Patterns of experience in thermal conceptual metaphors.

Thermal sensations have potential for use in technology for information and interactive systems. Experiences correlating to temperature structure our understanding of many abstract concepts that could be useful in such systems. In this study, the experiential nature of conceptual metaphors was analyzed, and an experiment was conducted in which participants were presented with six thermal conceptual metaphors for interpretation. The validity of the metaphors was assessed, and the results of the experiment provided examples of both consistent and inconsistent patterns of experience when the concepts were interpreted in terms of temperature. Recommendations for furthering the identification of thermal conceptual metaphors with potential were discussed.