The Role of Attention, Perception and Memory Processes in

Choreographic Cognition: Issues for Research and Analysis

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The Role of Attention, Perception and Memory
Processes in Choreographic Cognition:
Issues for Research and Analysis

Fatima Wachowicz, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil

Catherine Stevens, University of Western Sydney, Australia

Dance can be defined as purposeful human behavior that sequences movements

and stillness in time and space with effort, and that have intentional, rhythmical
and cultural influence (Hanna, 2008). From William Forsythe’s point of view,
choreography and dancing are two distinct practices, ‘choreography often
serves as a channel for the desire to dance’ 1, it is a fundamental state of
organization that belongs to a class of ideas through possible courses of body
actions. Dance refers to creating movements with no predetermined motor
program (Hagendoorn, 2003).
The aim of the present paper is to introduce and discuss the underlying
cognitive processes involved in dance making, especially attention, perception
and memory of movement by considering cognitive psychology. The question
posed is how does knowledge from cognitive psychology provide new insights
of ways of knowing and perceiving dance?
Dance, as nonverbal communication, is an extended interdisciplinary field
wherein both scientist and artist have made use of the available tools in order to
understand the cerebral phenomena. However, as suggested by Jola et al
(2011), while dance and cognitive neuroscience share interests, it is sometimes
difficult matching the experience to psychological processes. For example, to
explain the very individual responses in one live dance performance that is
watched.
Dance slowly came into focus in cognitive science as an interdisciplinary
approach for deeper understanding of physical and cognitive principles of
human motor learning. Some research investigates how the brain processes

1
Forsythe, W. Choreographic Objects, www.williamforsythe.de/essay.html, accessed March/
2011.

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aesthetic experiences (Calvo-Merino et al, 2010; Cross & Ticini, 2011).

Scientists have investigated possible correspondences between activation in the
brain and the perceptual experience of learning and watching movements. On
the other hand, highly sophisticated and expertly executed movements
characteristic of dance have also contributed to new insights of cognitive
neuroscience (Cross & Ticini, 2011; Jola, Ehrenberg, Reynolds, 2011).
Therefore, dance, cognitive psychology, and cognitive neuroscience have led to
fruitful interdisciplinary collaborations.
Smith and Dean (2009) suggested methods and principles to use when
studying a particular kind of work as creative practice within the university
environment, respectively practice-led research and research-led practice. They
argue that these concepts of research are not separate processes but instead are
often carried out collaboratively. However, research-led practice is also
important in the creative arts and not only in science, engineering, medical
research and technology. Practice-led research involves problem solving
research. For example, creative work in itself is a form of research and
generates outputs. Knowledge of creative practicioners can arise when the
artists engage in conceptualization, theorization, reflect on, and document their
own creative practice.
We propose practice-led research as one way of thinking about creative
research and the studies of perception in dance. The knowledge gained from
cognitive psychology can be useful for dance studies in a way that allows it to
explore new possibilities using the body in creative work.
In this article, through examples from dance, we shall discuss attention,
perception, and memory. Towards the end, more specific research subjects in
each field will be collated.

Attention and Perception in Action Observation

Attention is a concentration of mental activity (Matlin, 2002). The mental

effort of concentrating on a stimulus that might be a simple stimulus from the
environment can capture our attention. Attention also refers to the mental
activity when we have focused on specific stimuli. An example of multimodal
attention is when, in parallel, we are listening to the music, watching a new
movement, and start moving to the rhythm of the music; we are activating
mental representations (Matlin: 2002). We can match all these tasks and
perform them at the same time in a brief moment. In fact, this is possible
because we are engaging attention.
On the other hand, perception involves the interpretation of sensory
information, giving it meaning and organization (Matlin, 2002; Ashcraft,
2007). It is not so easy to determine a clear distinction between perception and
sensation. Their functions appear to be correlated, once we sense the
stimulation from the environment and we perceive what it is, almost
simultaneously (Matlin, 2002; Ashcraft, 2007). Sensation, perception and

