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Crucianelli L, Reader AT, Ehrsson HH. Subcortical contributions to the sense of body ownership. Brain 2024; 147:390-405. [PMID: 37847057 PMCID: PMC10834261 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awad359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2023] [Revised: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023] Open
Abstract
The sense of body ownership (i.e. the feeling that our body or its parts belong to us) plays a key role in bodily self-consciousness and is believed to stem from multisensory integration. Experimental paradigms such as the rubber hand illusion have been developed to allow the controlled manipulation of body ownership in laboratory settings, providing effective tools for investigating malleability in the sense of body ownership and the boundaries that distinguish self from other. Neuroimaging studies of body ownership converge on the involvement of several cortical regions, including the premotor cortex and posterior parietal cortex. However, relatively less attention has been paid to subcortical structures that may also contribute to body ownership perception, such as the cerebellum and putamen. Here, on the basis of neuroimaging and neuropsychological observations, we provide an overview of relevant subcortical regions and consider their potential role in generating and maintaining a sense of ownership over the body. We also suggest novel avenues for future research targeting the role of subcortical regions in making sense of the body as our own.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Crucianelli
- Department of Biological and Experimental Psychology, Queen Mary University of London, London E1 4DQ, UK
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm 171 65, Sweden
| | - Arran T Reader
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
| | - H Henrik Ehrsson
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm 171 65, Sweden
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2
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Möllmann A, Heinrichs N, Herwig A. A conceptual framework on body representations and their relevance for mental disorders. Front Psychol 2024; 14:1231640. [PMID: 38250111 PMCID: PMC10796836 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1231640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Many mental disorders are accompanied by distortions in the way the own body is perceived and represented (e.g., eating disorders, body dysmorphic disorder including muscle dysmorphia, or body integrity dysphoria). We are interested in the way these distortions develop and aim at better understanding their role in mental health across the lifespan. For this purpose, we first propose a conceptual framework of body representation that defines this construct and integrates different perspectives (e.g., cognitive neuroscience, clinical psychology) on body representations. The framework consists of a structural and a process model of body representation emphasizing different goals: the structural model aims to support researchers from different disciplines to structure results from studies and help collectively accumulate knowledge about body representations and their role in mental disorders. The process model is reflecting the dynamics during the information processing of body-related stimuli. It aims to serve as a motor for (experimental) study development on how distorted body representations emerge and might be changed. Second, we use this framework to review the normative development of body representations as well as the development of mental disorders that relate to body representations with the aim to further clarify the potential transdiagnostic role of body representations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Möllmann
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Sports Science, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
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3
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Nishiyama Y, Yamashita C, Nomura S. An illusion of disownership over one's own limb is associated with pain perception. Sci Rep 2023; 13:2801. [PMID: 36859438 PMCID: PMC9977932 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29993-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Viewing one's body and even a fake/virtual body experienced as one's own has been suggested to modulate pain perception. However, what happens to pain perception when one's own body part is felt as not belonging to one? We designed a paradigm to induce an illusory feeling of disownership regarding one's limb, investigating whether the feeling affects pain threshold. Participants observed right-side images of their bodies from a third-person perspective via a head-mounted display in real-time. Following instructions, they moved their left hand while keeping their left elbow behind the upper body, so that the connection of their arm to the torso was not visible (test condition), or in front of it, so they could see the arm being part of them (control condition). Then, pain threshold was tested with a thermal stimulator. We found a significantly higher strength of disownership in the test condition than in the control condition. While there was no pain modulation within and between conditions, disownership ratings negatively correlated with pain-threshold changes, where the participants reporting explicit disownership showed lower pain-threshold changes than the others. The finding suggests that while multisensory disintegration had no modulatory effect, the individual sense of disownership was associated with pain perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuta Nishiyama
- Department of Information and Management Systems Engineering, Nagaoka University of Technology, Niigata, Japan.
