From Virtual Reality to Neuroscience and Back: a Use Case on Peripersonal Hand Space Plasticity

The human brain does not represent space homogeneously, but it constructs multiple representations of it depending on the source of sensory stimulation and the nature of interaction between the body and the environment. The peripersonal space is defined as an imaginary area coded as separated sector of space, as if there were a boundary between what the body might or might not interact with. We present an experimental pattern that combines the use of virtual reality (VR) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate human behavior and neural basis in case of training of the plasticity of the peripersonal space around the hand. The expected results may provide knowledge on a phenomenon interesting for behavioral neuroscience as well as for the interaction of embodied self-avatars in virtual environments.