Embodied decision making in athletes and other animals

Abstract

Humans and other animals continuously make embodied decisions about ongoing or pending courses of action. Examples of embodied decisions include a hunting lioness's decision of which gazelle to chase and a soccer player's decision of which teammate to pass the ball to. The study of embodied decisions has recently gained tractions across several fields, including cognitive psychology, neuroscience, and sports science. Here, we summarize key insights from these studies and highlight that they imply a shift of perspective from viewing decision-making as a central cognitive process largely separated from perception and action dynamics to a more integrative perspective that recognizes its embodied and situated nature. We discuss how embodied decisions can be effectively conceptualized in terms of the parallel specification and selection between available (and future) affordances, i.e., as an “affordance competition” process. We discuss studies addressing various aspects of embodied decisions, which include the selection between courses of action, the involvement of motor processes in perceptual and cognitive tasks, motivational factors and the decision of how vigorously and urgently to act. Furthermore, we highlight current controversies in the field and open directions for future work – and their implications for the advancement of our understanding of the mind and the behavior of athletes.