Embodied learning: The role of gesture-based interactions in language acquisition

Interactive communication and gestures play an important role in language learning but this can be influenced by preferred styles of learning and individual differences. This study investigated gesture enactment in adults learning a new language, considering gesture type and individual differences in bodily awareness and sensory imagery.In a computer task, participants learned invented words in four conditions that involved hearing the word or performing a congruent and incongruent gesture. Participants completed self-report measures of bodily awareness and mental imagery. It was hypothesised that enacting congruent gestures would enhance learning for people with high bodily awareness and sensorimotor imagery.Results indicated that enacting congruent gestures facilitated learning and participants with high body listening skills performed significantly better in the control and in the congruent conditions. The findings of this study indicate for the first time that individual differences in bodily awareness influence language learning, especially when congruent gestures are used.