| | - Chihiro Yamashita
- grid.260427.50000 0001 0671 2234Department of Information and Management Systems Engineering, Nagaoka University of Technology, Niigata, Japan
| | - Shusaku Nomura
- grid.260427.50000 0001 0671 2234Department of Information and Management Systems Engineering, Nagaoka University of Technology, Niigata, Japan
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Capodici A, Rizzo G, Vicario CM, Pennisi A. Deepening the desire for disability: A commentary on Saetta et al. (2022). Cortex 2022; 157:327-333. [PMID: 35786511 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Capodici
- Department of Cognitive Science, Psychology, Education and Cultural Studies, University of Messina, Italy.
| | - Gaetano Rizzo
- Department of Cognitive Science, Psychology, Education and Cultural Studies, University of Messina, Italy
| | - Carmelo Mario Vicario
- Department of Cognitive Science, Psychology, Education and Cultural Studies, University of Messina, Italy
| | - Antonino Pennisi
- Department of Cognitive Science, Psychology, Education and Cultural Studies, University of Messina, Italy
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5
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Weijs ML, Ho JT, Roel Lesur M, Lenggenhager B. Is this my foot? Experimentally induced disownership in individuals with body integrity dysphoria. Conscious Cogn 2022; 106:103432. [PMID: 36372053 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2022.103432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
In body integrity dysphoria (BID), otherwise healthy individuals feel like a part of their physical body does not belong to them despite normal sensorimotor functioning. Theoretical and empirical evidence suggested aweakened integration of the affected body part into higher-order multisensory cortical body networks. Here, we used a multisensory stimulation paradigm in mixed reality to modulate and investigate multisensory processing underlying body (dis)ownership in individuals with BID of the lower limb. In 20 participants with BID, delay perception and body ownership were measured after introducing delays between the visual and tactile information of viewed stroking applied to affected and unaffected body parts. Unlike predicted, delay perception did not differ between the two body parts. However, specifically for the affected limb, ownership was lower and more strongly modulated by delay. These findings might be following the idea of a stronger dependency on online bottom up sensory signals in BID.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marieke L Weijs
- Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Jasmine T Ho
- Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Marte Roel Lesur
- Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Bigna Lenggenhager
- Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
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Saetta G, Ruddy K, Zapparoli L, Gandola M, Salvato G, Sberna M, Bottini G, Brugger P, Lenggenhager B. White Matter Abnormalities in the Amputation Variant of Body Integrity Dysphoria. Cortex 2022; 151:272-280. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2021] [Revised: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 03/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Longo MR. Distortion of mental body representations. Trends Cogn Sci 2022; 26:241-254. [PMID: 34952785 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2021.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2021] [Revised: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 11/21/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Our body is central to our sense of self, and distorted body representations are found in several serious medical conditions. This paper reviews evidence that distortions of body representations are also common in healthy individuals, and occur in domains including tactile spatial perception, proprioception, and the conscious body image. Across domains, there is a general tendency for body width to be overestimated compared to body length. Intriguingly, distortions in both eating disorders and chronic pain appear to be exaggerations of this baseline pattern of distortions, suggesting that these conditions may relate to dysfunction of mechanisms for body perception. Distortions of body representations provide a revealing window into basic aspects of self-perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R Longo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK.
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Abstract
Patients with the neurological syndrome known as body integrity dysphoria express a desire to amputate seemingly healthy parts of their body. A new study has found that this condition is linked to altered functional connectivity in a distributed neural network underlying body image.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R Longo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London WC1E 7HX, UK.
