ILLUSORY MOVEMENT EXPERIENCE

Also known asillusory motor movement. Both terms refer to a hallucinated feeling of movement, such as the feeling of flying, falling, or floating, as well as elevator feelings, sensations of acceleration, and spinning sensations. Illusory movement experiences can be divided into two broad categories, i.e. "motor illusions (characterized by the illusory involvement of the muscles) and " kinaesthetic hallucinations (without illusory involvement of the muscles). Sometimes "autoscopy and "out-of-body experiences are also included in the group of illusory movement experiences. When illusory movement experiences occur during sleep paralysis, they are sometimes referred to as " hallucinoid experiences.Patho-physiologically, illusory movement experiences are linked to the proprioceptive, kinaesthetic, and vestibular subsystems of the " perceptual system. As demonstrated in myriad experimental configurations, they can be evoked within seconds when muscle vibration is used to generate propriocep-tive misinformation about limb position. Some examples of the ensuing " phantom illusions are the " illusory arm extension and the " Pinocchio illusion.

Eklund, G. (1972). Position sense and state of contraction: The effects of vibration.Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, 35, 606-611.

Goodwin, G.M., McCloskey, D.I., Matthews, P.B.C. (1972). The contribution of muscle afferents to kinaesthesia shown by vibration induced illusions of movement and by the effects of paralysing joint afferents.Brain, 95, 705-748.

Jones, L.A. (1988). Motor illusions: What do they reveal about proprioception?Psychological Bulletin, 103, 72-86.

Lackner, J.R. (1988). Some proprioceptive influences on the perceptual representation ofbody shape and orientation.Brain, 111, 281-297.