Body representation and virtual reality: Impact of the incorporation of objects or avatars on perception and motor imagery, by Michel Guerraz

Body representation and virtual reality: Impact of the incorporation of objects or avatars on perception and motor imagery

Summary
The representation we have of our body is surprisingly flexible, and can deviate significantly from the reality of our biological body. Neurology, psychiatry as well as our laboratory studies on the healthy subject are rich in examples attesting to this flexibility. In this presentation, an important place will be given to virtual reality immersion, a technology allowing to modulate the appearance of the body via the incorporation of avatars whose visual, morphological or spatial characteristics can strongly deviate from the biological body. We will focus on the incorporation of dummy body segments or whole body avatars, and on the functional properties of this incorporation, as evidenced in motion perception (kinestesia) or motor imagery. We will see that the incorporation, in particular of avatars, is not a simple dressing but a full representation of the self. Then, we will see how the gap between the visual information conveyed by virtual reality (or assimilated systems) and the information coming from the biological body can be managed at the cortical level (EEG study). Finally, we will see that it is possible, through the use of transcranial alternating current electrical stimulation (tACS), to modulate this cortical regulation. This last approach opens up interesting avenues for limiting the sometimes deleterious effects of virtual reality on the user’s physical state.

Short Biography
Michel Guerraz is University Professor at Savoie Mont Blanc University within the Laboratory of Psychology and Neurocognition (UMR CNRS 5105). He is also the head of the Body & Space team.