scholarly journals A common perceptual inference for cross-modally induced illusions of body schema

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zane Z. Zheng ◽  
Kevin G. Munhall ◽  
Ingrid S. Johnsrude
Keyword(s):  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Body Schema ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Similar Degree ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Perceptual Inference ◽  
Vocal Production ◽  
Multimodal Representation

AbstractBody-schema, or the multimodal representation of one’s own body attributes, has been demonstrated previously to be malleable. In the rubber-hand illusion (Botvinick & Cohen, 1998), synchronous visual and tactile stimulation cause a fake hand to be perceived as one’s own. Similarly, if a stranger’s voice is heard synchronously with one’s own vocal production, that voice comes to be attributed to oneself (Zheng et al., 2011). Multimodal illusions like these involve distorting body schema based on correlated input, yet the degree to which different instances of distortion are perceived within the same individuals has never been examined. Here we show that participants embraced the ownership of a fake hand and a stranger’s voice to a similar degree, controlling both for individual suggestibility and for general susceptibility to illusion of body schema. Our findings suggest that the perceptual inference that leads to the distortion of body schema is a stable trait.

Sensory Processing and the Rubber Hand Illusion—An Evoked Potentials Study

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 573-582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Zeller ◽  
Vladimir Litvak ◽  
Karl J. Friston ◽  
Joseph Classen
Keyword(s):  
Evoked Potentials ◽  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Functional Anatomy ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Inferior Parietal Lobule ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Perceptual Inference ◽  
Parietal Lobule ◽  
Artificial Hand ◽  
Multisensory Input

The rubber hand illusion (RHI) paradigm—in which illusory bodily ownership is induced by synchronous tactile stimulation of a participant's (hidden) hand and a (visible) surrogate—allows one to investigate how the brain resolves conflicting multisensory evidence during perceptual inference. To identify the functional anatomy of the RHI, we used multichannel EEG, acquired under three conditions of tactile stimulation. Evoked potentials were averaged from EEG signals registered to the timing of brushstrokes to the participant's hand. The participant's hand was stroked either in the absence of an artificial hand (REAL) or synchronously with an artificial hand, which either lay in an anatomically plausible (CONGRUENT) or impossible (INCONGRUENT) position. The illusion was reliably elicited in the CONGRUENT condition. For right-hand stimulation, significant differences between conditions emerged at the sensor level around 55 msec after the brushstroke at left frontal and right parietal electrodes. Response amplitudes were smaller for illusory (CONGRUENT) compared with nonillusory (INCONGRUENT and REAL) conditions in the contralateral perirolandic region (pre- and postcentral gyri), superior and inferior parietal lobule, whereas veridical perception of the artificial hand (INCONGRUENT) amplified responses at a scalp region overlying the contralateral postcentral gyrus and inferior parietal lobule compared with the remaining two conditions. Left-hand stimulation produced similar contralateral patterns. These results are consistent with predictive coding models of multisensory integration and may reflect the attenuation of somatosensory precision that is required to resolve perceptual hypotheses about conflicting multisensory input.

scholarly journals Subjective embodiment during the rubber hand illusion predicts severity of premonitory sensations and tics in Tourette Syndrome

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte Rae ◽  
Dennis Larsson ◽  
Jessica Eccles ◽  
Jamie Ward ◽  
HUgo Critchley
Keyword(s):  
Tourette Syndrome ◽  
Prediction Error ◽  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Neural Pathways ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Artificial Hand ◽  
Error Index ◽  
Proprioceptive Drift

The rubber hand illusion describes a sense of embodiment over a fake hand induced by synchronous visuo-tactile stimulation. In Tourette Syndrome, the expression of involuntary tics and preceding premonitory sensations is associated with the perturbation of subjective feelings of self-control and agency. We compared responses to induction of the Rubber Hand Illusion in 23 adults with TS and 22 matched controls. Both TS and control participants reported equivalent subjective embodiment of the artificial hand: feelings of ownership, location, and agency were greater during synchronous visuo-tactile stimulation, compared to asynchronous stimulation. However, individuals with TS did not manifest greater proprioceptive drift during synchronous relative to asynchronous stimulation, an objective marker of embodiment observed in controls. We computed an ‘embodiment prediction error’ index from the difference between subjective embodiment and objective proprioceptive drift. This embodiment prediction error correlated with severity of premonitory sensations according to the Premonitory Urge for Tics Scale (PUTS). Feelings of ownership over the artificial hand also correlated with premonitory sensation severity, and feelings of agency with tic severity (YGTSS). Together our findings suggest that the subjective strength of bodily ownership, as measured by the rubber hand illusion, contributes to susceptibility to the premonitory sensations that are a precipitating factor in tics. These results also suggest that somatosensory neural pathways underpinning visuo-tactile integration are likely altered in TS and may interact with other sensory and motor systems to engender premonitory sensations and tics.

