Laban introduces the notion of “effort mutation” in Mastery of Movement. Discussing the basic actions (such as Punching and Floating), he writes “by taking away one element at a time and replacing it by a foreign one, the original action is mutated into another basic effort.”
For example, Punching (strong/quick/direct) can become Dabbing when the strong weight factor is replaced by a light quality. Similarly, Punching can become Pressing when the quick time factor is replaced by a sustained quality.
Effort mutations are fun to explore. Find out more in the upcoming MoveScape Center correspondence course, “Effort Mutation: Exploring Organic Changes in Movement Moods.”