Action Schemas Can Account for Prototypical and Non-Prototypical Palm-Up Open Hand Gestures

Palm-Up Open Hand (PUOH) gestures are often treated in the literature as one type that can perform different functions. However, the focus on the palm orientation and handshape has led to a puzzle in terms of explaining the several functions that these gestures serve—functions that are not exclusive to PUOHs. We propose an alternative account by introducing action schemas as an explanatory and analytical tool. Action schemas are described based on how they are produced motorically (e.g., involving extension or rotation at certain joints), drawing on a kinesiological descriptive system, rather than in terms of how the hands look (e.g., palm orientation and handshape). Consequently, action schemas can account for variation in the forms of a given type of gesture based on differences in the effort with which it was produced or how fully the action schema was performed. We use recordings of a set of conversations in Russian to describe the action schemas of Offering (with a sub-category of Side-Offering) and of Spreading hands. The fact that not all instances involve upwardly oriented palms or open hands is shown not to be a problem for this analysis, but a natural outcome of the range of gesture tokens manifesting these action schemas.