The haptic cues humans use to sense small numbers of objects in a box
Frissen I. Xiao S. Kabdyshev N. Zabirova M. Ziat M.
February 2025Springer
Attention, Perception, and Psychophysics
2025#87Issue 2577 - 587 pp.
Humans can acquire behaviorally relevant information about the contents of a container through their sense of touch. A container poses a challenge to the haptic sense as it creates an intermediary between its contents and the observer. Despite this challenge, several studies have shown that individuals are particularly adept at estimating small numbers of objects in an opaque box solely through tactile interaction. This study aimed to identify which physical cues contribute to this ability by systematically attenuating (Experiment 1) or augmenting (Experiment 2) the cues of rolling vibrations, impact, and weight. Rolling cues were manipulated by varying the friction between the objects and the containers floor. Impact cues were manipulated by softening or hardening the container’s internal wall. Weight cues were controlled by equalizing the total weight of the contents, regardless of the number of objects. The findings suggest that rolling vibrations are the primary cues, followed by impact cues, while weight plays only a minor role.
Container , Haptics , Numerosity , Tactile cognition
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School of Information Studies, McGill University, 3661 Peel St., Montreal, H3A 1X1, QC, Canada
Bentley University, Waltham, 02452, MA, United States
Nazarbayev University, Astana, Kazakhstan
School of Information Studies
Bentley University
Nazarbayev University
10 лет помогаем публиковать статьи Международный издатель
Книга Публикация научной статьи Волощук 2026 Book Publication of a scientific article 2026