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cognition work together to create the impressions of qualities of objects that

exist in the world for humans.
The philosopher Noë (2009) suggests that perception takes place in the
whole body. Therefore, one experience as dance cannot be defined as a
predominantly visual form of knowledge. His research question is actually how
the sense of body experience such as dance is activated in the brain. Theories
of embodied cognition suggest that during perceptual experience, associative
areas of the brain are activated and linked. It allows development of internal
representations of objects and events that elicit patterns of activation and
sensorimotor experiences that are connected with acting on the objects.
(Goldin-Meadow & Beilock, 2010; Barsalou, 1999).
When observing a dance performance we turn our attention to one focus or
attempt to divide attention across multiple foci. For novice observers watching
a dance work that offers many possibilities for visual attentional focus, one
dancer enters the stage under a spotlight could draw all the observer’s attention
to it resulting in not noticing another dancer leave the stage at the same time.
“Sensory stimuli only catches our attention when they are relevant to the task
we engage in” (Hagendoorn, 2010, p.6).
Kirsh and colleagues (2009) report a case study in which they describe
ways of communication between choreographer and dancers. The main
communicative mechanisms they have observed were words, prosody (that
indicates nuance about shape, tempo and mood), gestures (pointing dynamics
of form), touch, vocalization, dancers imitating form, and position on stage
(orientation on stage). The detailed analysis showed diverse ways of creation,
and ways the choreographer uses to be understood.
Imitation is a common way to communicate movement and has been
mentioned in several studies. Imitation is not restricted to copying or a single
cognitive process. It is a complex process that can make it possible to develop
an efficient sensory-motor system, and can also be helpful to teach, to plan a
competent dance class, to conduct a set of choreographed movements as
suggested by Kirsh et al. (2009), or to increase any abilities within students.
Imitation ‘depends on learning a set of patterns that involves analogical and
spatial abilities’ (Hanna: 2008, p.496), and it also underlies dancers’
behaviours that lead to storing the representations in memory.
As a possible underlying mechanism, theories of a mirror system (Calvo-
Merino et al 2005; Calvo-Merino et al 2006; Rizzolatti et al 2001) posit that
action perception involves covert motor activity. Calvo-Merino et al. (2005)
observes that the human brain contains specialised parietal-pre-motor circuits
active in observing and understanding actions. This ‘mirror system’ is
theorised to be activated when observing and understanding actions performed
by others and implies that perception and action involve a similar range of
motor representation.
Haagendoorn (2006) concurs with Calvo-Merino’s results – he indicates
the kinesthetic feeling of movement is activated and engaged from motor
imagery. People can imagine themselves performing the same moves, and feel

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a desire to try performing a dance or martial arts after watching them. The
‘mirror neurons’ also create empathy ‘the ability to understand other people’s
actions and intentions.’(Haagendoorn: 2006,p. 2)
Krasnow (1994) discusses two artistic perception points of view. For
Susanne Langer, dance work can be understood separately from the movement
sequences, it is not crucial to discuss its meaning. The materials and the
elements of art comprise an idea, rather than to represent actual things. In
contrast, for Marcia Siegel, her texts on dance are rich in movement detail; the
emphasis is on the role of the performer, the importance of the dancer in both
the creation and execution of dance work. Siegel also suggests that movement
qualities and interpretation are essential for the development of dance works,
and they share equally in communicating to the audience. Krasnow concludes
that dancers rely on both cognitive and perceptual skills, and must have
appreciation of the design of the work in its space-time-movement dimensions.
‘Cognition and perception demand far more than training a technique, or even
understanding the process of moving in an aesthetic sense. They imply
awareness, knowledge, and decision-making in the act of learning and
performing a dance.’ (Krasnow, 1994, p.19)
The studies of perception have practical applications in dance studies. For
example, the multisensory quality of dance expands the perceptual awareness
to mean different sensations of the body, as tactile, the body touching the
ground or contacting another body, sound perception, nonverbal behaviour that
involves sending and receiving information about body positions and facial
expressions and all perceptual attributes. Visual acuity to look around refers to
the keenness, as well as degrees of attentiveness and status relationship
(Hanna: 2008).
The understanding of the underlying brain processes that has emerged
from cognitive science research is, according to deLahunta et al. (2009),
revolutionizing our understanding of ourselves, perceptions, emotions,
consciousness, and it contributes strongly to our understanding of the creation,
self-knowledge, artistic collaboration, viewers and audience. Thus, findings
from cognitive psychology suggest new ways to think about body movement.
New questions have emerged including: how do audiences perceive and
interact with a dance work? What connections are possible between movement
control, memory and balance? What new ways can choreographers find to
develop dance creativity? For instance, Ivar Hagendoorn and William
Forsythe, in Dance and the Brain Symposium (2004), explored some of the
cognitive mechanisms of attention; Scott DeLahunta and Wayne Gregor
consider connections between sensory perception, movement control and
memory, which inspired the creation of AtaXia (2004); the Project Unspoken
Knowledges, developed by Robin Grove and Shirley McKechnie (1999)
investigated creativity in the choreographic process with particular emphasis
on works developed by the Australian choreographers Anna Smith and Sue
Healey. Later, the Conceiving Connections project in Australia (2002-2004)
explored the audience’s response to contemporary dance and the Intention and

