admissions Procedures What happens next..... 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