My body until proven otherwise: Exploring the time course of the full body illusion.

My body until proven otherwise: Exploring the time course of the full body illusion.
Conscious Cogn. 2020 Jan 17;78:102882
Authors: Keenaghan S, Bowles L, Crawfurd G, Thurlbeck S, Kentridge RW, Cowie D
Abstract
Evidence from the Full Body Illusion (FBI) has shown that adults can embody full bodies which are not their own when they move synchronously with their own body or are viewed from a first-person perspective. However, there is currently no consensus regarding the time course of the illusion. Here, for the first time, we examined the effect of visuomotor synchrony (synchronous/asynchronous/no movement) on the FBI over time. Surprisingly, we found evidence of embodiment over a virtual body after five seconds in all conditions. Embodiment decreased with increased exposure to asynchronous movement, but remained high in synchronous and no movement conditions. We suggest that embodiment of a body seen from a first-person perspective is felt by default, and that embodiment can then be lost in the face of contradictory cues. These results have significant implications for our understanding of how multisensory cues contribute to embodiment.
PMID: 31958664 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Source: Consciousness and Cognition - January 16, 2020 Category: Neurology Authors: Keenaghan S, Bowles L, Crawfurd G, Thurlbeck S, Kentridge RW, Cowie D Tags: Conscious Cogn Source Type: research