A novel model of divergent predictive perception
Neuroscience of Consciousness February 12, 2024 Reshanne R Reeder, Giovanni Sala, Tessa M Van Leeuwen
A novel theoretical model proposes that divergent experiences like hallucinations and synaesthesia arise from an imbalance between reliance on prior knowledge and sensory confidence. Maladaptive high-level priors (beliefs) with low sensory confidence can cause reality discrimination issues (psychosis), while maladaptive low-level priors (sensory expectations) with high sensory confidence can cause atypical sensory sensitivities (synaesthesia). Mental imagery ability, ranging from aphantasia to hyperphantasia, determines whether these experiences manifest with sensory or nonsensory characteristics. The model predicts that three factors—maladaptive priors, sensory confidence, and imagery ability—must be accounted for to predict divergent perceptual experiences in clinical and general populations.