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Updated: May 29, 2026

Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation
Published on: December 31, 2013
J.-M. G. Itard's 1825 study: movement and the science of the human mind
1Kent State University, PO Box 5190, Kent, OH 44242-0001, USA. snewman@kent.edu
Abstract:
Jean-Marc Gaspard Itard's 1825'Study of several involuntary functions of the apparatus of movement,gripping, and voice' discusses 10 individuals with uncontrolled movements but no other significant impairments.Thus, otherwise normal people move in inappropriate ways against their better judgement. Although the study contains the first clinical description of Tourette Syndrome, it has received little attention beyond that notice. Examined in its entirety and in its cultural context, Itard's study characterizes patients' movements in terms of the will, propriety, animals and gender. Lacking control over their movements, the individuals are underdeveloped humans. Accordingly, sufferers' facial expression, bodily movements and unplanned vocalizations render them more animal than human and more deviant than normal, although they are neither insane nor evil.
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