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My shadow, myself: cast-body shadows are embodied.
Christopher Kuylen1, Benjamin Balas, Laura E Thomas
1Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, 58102, USA, Christopher.Kuylen@gmail.com.
Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
|November 19, 2013
Summary
Human cast-body shadows are perceived as extensions of the self, influencing spatial perception. This study reveals that visual body shadows can be embodied, affecting how we perceive distances to targets.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Visual Perception
- Body Ownership
Background:
- Objects extending from the body can elicit a sense of embodiment.
- Tools are embodied when they facilitate interaction with distant targets, altering spatial perception.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if cast-body shadows, a visual stimulus, are embodied.
- To determine if visual body shadows cause perceptual distortions in spatial tasks.
Main Methods:
- Two distance estimation perceptual matching tasks were conducted.
- Experiment 1: Assessed distance perception with cast-body shadows extending towards a target.
- Experiment 2: Assessed distance perception with non-cast-body shadows extending towards a target.
Main Results:
- Perceptual distortions were observed in conditions involving cast-body shadows and tool use.
- No significant perceptual distortions were found in the non-cast-body shadow condition.
- These findings indicate embodiment of visual body shadows.
Conclusions:
- Cast-body shadows are represented as extensions of the body, similar to embodied tools.
- Embodiment of shadows occurs without direct tactile feedback or object interaction.
- Visual stimuli, like body shadows, can be integrated into the sense of self and body representation.
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