scholarly journals Embodied precision: Intranasal oxytocin modulates multisensory integration

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Crucianelli ◽  
Yannis Paloyelis ◽  
Lucia Ricciardi ◽  
Paul M Jenkinson ◽  
Aikaterini Fotopoulou
Keyword(s):  
Multisensory Integration ◽  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Estimation Error ◽  
The Body ◽  
Multisensory Perception ◽  
Subjective Feeling ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Perceptual Inference ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Multisensory Input

AbstractMultisensory integration processes are fundamental to our sense of self as embodied beings. Bodily illusions, such as the rubber hand illusion (RHI) and the size-weight illusion (SWI), allow us to investigate how the brain resolves conflicting multisensory evidence during perceptual inference in relation to different facets of body representation. In the RHI, synchronous tactile stimulation of a participant’s hidden hand and a visible rubber hand creates illusory bodily ownership; in the SWI, the perceived size of the body can modulate the estimated weight of external objects. According to Bayesian models, such illusions arise as an attempt to explain the causes of multisensory perception and may reflect the attenuation of somatosensory precision, which is required to resolve perceptual hypotheses about conflicting multisensory input. Recent hypotheses propose that the precision or salience of sensorimotor representations is determined by modulators of synaptic gain, like dopamine, acetylcholine and oxytocin. However, these neuromodulatory hypotheses have not been tested in the context of embodied multisensory integration. The present, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossed-over study (N = 41 healthy volunteers) aimed to investigate the effect of intranasal oxytocin (IN-OT) on multisensory integration processes, tested by means of the RHI and the SWI. Results showed that IN-OT enhanced the subjective feeling of ownership in the RHI, only when synchronous tactile stimulation was involved. Furthermore, IN-OT increased the embodied version of the SWI (quantified as weight estimation error). These findings suggest that oxytocin might modulate processes of visuo-tactile multisensory integration by increasing the precision of top-down signals against bottom-up sensory input.

scholarly journals Embodied Precision: Intranasal Oxytocin Modulates Multisensory Integration

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 592-606 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Crucianelli ◽  
Yannis Paloyelis ◽  
Lucia Ricciardi ◽  
Paul M. Jenkinson ◽  
Aikaterini Fotopoulou
Keyword(s):  
Multisensory Integration ◽  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Estimation Error ◽  
The Body ◽  
Multisensory Perception ◽  
Subjective Feeling ◽  
Body Ownership ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Perceptual Inference ◽  
Multisensory Input

Multisensory integration processes are fundamental to our sense of self as embodied beings. Bodily illusions, such as the rubber hand illusion (RHI) and the size–weight illusion (SWI), allow us to investigate how the brain resolves conflicting multisensory evidence during perceptual inference in relation to different facets of body representation. In the RHI, synchronous tactile stimulation of a participant's hidden hand and a visible rubber hand creates illusory body ownership; in the SWI, the perceived size of the body can modulate the estimated weight of external objects. According to Bayesian models, such illusions arise as an attempt to explain the causes of multisensory perception and may reflect the attenuation of somatosensory precision, which is required to resolve perceptual hypotheses about conflicting multisensory input. Recent hypotheses propose that the precision of sensorimotor representations is determined by modulators of synaptic gain, like dopamine, acetylcholine, and oxytocin. However, these neuromodulatory hypotheses have not been tested in the context of embodied multisensory integration. The present, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study ( n = 41 healthy volunteers) aimed to investigate the effect of intranasal oxytocin (IN-OT) on multisensory integration processes, tested by means of the RHI and the SWI. Results showed that IN-OT enhanced the subjective feeling of ownership in the RHI, only when synchronous tactile stimulation was involved. Furthermore, IN-OT increased an embodied version of the SWI (quantified as estimation error during a weight estimation task). These findings suggest that oxytocin might modulate processes of visuotactile multisensory integration by increasing the precision of top–down signals against bottom–up sensory input.

