The role of attention in human motor resonance

Action observation activates the observer's motor system. These motor resonance responses are automatic and triggered even when the action is only implied in static snapshots. However, it is largely unknown whether an action needs to be consciously perceived to trigger motor resonance. In this study, we used single-pulse TMS to study the facilitation of corticospinal excitability (a measure of motor resonance) during supraliminal and subliminal presentations of implied action images. We used a forward and backward dynamic masking procedure that successfully prevented the conscious perception of prime stimuli depicting a still hand or an implied abduction movement of the index or little finger. The prime was followed by the supraliminal presentation of a still or implied action probe hand. Our results revealed a muscle-specific increase of motor facilitation following observation of the probe hand actions that were consciously perceived as compared with observation of a still hand. Crucially, unconscious perception of prime hand actions presented before probe still hands did not increase motor facilitation as compared with observation of a still hand, suggesting that motor resonance requires perceptual awareness. However, the presentation of a masked prime depicting an action that was incongruent with the probe hand action suppressed motor resonance to the probe action such that comparable motor facilitation was recorded during observation of implied action and still hand probes. This suppression of motor resonance may reflect the processing of action conflicts in areas upstream of the motor cortex and may subserve a basic mechanism for dealing with the multiple and possibly incongruent actions of other individuals.

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The Functional Role of Interhemispheric Interactions in Human Motor Control

Cortical Connectivity ◽

10.1007/978-3-662-45797-9_9 ◽

2012 ◽

pp. 165-181

Author(s):

Monica A. Perez

Keyword(s):

Motor Control ◽

Functional Role ◽

Human Motor Control ◽

Human Motor

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Key role of SMN/SYNCRIP and RNA-Motif 7 in spinal muscular atrophy: RNA-Seq and motif analysis of human motor neurons

Brain ◽

10.1093/brain/awz036 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 142 (5) ◽

pp. e20-e20

Keyword(s):

Spinal Muscular Atrophy ◽

Motor Neurons ◽

Muscular Atrophy ◽

Rna Seq ◽

Motif Analysis ◽

Human Motor ◽

Rna Motif

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Self-selected conscious strategies do not modulate motor cortical output during action observation

Journal of Neurophysiology ◽

10.1152/jn.00518.2015 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 114 (4) ◽

pp. 2278-2284 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Katherine R. Naish ◽

Sukhvinder S. Obhi

Keyword(s):

Exploratory Study ◽

Motor Evoked Potentials ◽

Action Observation ◽

Abductor Muscle ◽

Fixation Cross ◽

Initial Block ◽

Motor Excitability ◽

Human Motor ◽

Conscious Control

The human motor system is active not only when actions are performed but also when they are observed. Experimenters often manipulate aspects of the action or context to examine factors that influence this “mirror” response. However, little is known about the role of the observer's own top-down intentions and motivation. In this exploratory study, we investigated whether observers are able to exert conscious control over their mirror response, when they are explicitly instructed to either increase or decrease mirroring. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to elicit motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) in a thumb abductor muscle as participants ( n = 13) watched a video of a hand squeezing a rubber ball. The size of these MEPs, relative to the size of MEPs elicited during fixation cross observation, was taken as an index of mirroring. In an initial block of trials, participants were instructed to merely observe the actions presented. After the first block, the concept of mirroring was explained to the participants, and in the second and third blocks participants were instructed to either increase or decrease their mirror response. We did not instruct them about how to achieve this increase or decrease. Our results showed no difference in either facilitation or absolute motor excitability (i.e., nonnormalized MEP size) between the three blocks, indicating that individuals do not seem to be able to exert control over motor excitability during action observation, at least in the absence of a specific and maintained strategy.

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Degrees of Embodiment in Literary Reading

10.1093/oso/9780190457747.003.0002 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Marco Caracciolo

Keyword(s):

Lived Experience ◽

Literary Reading ◽

Motor Resonance ◽

Embodied Simulation ◽

Psychological Mechanisms ◽

Key Issues ◽

Bodily Feelings ◽

Literary Narrative

This chapter surveys some of the key issues in the study of embodiment in literary reading. Recent research in psycholinguistics has called attention to the role of motor resonance and experiential models in understanding language—two psychological mechanisms often brought together under the heading of “embodied simulation.” How does literary reading, and particularly reading literary narrative, leverage these embodied phenomena? Does embodiment always matter in reading or only in specific circumstances? Building on linguist David Ritchie’s scalar account of embodied simulation, and using Bret Easton Ellis’s American Psycho as a case study, this chapter distinguishes among various types of embodied involvement and shows how they shape the experience of reading Ellis’s novel. It also draws attention to the question of consciousness, calling for empirical research on the interplay between unconscious processes and lived experience (mental imagery, bodily feelings, etc.) in engaging with literary narrative.

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Role of the somatosensory cortex in motor memory consolidation

Journal of Neurophysiology ◽

10.1152/jn.00770.2019 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 124 (3) ◽

pp. 648-651

Author(s):

Manasi Wali

Keyword(s):

Motor Learning ◽

Somatosensory Cortex ◽

Memory Consolidation ◽

Motor Memory ◽

Implicit Motor Learning ◽

Implicit Motor ◽

Human Motor ◽

Plos Biol

Motor memories become resistant to interference by the process of consolidation, which leads to long-term retention. Studies have shown involvement of the somatosensory cortex in motor learning-related plasticity, but not directly in motor memory consolidation. This Neuro Forum article reviews evidence from a continuous theta-burst transcranial magnetic stimulation (cTBS) study by Kumar and colleagues (Kumar N, Manning TF, Ostry DJ. PLoS Biol 17: e3000469, 2019) that demonstrates the role of somatosensory, rather than motor, cortex in human motor memory consolidation during implicit motor learning.

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Eye contact enhances interpersonal motor resonance: comparing video stimuli to a live two-person action context

Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience ◽

10.1093/scan/nsz064 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 14 (9) ◽

pp. 967-976 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Jellina Prinsen ◽

Kaat Alaerts

Keyword(s):

Visual Attention ◽

Primary Motor Cortex ◽

Ecological Validity ◽

Eye Gaze ◽

Eye Contact ◽

Social Responsiveness ◽

Gaze Behavior ◽

Motor Resonance ◽

Action Context

Abstract Previous research has shown a link between eye contact and interpersonal motor resonance, indicating that the mirroring of observed movements is enhanced when accompanied with mutual eye contact between actor and observer. Here, we further explored the role of eye contact within a naturalistic two-person action context. Twenty-two participants observed simple hand movements combined with direct or averted gaze presented via a live model in a two-person setting or via video recordings, while transcranial magnetic stimulation was applied over the primary motor cortex (M1) to measure changes in M1 excitability. Skin conductance responses and gaze behavior were also measured to investigate the role of arousal and visual attention herein. Eye contact significantly enhanced excitability of the observer’s M1 during movement observation within a two-person setting. Notably, participants with higher social responsiveness (Social Communication subscale of the Social Responsiveness Scale) displayed a more pronounced modulation of M1 excitability by eye gaze. Gaze-related modulations in M1 excitability were, however, not associated with differences in visual attention or autonomic arousal. In summary, the current study highlights the effectiveness and feasibility of adopting paradigms with high ecological validity for studying the modulation of mirror system processes by subtle social cues, such as eye gaze.

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