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Serendipity project (2005-2009) examined improvisation, symbolism and

memory in creating Australian contemporary dance.

Certainly the audience sees, hears, and comprehends many rich and
compelling ideas and feelings in a dance work, but it is undeniable
that the spectator is primarily viewing a performer in motion.
Whether it is the dancer’s kinaesthetic sense, or the audience’s
kinaesthetic empathy, it is the perception of that motion – its form,
its qualities, its expression, its intent – that communicates the
essence of the work of art to the viewer. (Krasnow, 1994, p.23)

We suggest that we can learn and gather useful information by

experiments carried out with expert dancer’s perception, as developed by
Calvo-Merino et al. (2005; 2006). In addition, this kind of information can be
helpful for teachers. For example, it is important to show dance DVDs in class,
because students will not only pay attention and observe the movements,
costumes, and techniques, but they will also activate mirror circuits that
stimulate visual representation and memory. Distinct activities of motor
representation can be observed depending on the level of expertise and the
dancer’s own motor repertoire (Calvo-Merino et al, 2006). The same useful
process is observed when a rehearsal is recorded and shown to a dance team.
Because they have a chance to look at their own movements, they are able to
perceive their mistakes, and at the same time they will be using their motor
action observation network.

Memory for Movement

Memory is one of the oldest topics in psychology that was used in

experimental analysis as reported in the late 19th century by Ebbinghaus
(Corballis: 2001). Corballis notes that if we learn material and make no attempt
to rehearse or relearn it, our ability to remember the material declines as time
passes. It might seem obvious, however the results may differ for different
material such as words, sounds, and movements.
There are three different levels of memory: Sensory Memory (SM),
Working Memory (STM), and Long-Term Memory (LTM) (Matlin: 2002).
Sensory Memory is preattentive, and this form of memory lasts only a fraction
of a second. In addition, Sensory Memory is part of a brief memory system that
receives auditory or visual stimuli and preserves them for some amount of
time.
The second level is the Short-Term Memory or Working Memory (WM).
Mark Ashcraft says that ‘some mental processes that occur in WM are not
revealed to consciousness’ (Aschcraft: 2007, p.230). He explains that we
experience a stimulus first in sensory memory, the first memory storage.
Ashcraft states that humans are generally aware of the contents of WM, but

