Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 22, 2026
07:46
Using the Activity-based Anorexia Rodent Model to Study the Neurobiological Basis of Anorexia Nervosa
Published on: October 22, 2015
Allocentric lock in anorexia nervosa: new evidences from neuroimaging studies
Giuseppe Riva1, Santino Gaudio
1Applied Technology for Neuro-Psychology Lab, Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy. giuseppe.riva@unicatt.it
Medical Hypotheses
|May 2, 2012
Summary
Individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) may experience a persistent negative body image due to being "locked" into an outdated observer
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Body Image Research
Background:
- Anorexia nervosa (AN) involves disturbed body experience and negative self-evaluation.
- The origin of these symptoms—whether secondary to appetite/emotion regulation or primary to body experience—remains debated.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the
- Main_Methods
- Main_Results
- Conclusions
Main Methods:
- Review of neuroimaging studies investigating brain circuits involved in body image processing.
- Analysis of structural and functional alterations in these circuits.
Main Results:
- Neuroimaging reveals alterations in brain circuits for spatial perspective (frame) and memory.
- These findings provide support for the Allocentric Lock Hypothesis (ALH).
Conclusions:
- The Allocentric Lock Hypothesis (ALH) suggests individuals with AN may retain outdated, negative observer-view (allocentric) body memories.
- Perceptual egocentric body representations may fail to update these memories, contributing to persistent body image disturbance in AN.
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