SOME PROPRIOCEPTIVE INFLUENCES ON THE PERCEPTUAL REPRESENTATION OF BODY SHAPE AND ORIENTATION

TLDR

Body contour perception is thought to rely on topographically organized somatosensory maps in thalamus and cortex, which recent neurophysiology suggests can be modified by changes in sensory input. The study demonstrates that muscle vibration can rapidly alter perceived body shape and orientation by inducing proprioceptive misinformation about limb position. The authors employed muscle vibration to generate proprioceptive misinformation, thereby modulating somatosensory maps. The experiments showed that hand or foot position relative to the body and test chamber can produce systematic perceptual distortions and changes in body orientation, with implications for body schema, spatial orientation, and ocular position encoding.

Abstract

Perception of the surface contour of the body is generally thought to depend on topographically organized neural maps of somatosensation in the thalamus and cortex. Recent neurophysiological studies indicate that these maps are potentially modifiable through alterations in their sensory input. We present evidence that the apparent shape and orientation of the body can be changed within seconds by using muscle vibration to generate proprioceptive misinformation about limb position. Depending on the position of the hands or feet in relation to the rest of the body and to the test chamber, it is possible to generate systematic perceptual distortions of the body and changes in the apparent orientation of the body. Some implications of these observations for the maintenance of an accurate body schema, for spatial orientation, and for the encoding of ocular position are described.