Paul Treffner
PhD in Experimental Psychology (Ecological Psychology) · University of Connecticut
Email: metaffordance@gmail.com
Metaffordances involve:
- Visualisation, statistics & analysis
- Complex systems & self-organisation
- Nonlinear dynamics
- Perception & action
- Ecological psychology
- Health science
- Attention and self-awareness
- Useability & HCI
- Learning & skill
- Education & pedagogy
About
Metaffordance
Metaffordance was deployed to the internet by Dr Paul Treffner in 2009 to offer analysis, tools, and techniques from psychology and complex systems science to help people optimise their perception, and especially their action and interaction with the world. However, the concept was first developed long before that, around 1996/1997. Recent peer-reviewed publications refer to "Metaffordance Consultants" as the author's affiliation (e.g., Treffner, Peter, & Kleidon, 2008).
Background
“Metaffordances” are things or devices that allow creative interaction (“meta” = self-referential; “affordances” = things that allow or afford actions).
An affordance is a perceivable property of the environment that offers possibilities for action.
The term was introduced by the renowned American experimental psychologist James Gibson.
Affordances
We see objects in terms of what actions they allow.
A chair may afford:
- sitting
- standing on
- lifting
- moving
Which affordance we perceive depends on intention and context. Perception is therefore fundamentally tied to action.
Ecological psychology proposes that organisms directly perceive meaningful opportunities for action through structured information in the environment.
Rather than first interpreting meaningless sensory inputs and then reasoning about them, we directly perceive what actions are possible.
Perception is therefore ecological: it depends on the fit between organism and environment.
Metaffordances
A metaffordance is a higher-order affordance: an information tool that not only allows action, but generates new information about action and interaction.
Metaffordances do not simply invite action — they invite interaction. They respond.
Their responsiveness amplifies human capability beyond ordinary tools.
Examples
1. Pencil
A pencil affords grasping, but it is also a metaffordance for communication through writing and symbolic language.
2. Mobile Phone
A mobile phone affords holding and manipulation, but functions as a metaffordance for conversation, coordination, and information exchange.
3. Video Conferencing
A video conference system is a metaffordance for distributed group interaction and collaborative discussion.
4. Augmented Reality
Augmented reality systems amplify interaction with the environment by overlaying context-sensitive information onto real-world objects.
Games such as Pokémon Go create virtual interactions with real behavioural consequences in the physical world.
5. Surgical Robotics
Surgical assistive robotics enhance precision by combining surgeon control with real-time sensing, force feedback, and constrained movement systems.
These systems do not replace the surgeon; they amplify human skill through dynamically generated information and interaction.
What We Can Do For You
We provide tools and techniques to help people understand opportunities for action in a rapidly changing and increasingly complex world.
Drawing on cognitive science, artificial intelligence, ecological psychology, and complex systems science, we focus especially on attention, perception, performance, and safety.
Our work includes the world's first real-car study demonstrating how mobile phone conversation degrades driving control.
We offer expertise in:
- Research and Experimental Design
- Statistical Analysis and Modelling
- Machine Learning and Neural Networks
- Perception, Attention, and Coordination
- Human Factors, HCI, and UX
- Virtual Reality and Motion Capture
- Complex Systems and Dynamical Analysis
Together with collaborators and associated experts, we develop practical approaches to complex real-world problems.
Let us help you not only see the simplicity in complexity — but act on it.
Contact
Publications
See the Publications page for the main publications; click to download full publications list.