The rubber hand illusion and the tactile Simon effect

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (0) ◽  
pp. 187
Author(s):  
Michael Iannacone ◽  
Jared Medina
Keyword(s):  
Simon Effect ◽  
Body Schema ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
The Body ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Hand Position ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Tactile Stimuli ◽  
Experimental Block ◽  
Four Blocks

We examined the effects of the rubber hand illusion on representing tactile stimuli using the Simon effect. In a tactile Simon effect task, participants are instructed to make intensity judgments (using foot pedal responses) to tactile stimuli presented to the hands. Participants are faster when the tactile stimulus and response foot are on the same versus opposite side of the body, regardless of whether the limbs are crossed or uncrossed. Furthermore, participants are faster overall when the hands are crossed versus uncrossed. In this study, participants engaged in a tactile Simon effect experiment with rubber hands positioned directly above the participants’ hidden hands, and with real and rubber hands stroked before each experimental block. Each participant was tested in four blocks, manipulating real and rubber hand position (crossed or uncrossed). First, we found that participants responded faster with real or rubber hands crossed, demonstrating that crossing the hands (real or rubber) can hasten tactile intensity judgments. Furthermore, on trials when the rubber hands were crossed, high ownership ratings for the rubber hand were significantly correlated with faster reaction times. Finally, we found a significantly more robust Simon effect when the rubber hands (but not real hands) were crossed. We discuss these findings with reference to how integration of rubber hands into the body schema influences how we represent the location of tactile stimuli.

scholarly journals Size-manipulation of the body-schema using the rubber hand illusion

2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 862-862
Author(s):  
E. A. G. Cooke ◽  
J. K. O'Regan
Keyword(s):  
Body Schema ◽  
The Body ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Rubber Hand

scholarly journals Itch evoked by the rubber hand illusion

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antoinette van Laarhoven ◽  
Dieuwke S. Veldhuijzen ◽  
H. Chris Dijkerman
Keyword(s):  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Psychological Characteristics ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Left Forearm ◽  
Healthy Individuals ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Healthy Female ◽  
Low Levels

It has been well-established that expectancies can influence itch intensity. It remains to be established whether psychological processes can lead to non-itchy input being perceived as itchy. The current study aimed to investigate whether healthy individuals perceive non-itchy tactile stimulation (rubbing) as itchy when having the illusion that an itch stimulus is applied (using the rubber hand illusion; RHI). Moreover, it was investigated whether this effect depended on psychological characteristics, including expectancies. In 36 healthy female volunteers, ownership over the rubber arm was induced in a standard RHI setup. After assessing the itch-inducing properties of merely rubbing, baseline itch was evoked by rubbing cowhage spicules (pruritogenic tropical bean particles) onto the left forearm. Cowhage was kept on the arm for some minutes (follow-up phase). Similarly, cowhage was subsequently applied onto the rubber arm, while the participant’s concealed right arm was simultaneously rubbed without cowhage. Mean (mean=0.8, SD=1.1) and peak itch (mean=1.3, SD=1.4) significantly differed from zero (t=5.74, p<0.001 and t=6.89, p<0.001, respectively). Expectations did not mediate the effect, but self-reported attention to itch (PVAQ-itch) was positively associated with itch during follow-up. Low levels of itch were induced using the RHI paradigm, demonstrating the role of psychological factors in itch perception.

scholarly journals Body schema plasticity after stroke: Subjective and neurophysiological correlates of the rubber hand illusion

2017 ◽  
Vol 96 ◽  
pp. 61-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Llorens ◽  
Adrián Borrego ◽  
Priscila Palomo ◽  
Ausiàs Cebolla ◽  
Enrique Noé ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Schema ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Rubber Hand

The Impact of Experimentally Induced Limb Ischemia on the Rubber Hand Illusion

Perception ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 030100662097779
Author(s):  
Max Teaford ◽  
Jared Fitzpatrick ◽  
L. James Smart
Keyword(s):  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Limb Ischemia ◽  
Rubber Hand Illusion ◽  
Rubber Hand ◽  
Perceptual Illusion ◽  
Cardiovascular Pathology ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Peripheral Ischemia ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Experimentally Induced

The rubber hand illusion (RHI) is a perceptual illusion in which one experiences an object as part of their body when synchronous visuo-tactile stimulation is applied to one’s hand and the object. There are a variety of factors that can impact the occurrence of the RHI. In the present study, we demonstrate that experimentally induced peripheral ischemia can impact the RHI, namely it can result in larger alterations to the perceived position of one’s hand. This study suggests that alterations to the cardiovascular system may be a source of individual differences in the RHI literature. Future studies with samples of individuals with cardiovascular pathology are recommended.

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