The mind's compass: semantic control as the guiding mechanism of affordance management

Behav Brain Sci. 2026 Jun 2:49:e72. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X2510318X.

Maria Montefinese ¹, Irene Di Pietro ², Giada Viviani ¹, Ettore Ambrosini ²

Affiliations

1 Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialisation, University of Padova, Padova, Italy [email protected] [email protected] https://osf.io/bkpa8/ https://osf.io/r98mv.
2 Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, Padova, Italy [email protected] [email protected] https://osf.io/wb5vj/ https://osf.io/rgku3/.

PMID: 42226319 DOI: 10.1017/S0140525X2510318X

Abstract

Ko and Neuberg's three-pillar framework for affordance management lacks a central guidance mechanism. We argue that their pillars (perception, behavior, and environment) are directed by semantic control, the cognitive ability to flexibly manage conceptual knowledge to suit goals. This neurocognitive system provides the "how" behind adaptation, and its own developmental trajectory constrains the management of life-stage challenges.

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