The neurophysiological basis of motor imagery

Motor imagery may be defined as a dynamic state during which representations of a given motor act are internally rehearsed in working memory without any overt motor output. What neural processes underlie the generation of motor imagery? This paper reviews physiological evidence from measurements of regional brain activity and from measurements of autonomic responses in normal subjects and behavioral observations from brain damaged patients. It is proposed that motor imagery shares neural mechanisms with processes used in motor control. This review emphasizes the importance of the prefrontal cortex and its connections to the basal ganglia in maintaining dynamic motor representations in working memory. This view fits with the general idea that the prefrontal cortex is responsible for the creation and maintenance of explicit representations that guide thought and action.