Mechanisms underlying embodiment, disembodiment and loss of embodiment

Body-image distortion in anorexia nervosa

“…7) evidence produced by this research 3 . The review 7 summarized that the 'affective' component of BID in AN is related to alterations of the prefrontal cortex, the insula and the amygdala and that the 'perceptive' component of BID is related to alterations of the parietal lobes (which have roles in spatial and body representations [4][5][6][7]10 , body ownership [9][10][11][12] and other features requiring multisensory integration [4][5][6][7][11][12][13][14] ) or, more accurately, the posterior parietal regions (which are involved in visuospatial processing [4][5][6][7]10,15 ). A deficit in parietal cortex-mediated functions in AN is also underscored by findings from neurocognitive studies [4][5][6] .…”

Phantom limb phenomenon as an example of body image distortion

“…Cognitive psychology and neuropsychology (or broadly: cognitive neuroscience) in their analyses use mostly a term "body representation" to describe a mental model of a body which is created in human minds, and evidence its complexity and specificity [3,4]. It is suggested that body representation relies on multisensory data integration [4,5], engages networks of numerous brain regions [6], and is a multidimensional concept within which various types of representations may be distinguished, depending on adopted criteria [4,7,8]. Taking into consideration a level of control and awareness of own body, body schema and body image are separately described [1].…”

“…It is described in terms of a system of sensorimotor capacities, which create a dynamic (online) representation of spatial and biomechanical properties of one's body. Body schema is based on automatic schemas and operates typically beyond intentionality but it may be incorporated into volunteer and goal-directed performance [1,3,4,10]. Body image includes conscious perception and understanding of a body, as well as emotional attitude and behaviour towards it.…”

Multisensory stimulation with other-race faces and the reduction of racial prejudice

“…Moreover, whereas several neuropsychological studies have reported denial of ownership over body parts such as hands or feet in brain-damaged patients (see, e.g., Berlucchi & Aglioti, 1997;Giummarra, Gibson, Georgiou-Karistianis, & Bradshaw, 2008), deficits in self-recognition of faces appear to be less frequent and are, in most of the cases, transient (see Brédart & Young, 2004). This raises the possibility that other peoples' faces are more difficult to embody than other body parts, such as hands.…”