My body until proven otherwise: Exploring the time course of the full body illusion

Keenaghan, Samantha; Bowles, Lucy; Crawfurd, Georgina; Thurlbeck, Simon; Kentridge, Robert W.; Cowie, Dorothy

Abstract

Evidence from the Full Body Illusion (FBI) has shown that adults can embody full bodies which are not their own when they move synchronously with their own body or are viewed from a first-person perspective. However, there is currently no consensus regarding the time course of the illusion. Here, for the first time, we examined the effect of visuomotor synchrony (synchronous/asynchronous/no movement) on the FBI over time. Surprisingly, we found evidence of embodiment over a virtual body after five seconds in all conditions. Embodiment decreased with increased exposure to asynchronous movement, but remained high in synchronous and no movement conditions. We suggest that embodiment of a body seen from a first-person perspective is felt by default, and that embodiment can then be lost in the face of contradictory cues. These results have significant implications for our understanding of how multisensory cues contribute to embodiment.

Citation

Keenaghan, S., Bowles, L., Crawfurd, G., Thurlbeck, S., Kentridge, R. W., & Cowie, D. (2020). My body until proven otherwise: Exploring the time course of the full body illusion. Consciousness and Cognition, 78, Article 102882. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2020.102882

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 12, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Jan 17, 2020
• Publication Date: Feb 28, 2020
• Deposit Date: Feb 20, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 17, 2021
• Journal: Consciousness and Cognition
• Print ISSN: 1053-8100
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 78
• Article Number: 102882
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2020.102882
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1276728