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that we are not always necessarily aware of the processes that occur in WM.
Hence, experiments are conducted so that the cognitive processes can be
inferred from behavioural data such as accuracy/errors and reaction time.
Jean, Cadopi and Ille (2001) developed a dance version of a working
memory span task. They compared the motor recall performance of expert
dancers in encoding conditions (normal, or with a verbal or motor interference
task), and the type of dancing (ballet or modern dance). Jean et al. have
demonstrated the use of memory mechanisms of expert dancers, and also the
way information is encoded in memory. The results have shown the effect of
the type of dancing (i.e. ballet sequences were recalled better than modern
dance ones), interactions between sequence structures (i.e. structure sequences
were recalled well compared with unstructured sequences), and verbal
interference was found to lower recall scores.
WM keeps active the small amount of information in an easily retrievable
state, and it is considered critical for successful cognition (Cowan, 2010). This
means that WM is very brief, immediate memory form of material we are
currently processing.
Baddeley’s WM model describes the central executive as the main part of
three major components, and it is assisted by two auxiliary systems, the
phonological loop and the visuo-spatial sketch pad (Baddeley, 1986). Both
auxiliary systems perform domain-specific tasks and are connected with the
storage system (Aschcraft: 2007). The central executive system plays a major
role in attention, planning strategies, and coordinating behaviour, at the same
time it suppresses irrelevant information. For this reason, the central executive
helps us to decide what to do next, and what not to do. It is important to
underline that the central executive plans and coordinates, but does not store
information (Aschcraft: 2007).
Cowan (1988) offered a revised model, and proposed that the phonological
and visuospatial stores are just instances of the temporary activation of long-
term memory information. The phonological loop and visuospatial stores
appear to be separate, because the interference between items in short-term
storage depends on the similarity of their features. In addition, ‘the model also
assumes that some of the activated information is in the focus of attention’
(Cowan, 2010, p.451).
The last memory level is the Long-Term Memory (LTM). It depends on
structural changes in the brain and comes in two forms, implicit (or
unconscious) and explicit (or conscious). LTM has a large capacity and holds
in memory those experiences and information that humans acquire over a
lifetime. Much of what we experience stays with us in the form of LTM, and it
makes up our knowledge as the past experienced and the sense of who we are.
Events that occurred earlier than the third or fourth year of life can not always
be explicitly remembered (Corbalis: 2001).
Different processes might underlie memory process in LTM: explicit and
implicit memory. The main difference between explicit and implicit memory is
the level of consciousness associated with each one of them. Explicit memory,

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as the name suggests, refers to acquiring memories from events that have
occurred in the external world in a way that it is clear and direct. Explicit
memory is the sort of memory we are aware of, we can bring consciously to
mind. Explicit memory is called also as declarative memory, because it
comprises things that can be declared or expressed in words (Corbalis: 2001).
Implicit memory is a process of acquiring information in which previous
experiences aid in the performance of a task without conscious awareness of
those previous experiences (Matlin: 2002).
Movements in dance are often composite (hands, arms, legs, torso, head,
etc), and each dancer may have a particular way to getting up from the floor to
stand up. When dancers are freely improvising their movements likely come
from unconscious patterns that they cannot control. Haagendoorn (2006)
suggests that dancers can control patterns when they are moving slowly, but
once the overall movements are accelerated patterns emerge more easily and
without awareness.
Why is difficult to change body patterns? Dancers have been investigating
different ways to move the body, to create gestures and movements. Thus,
when novice and expert dancers are asked to create something new they draw
on but also attempt to reject bodily knowledge (embodied knowledge), as
proposed by Gardner (1983) called ‘bodily-kinesthetic-intelligence’. It is
connected with the implicit LTM, and also with the procedural knowledge, it
means the memory knowledge that can be retrieved and reflected on
consciously, and we are consciously aware of it (Aschcraft: 2007, p.277).
When dancers start to learn how to dance, they start to build their own body
patterns in a regular way, which involves spatial abilities, as movements,
posture, and gestures. Dancers acquire procedural knowledge (embodied
knowledge), and later, that information stored in a lifetime can be accessed
through LTM. Long-term memory is connected to implicit and procedural
knowledge, it takes long to be acquired but difficult to disrupt when learned
(Stevens & McKchnie, 2005). The LTM information stored is crucial and
useful to novices and expert dancers, it gives understanding and provides new
explanation of the body motor-control, the balance and spin control, the
accuracy of different body parts, confidence to perform, and achievement.
Memory for dance movement can be both implicit and explicit, and procedural
and declarative.

