Movement preparation improves touch perception without awareness

Somatosensory attending to the lower back is associated with response speed of movements signaling back pain

“…Consistent with the principle that attention is about selecting stimuli relevant for action (Allport, 1989), it has been argued that the initiation of such protective behavioural responses is facilitated by increased attending to somatosensory input at the threatened body location (Durnez & Van Damme, 2015;Van Damme, Legrain, Vogt, & Crombez, 2010). In support, attending to somatosensory input has previously been linked to motor processes, especially action preparation (Eimer, Forster, Van Velzen, & Prabhu, 2005;Galazky, Schütze, Noesselt, Hopf, Heinzez, & Schoenfeld, 2009;Van Ede, van Doren, Damhuis, de Lange, & Maris, 2015). Yet, how this process is affected by the anticipation of pain remains to be established.…”

Coupling perception to action through incidental sensory consequences of motor behaviour

“…For instance, the eyes alternate rapidly between slow movements that maintain a target in the fovea and fast movements that reorient gaze to a new target, keeping the retinal image in constant motion. We propose a taxonomy of the sensory consequences of self-movement based on their intentionality and the locus of their effects on perceptual processes: intrinsic consequences exert their effects through automated, internal processes accompanying movement preparation 11,13,14,36 ; intended consequences modify the relation between the sensory system and the external world 10 ; and incidental consequences are the unavoidable effects of moving the sensory surface itself (in vision, the retina) [37][38][39][40][41][42][43] .…”

“…Beyond its intended outcome, each body movement also has incidental sensory consequences that result from moving the sensing body part to its goal. Consider reaching into your pocket for change: as you slip your hand in you pay attention to your fingertips 36 (an intrinsic consequence) until you touch the coins' surface (an intended consequence). At the same time, tactile sensors from your wrist and the back of your hand touch the fabric of your pocket, signalling upward motion.…”

Visual working memory and action: Functional links and bi-directional influences

“…In other words, it may be difficult or impossible to keep information in visual working memory – and to select and prioritize information from working memory – without affecting (planned) actions, or to act (or plan an action) without affecting what is in visual working memory. Such effects are thus directly informative for the degree to which these two functions are coupled and can give relevant insights into the overlap in the cognitive and neural architectures that support them – in similar vein as the study of such involuntary influences between perception and action (e.g., Baldauf & Deubel, 2010 ; Corneil & Munoz, 2014 ; Deubel & Schneider, 1996 ; Hommel et al, 2001 ; Novembre et al, 2018 ; Simon, 1969 ; van Ede et al, 2015a , 2015b ).…”