Scholarlink

<p>Given the immense reproductive costs posed by pathogens, humans have evolved a behavioral immune system that identifies sickness cues in conspecifics and facilitates prophylactic behavior. Among these cues, body movements constitute a distinct channel for conveying health-related information. Previous research has shown that perceivers can distinguish sick individuals above chance by relying exclusively on variations in gait. Nonetheless, it remains unanswered whether detecting sickness via gait patterns prompts social avoidance intentions. Using animated avatars performing sick and healthy gaits, we investigated whether observers’ self-reported social avoidance intentions increase as a function of contagion potential conveyed through gait. We also assessed perceptual sensitivity to sickness-related gait features via ratings of gait regularity and perceived similarity between gait types, and tested whether these outcomes are modulated by experimentally manipulated pathogen threat salience. As predicted, participants reported stronger avoidance intentions toward avatars displaying sick gaits and judged these gaits as significantly less regular, even after controlling for age perceptions. Although pathogen salience heightened sensitivity to gait irregularity, it did not significantly affect avoidance intentions or similarity ratings. By moving beyond detection and indirect indicators of avoidance, this study provides initial empirical support for the role of dynamic bodily information in regulating self-reported social avoidance intentions, highlighting the ecological validity and functional significance of movement-based health signals in disease-avoidance psychology.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Avoiding the Sick by the Way they Move: Gait as a Dynamic Trigger of the Behavioral Immune System

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年6月19日

查看全文
  • Ceren Metin,
  • Mert Teközel,
  • Sezer Rengiiyiler,
  • Serkan Özçakan

摘要

Given the immense reproductive costs posed by pathogens, humans have evolved a behavioral immune system that identifies sickness cues in conspecifics and facilitates prophylactic behavior. Among these cues, body movements constitute a distinct channel for conveying health-related information. Previous research has shown that perceivers can distinguish sick individuals above chance by relying exclusively on variations in gait. Nonetheless, it remains unanswered whether detecting sickness via gait patterns prompts social avoidance intentions. Using animated avatars performing sick and healthy gaits, we investigated whether observers’ self-reported social avoidance intentions increase as a function of contagion potential conveyed through gait. We also assessed perceptual sensitivity to sickness-related gait features via ratings of gait regularity and perceived similarity between gait types, and tested whether these outcomes are modulated by experimentally manipulated pathogen threat salience. As predicted, participants reported stronger avoidance intentions toward avatars displaying sick gaits and judged these gaits as significantly less regular, even after controlling for age perceptions. Although pathogen salience heightened sensitivity to gait irregularity, it did not significantly affect avoidance intentions or similarity ratings. By moving beyond detection and indirect indicators of avoidance, this study provides initial empirical support for the role of dynamic bodily information in regulating self-reported social avoidance intentions, highlighting the ecological validity and functional significance of movement-based health signals in disease-avoidance psychology.