Perceptual Learning in Choreographic Cognition

Perceptual Learning has been defined as ‘an increase of the ability to

extract information from the environment, as a result of experience and
practice with stimulation coming from it’ (Gibson:1979,p 3) An important
aspect of perceptual skill is that it helps to distinguish a particular stimulus
from one another, e.g. the different odors we can identified without error, and
involves also, that we called Procedural Learning, the processes that learning is

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supposed dependent on the processing required during task performance. In

this process, the stimuli are not remembered independently of the operations
performed on them. And, the performer while executing a task might have a
continuing effect on successive performance (Proctor and Dutta: 1995). Thus
material is memorized via different processes.
Proctor and Dutta (1995) proposed that people become skilled because
they can make perceptual distinctions, and with practice perceptual abilities to
make decisions about what to do and when to do something may be made
faster and more accurately. This involves motor skill control that we have used
all the time to execute many different functions in life, ‘skill is the integration
of well-adjusted muscular performances’. (Pear: 1927, c.f. Proctor &
Dutta:1995).
Hanna (2008) proposes that dancers often begin imitating and dancing
someone else’s choreography. After observing, they begin to experience body
positions, as arms or legs positions and postural positions in an imitation
process that later with the practice and experience, they can make perceptual
distinctions and make decisions about the right body position they should do it
with accuracy. Dancers develop motor habits in response to particular
choreography; they improvise in an attempt to break those habits. However,
procedural and implicit knowledge, such as habitual ways of moving, are
acquired slowly and, once acquired, are quite difficult to disrupt.
Perception and action constitute declarative and procedural knowledge,
and both are likely active when a person is watching any body movement
(Calvo-Merino et al: 2005). Therefore, this sophisticated mental function
supports student-teacher and dancer-spectator interactions through empathy,
sympathetic kinaesthesia, and the knowledge based on learning.

However, an individual’s personal motor repertoire is relevant;

there are greater bilateral activations when expert dancers view
movements that they have been trained to perform compared to
movements they have not. Learning to dance by observation is
cognitively related to practice: there is neural resonance between
observed and embodied action. Yet observational learning may
occur without the benefits of physical practice. (Hanna: 2008, p.496-
497).

Dancers also learn how to adjust the body in motion to keep the whole
body from losing balance. Imitation requires attention, observation and
perception. For instance, when students are learning how to spin, they firstly
pay attention to people doing it, secondly, they try to do one spin, and might
lose balance. Later, after practice, they can do two or three spins, and after
developed these skills they should do until 3 or 4 spins, because through
training they have adjusted muscular performance and balance to spin in synch
with music timing.

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Jean, Cadopi and Ille (2001) suggest that memory is the first phase of
learning dance, and plays an essential role during this phase. The ability to
encode and retain information acquired during observation will be critical to
the dancer’s performance, as well as the kinaesthetic and spatial information.
‘From this angle, dancing expertise can be seen as the outcome of kinaesthetic
encoding, which is particularly well suited to the memorization of motor
actions, regardless of how structured the material is.’ (Jean, Cadopi and Ille:
2001,p.328).
Moreover, Ericsson et al. (2007) demystifies some of the ideas, for
instance, that you can improve your performance by relaxing. He suggests that
skills are not innate, both making decisions and consistently practice are central
to improve abilities. His research showed that performers need the minimum of
ten years of intense training to win a championship, and in some fields, from
15 to 25 years as for musicians to succeed at international level. Evidence of
the effect of expertise on memory in dancers was obtained by Starkes, Deakin,
Lindley and Crisp (1987; c.f. Jean, Cadopi & Ille, 2001).
In the light of these findings, we propose that expert dancers make use of
knowledge acquired in both intentional learning (explicit) and unintentional or
incidental learning (implicit), and kinaesthetic encoding to memorize motor
sequences. Based on Proctor and Dutta’s (1995) and Ericsson’s (2007)
theoretical proposals, we argue that this type of accuracy on recall is one of the
experts’ advantages that dancers and sports players acquire and become skilled,
because they can make perceptual distinctions and recall them later. However,
the memory phenomenon of expertise-induced amnesia, termed by Beilock
(2008), suggests that expert golfers, in comparison to novices, are able to give
particular details of steps involved in generic golf putt, but their memories for
specific examples of performance can be degraded. It occurs because the high
level skill knowledge that usually works outside the range of conscious
attention becomes significantly closed to explicit analysis and report.
Behavioural phenomena such as expertise-induced amnesia await investigation
in the domain of dance. Future experiments will shed light on cognitive
mechanisms that are general and those that may be specialized in dance.

