Mind over matter?
imagined body movements and their neuronal correlates
pp. 353-368
in: Fred Mast, Lutz Jancke (eds), Spatial processing in navigation, imagery and perception, Berlin, Springer, 2007Abstract
We use mental imagery not only to anticipate future perception but also for our own movements. In this chapter we review the most recent literature in the domain of motor imagery, with particular emphasis on clinical findings. A wealth of evidence suggests that imagined movements of body parts draw - at least partly - on mechanisms associated with actual execution of the same movements. It is thus also possible to improve one's motor performance via mental imagery techniques; motor imagery is widely used for athletes and researchers began to study its beneficial effects during rehabilitation in patients after cerebral lesions. Moreover, motor imagery is not restricted to single parts of the body. The body as whole can be rotated in imagery, for example, when we need to make a spatial judgment from another (or someone else's) perspective. To better understand the mechanisms underlying whole body rotations in imagery we suggest investigating more specifically the yet rather neglected vestibular cortical projections, and discuss their possible role in cognitive tasks. We present an applied example showing how motor imagery training can change perception of movement.