Distance modulates urgency to act and action awareness

Abstract

Peripersonal space (PPS), i.e. the space immediately surrounding our body, is known to enhance perceptual and neural processes. Yet, whether PPS influences fundamental aspects of voluntary actions remains unknown. Here we tested the hypothesis that the initiation of voluntary actions and the temporal perception of their associated events are affected by distance per se. We displayed a Libet clock within and outside PPS and asked participants to initiate spontaneous actions and report the perceived time of their action’s decision, execution, or externally generated consequence (a tone). When no report was required, participants initiated their actions earlier if the Libet clock was within, compared to outside PPS. Also, when the clock was in PPS, participants reported that their action execution occurred earlier and its consequence occurred later. By showing that distance modulates action urgency objectively and awareness subjectively, these findings reveal the PPS's role in voluntary decision-making and conscious awareness.