Conclusions

From the point of view of experimental cognitive psychology,

choreographic cognition supports a complex and delicate matter. While in
dance one idea is expressed through movement, tension and stillness, most of
cognition theories derive from studies of static items and objects such as words
or pictures (Stevens 2005). Dance does not produce a static object like
architecture, painting and sculpture. As a form of art, dance epitomizes
embodied cognition, it expresses and exchanges information, but it does not
stand frozen in time. ‘Unlike all other art forms, however, dance is literally

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embodied in the moving human form. Thus time, space, motion, and the human
body are the media for choreographic cognition’ (Stevens: 2005, p.157).
Thus there is a need to borrow and adapt methods from other domains
where we can adjust for characteristics and properties of dance, e.g., sport and
movement studies (Allard & Starkes 1991; Smyth & Pendleton 1990, 1994).
As a way to explain multidimensional dance phenomena, cognitive models
derived from music, visual arts, and creative performing arts can be applied.
Although, these models do not always acknowledge the qualities of the body in
motion, such as time, space, and non verbal behavior, they are increasingly
multi-modal.
Technology and tools from interdisciplinary studies have been considered
in examining choreographic cognition. For example, tools of psychology and
musicology have made use of creative processes in choreography; as well as
psychology, psychophysiology and neuroscience for measurement of audience-
response; and also methods from cognitive, social and developmental argument
of psychology have been used to analyze memory.
In the sphere of dance composition, Smith-Autard (1996) argues that
composing involves the “molding together of compatible elements which, by
their relationship and fusion, form an identifiable ‘something’ ” (Smith-Autard
1996, p.4). Furthermore, the material elements of the composition need to be
experienced and understood in a process with methods that combine learning
and practice. In addition, Smith-Autard (1996) argues that the same might
happen to a composer-musician when he/she is finding a relationship between
each note in order to create melody. The musician composer holds dimensions
such as rhythm, structure and style in explicit and/or implicit memory, and
considers implicitly or explicitly rules or guidelines for construction. We agree
with Smith-Autard’s proposal that when dancers and choreographers are
composing dances, they draw on, consciously and unconsciously, the material
elements of a dance, methods of constructions, and an understanding of the
approach within which composer is working. Creative cognition can be
characterized by processes of problem solving; creativity in composing dance
can be found when we sequence, meld and link parts of the work (Stevens
2005).
There are numerous intriguing and significant questions related to the
exploration of motor-skill expertise in dance remaining. In this paper, we have
examined some aspects of perception processes by considering issues such as
(a) understanding the actions performed by others through the ‘mirror system’;
(b) the ‘bodily-kinaesthetic-intelligence’ as a form of thinking that underpins
balance and coordinates movements, and the knowledge of body parts in space;
and finally, (c) that perception and action constitute both declarative and
procedural knowledge.
Future research points to practice-led research and problem solving
research. The dancing related question that arises from this review is whether
knowledge from cognitive science and the new understanding of the brain
leads dancers and choreographers to work the body in a different level of

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consciousness, perception, attention, and whether it should alter, adapt or

modify the ways we create dance. Cognitive science has engaged and sought
connections between ways of thinking and the workings of the mind. Dance as
an inherently multimodal activity show ways to find deeper meanings about
movement, memory, perception, thinking, through choreography and
creativity, and help our understanding of how the body relays meaning, thought
and feeling. It remains to be seen the way cognitive science and cognitive
neuroscience impact on dance, dance education, and audience development.
There is no single method to study choreographic cognition. Instead,
converging and complementary ways have been gathered to approach such an
analysis. The relation between the processes of perception, perceptual learning,
acquiring skills in dance, understanding the transition from declarative to
procedural knowledge are among the many possibilities of research and
thought into building a dance related to human cognition, specifically the
concept of choreographic cognition presented in this paper.

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