The body in the brain revisited

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Body Perception
• Self-Consciousness

Background:

• Corporeal awareness, the perception and evaluation of one's own and others' bodies, is complex.
• Existing concepts like body schema and body image have limitations in fully explaining corporeal awareness.
• Controversies exist regarding the significance of body schema and body image for understanding corporeal awareness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore controversies and propose alternatives for understanding corporeal awareness.
• To integrate recent neuroimaging findings on cortical processing of bodily information.
• To emphasize the role of interoception alongside exteroception and proprioception.

Main Methods:

• Review of neuroimaging, neurophysiological, and lesion studies.
• Analysis of empirical and theoretical evidence.
• Consideration of itch as an interoceptive input.

Main Results:

• Identification of specialized cortical areas for processing bodily forms and actions.
• Evidence supporting the crucial role of interoception in corporeal awareness.
• Itch is re-evaluated as a significant interoceptive signal relevant to body schema.

Conclusions:

• Corporeal awareness relies on distributed brain activity, not a single isomorphic representation.
• The insular cortex is vital for interoception and bodily signals, potentially underpinning self-consciousness.
• Human insular cortex function may distinguish human consciousness of self and body.