PAC: Embodiment, Ego-Space, and Action

Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

The majority of research on human perception and action tends to treat these as separate functions. What is less often considered in these research domains is that humans interact with a perceived world in which they themselves are part of the perceptual representation. Evidence has been mounting to show that self-representation is fundamental to both executing and understanding spatially directed action. It has been theorized to play a role in reaching and grasping, locomotion and navigation, infant imitation, spatial and social perspective taking, and neurological dysfunctions as diverse as phantom limb pain and autism. Behavioral research has revealed a number of tantalizing outcomes that point to a role for the representation of the body in basic human function; neuroscientists have identified multiple sensorimotor maps of the body within the cortex and specific brain areas devoted to the representation of space and place; and developmental researchers have identified neonatal behaviors indicating a representation of self and have traced the course of spatially oriented action across the early years. What is needed is a shared effort to merge perspectives of behavioral science, neuroscience, and developmental psychology in order to further our understanding of self-representation. With support from the National Science Foundation, the 2006 Carnegie Symposium will provide a forum by which researchers from these various perspectives can come together to share their findings, ideas, aspirations, and concerns.