Consciousness and Cognition
August 1, 2021
Tim Julian Möller, Yasmin Kim Georgie, Guido Schillaci et al.
16 citations
Self-disorders are increasingly seen as the root cause of schizophrenia, not merely a symptom. This aligns with philosophical views of an enactive self, formed through action and interaction. The authors analyze definitions of the self and evaluate computational theories, particularly Bayesian and predictive processing approaches, for modeling the active self. They assess the implementation and challenges of these models in computational psychiatry and cognitive developmental robotics. Embodied robotic systems are described as valuable tools for assessing, validating, and simulating mechanisms of self-disorders, especially those involving sensorimotor learning, prediction, and self-other distinction. This link offers insights into self-formation and new avenues for treating psychiatric disorders.
Psychophysiology
February 1, 2025
Maik Mylius, Simon Guendelman, Fivos Iliopoulos et al.
4 citations
Expert meditators show a lower decision threshold rather than higher accuracy in detecting near-threshold tactile stimuli, compared to non-meditators who read regularly. Electroencephalography revealed reduced prestimulus alpha power in meditators, suggesting enhanced alpha modulation. A trial-by-trial analysis found a negative correlation between prestimulus alpha activity and tactile perception. Meditators also reported greater interoceptive sensibility, less emotional suppression, and fewer difficulties describing feelings. These findings suggest that enhanced tactile perception in meditators may stem from reduced sensory filtering in the somatosensory cortex, increasing response rates without improving accuracy.
Scientific Reports
January 8, 2026
Suong Welp, Andrea Hildelbrandt, David A. Magezi et al.
The Rubber Voice Illusion, an auditory analogue of the Rubber Hand Illusion, causes speakers to momentarily adopt a stranger’s time-locked voice as self-generated. In 60 healthy adults, only the congruent stranger voice evoked a sense of Ownership and Agency, along with an upward pitch shift toward the stranger’s voice, indicating voice adaptation. Neurophysiologically, speaking-induced suppression was replicated and was significantly smaller in participants scoring high on the Peters et al. Delusions Inventory. In controls, greater pitch shift correlated with stronger neural suppression, suggesting a functioning self-suppression mechanism; in high-schizotypy individuals, the relationship reversed, showing reduced suppression despite pitch shifting, indicating decoupling between motor output and sensory prediction.
Maik Mylius, Simon Guendelman, Fivos Iliopoulos et al.
Meditators show altered body awareness, but not through improved accuracy. Expert meditators (31) and matched controls (33) performed a somatosensory signal detection task. Meditators had a lower decision threshold for reporting touch, not higher accuracy. Prestimulus alpha power over the somatosensory cortex was lower in meditators, and lower alpha activity was linked to a greater likelihood of reporting touch. Meditators also self-reported higher interoceptive abilities. The findings suggest meditation may reduce sensory filtering, increasing response rate rather than perceptual accuracy.