Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 4, 2026
08:05
Testing Tactile Masking between the Forearms
Published on: February 10, 2016
6.1K
A threat to a virtual hand elicits motor cortex activation
Mar González-Franco1, Tabitha C Peck, Antoni Rodríguez-Fornells
1Event Lab, Department of Personality, Assessment and Psychological Treatments, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
Experimental Brain Research
|December 17, 2013
Summary
Participants experienced a strong sense of virtual hand ownership in immersive virtual reality (IVR). Event-related brain potentials confirmed this embodiment, showing distinct neural responses when the virtual hand was threatened.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Virtual Reality Research
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Investigating the sense of body ownership is crucial for understanding self-perception.
- Immersive virtual reality (IVR) offers novel ways to study body ownership and embodiment.
- Event-related potentials (ERPs) can provide objective measures of neural processing related to body perception.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the neural correlates of virtual body ownership in an immersive virtual reality (IVR) setting.
- To investigate whether event-related brain potentials (ERPs) can objectively measure the sense of embodiment.
- To explore the relationship between subjective reports of virtual hand ownership and neural activity.
Main Methods:
- Participants underwent an experiment using immersive virtual reality (IVR) with their virtual body visible.
- Event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were recorded while participants observed their virtual hand being attacked or not.
- Questionnaires assessed subjective levels of virtual hand ownership.
Main Results:
- Significantly greater P450 potentials were observed when the virtual hand was attacked compared to a control condition.
- Subjective virtual hand ownership correlated positively with the amplitude of P450 potentials.
- Mu-rhythm desynchronization and readiness potential negativity in the motor cortex indicated threat detection.
Conclusions:
- Event-related potentials (ERPs) offer a promising, non-subjective measure for assessing virtual embodiment.
- The study confirms a strong sense of ownership over the virtual hand, supported by both neural and subjective data.
- Findings align with previous research on pain observation, body perception, and body ownership in cognitive neuroscience.
Related Concept Videos
01:33Somatosensation
36.9K
The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.
36.9K
01:14Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex
8.1K
The cerebral cortex, the brain's outermost layer, is pivotal in processing complex cognitive tasks, emotions, and various sensory inputs and executing voluntary motor activities. This intricate structure is divided into three primary functional areas: the motor areas, sensory areas, and association areas.
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex....
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex....
8.1K
01:23Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex
5.0K
The somatosensory cortex in the parietal lobes is crucial for interpreting sensory data such as touch, temperature, and proprioception. The somatosensory cortex, situated in the parietal lobes, plays a vital role in interpreting sensory information like touch, temperature, and proprioception—awareness of body position. This specialized brain region features an organized structure wherein neurons at the top primarily process sensations originating from the lower body. In contrast, those at...
5.0K