The gestures we make while speaking, mimic language, serve to reinforce the message we want to convey. Basically, they are a reflection of what we feel and think. However, until now we had never thought that the way we gesture can influence our thinking. How?
Researchers at the University of Chicago devised a very interesting experiment that allowed them to observe how gestures influenced thinking. First, they asked participants to solve the Tower of Hanoi problem (a mathematical game in which there are eight discs of increasing size and three pegs; the objective is to transfer the rings from one peg to another until they form a tower).
Once people finished, they had to explain how they solved the problem. The curious thing is that it is practically impossible to give an explanation without using our hands since they serve to indicate how we have moved the rings. They are gestures that appear naturally. Well, the researchers looked at the way these people gestured.
They were then asked to solve the problem again but this time with an extra degree of complexity. Then they realized that the people who gestured more and used both hands arrived at the solution faster.
It is worth clarifying that this is not the only study that emphasizes the importance of gestures for cognitive functions. In the past, researchers at the University of New South Wales found that when children were prevented from gesturing, they had a harder time remembering information they had previously shared. On the contrary, gesturing allowed them to consolidate the information in their memory.
Why do gestures help us remember and think better?
Researchers believe that when we gesture, we are straining our brain even more than if we simply narrate a situation. Obviously, involving different brain areas in learning, especially those related to motor movements, increases the likelihood of remembering information or thinking more clearly.
When we gesture we are representing the information from another perspective and that is very positive for learning. In fact, we can understand gestures as a peculiar form of action, and we already know what is said: we remember 30% of what we see, 70% of what we say and 90% of what we do. Therefore, the next time you find yourself gesticulating, don’t be shy, maybe your brain needs it.
References:
Beilock, SL & Goldin, S. (2010) Gesture Changes Thought by Grounding It in Action. Psychological Science ; 21(11): 1605-1610.
Stevanoni, E. & Salmon, K. (2005) Giving Memory a Hand: Instructing Children to Gesture Enhances their Event Recall. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior ; 29(4): 217-233.