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Saetta G, Hänggi J, Gandola M, Zapparoli L, Salvato G, Berlingeri M, Sberna M, Paulesu E, Bottini G, Brugger P. Neural Correlates of Body Integrity Dysphoria. Curr Biol 2020; 30:2191-2195.e3. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2020] [Revised: 03/31/2020] [Accepted: 04/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
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Stone KD, Kornblad CAE, Engel MM, Dijkerman HC, Blom RM, Keizer A. Lower limb peripersonal space and the desire to amputate a leg. PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2020; 85:1221-1233. [PMID: 32198609 PMCID: PMC8049934 DOI: 10.1007/s00426-020-01316-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2019] [Accepted: 03/07/2020] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Body integrity identity disorder (BIID) is a rare condition defined by a persistent desire to amputate or paralyze a healthy limb (usually one or both of the legs). This desire arises from experiencing a mismatch between the internal body model and the actual physical/functional boundaries of the body. People with BIID show an abnormal physiological response to stimuli approaching the affected (unwanted) but not the unaffected leg, which might suggest a retracted peripersonal space (PPS: a multisensory integration zone near the body) around the unwanted limb. Thus, using a visuo-tactile interaction task, we examined leg PPS in a group of healthy men and three men with BIID who desired unilateral leg amputation. PPS size (~ 70 cm) around the unwanted BIID legs did not differ from that of healthy controls. Although the leg feels foreign in BIID, it still seems to maintain a PPS, presumably to protect it and facilitate interactions within the surrounding environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kayla D Stone
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Clara A E Kornblad
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Manja M Engel
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - H Chris Dijkerman
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Rianne M Blom
- Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Anouk Keizer
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584 CS, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Stone KD, Kornblad CAE, Engel MM, Dijkerman HC, Blom RM, Keizer A. An Investigation of Lower Limb Representations Underlying Vision, Touch, and Proprioception in Body Integrity Identity Disorder. Front Psychiatry 2020; 11:15. [PMID: 32161554 PMCID: PMC7052367 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Individuals with Body Integrity Identity Disorder (BIID) have a (non-psychotic) longstanding desire to amputate or paralyze one or more fully-functioning limbs, often the legs. This desire presumably arises from experiencing a mismatch between one's perceived mental image of the body and the physical structural and/or functional boundaries of the body itself. While neuroimaging studies suggest a disturbed body representation network in individuals with BIID, few behavioral studies have looked at the manifestation of this disrupted lower limb representations in this population. Specifically, people with BIID feel like they are overcomplete in their current body. Perhaps sensory input, processed normally on and about the limb, cannot communicate with a higher-order model of the leg in the brain (which might be underdeveloped). We asked individuals who desire paralysis or amputation of the lower legs (and a group of age- and sex-matched controls) to make explicit and implicit judgments about the size and shape of their legs while relying on vision, touch, and proprioception. We hypothesized that BIID participants would mis-estimate the size of their affected leg(s) more than the same leg of controls. Using a multiple single-case analysis, we found no global differences in lower limb representations between BIID participants and controls. Thus, while people with BIID feel that part of the body is foreign, they can still make normal sensory-guided implicit and explicit judgments about the limb. Moreover, these results suggest that BIID is not a body image disorder, per se, and that an examination of leg representation does not uncover the disturbed bodily experience that individuals with BIID have.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kayla D. Stone
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Clara A. E. Kornblad
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Manja M. Engel
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - H. Chris Dijkerman
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Rianne M. Blom
- Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Anouk Keizer
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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12
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Brugger P, Kurthen I, Rashidi-Ranjbar N, Lenggenhager B. Grey matter or social matters? Causal attributions in the era of biological psychiatry. Eur Psychiatry 2020; 52:45-46. [DOI: 10.1016/j.eurpsy.2018.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2018] [Accepted: 03/21/2018] [Indexed: 10/17/2022] Open
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Stone KD, Dijkerman HC, Bekrater-Bodmann R, Keizer A. Mental rotation of feet in individuals with Body Integrity Identity Disorder, lower-limb amputees, and normally-limbed controls. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0221105. [PMID: 31419248 PMCID: PMC6697338 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0221105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/30/2019] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Body Integrity Identity Disorder (BIID) is a non-psychotic condition wherein individuals desire amputation or paralysis of one or more healthy, fully-functioning limbs (predominantly the legs). Individuals with BIID have been suggested to have a mismatch between the perceived mental representation of the body and its actual physical structure, such that their desired identity matches that of a lower-limb amputee. Accordingly, studies have reported an altered central network involving body representation of the legs in BIID, but its relationship to behavior remains unclear. In the present study, we investigated the integrity of body representation in individuals with BIID, acquired lower-limb amputees, and normally-limbed controls using an online mental rotation task. Participants judged the laterality of left and right foot images presented from different views, orientations, and of different types. We expected BIID participants to be slower for mentally rotating images that corresponded to their affected legs than lower-limb amputees and normally-limbed participants. We found that the groups did not significantly differ in their performance. All participants were slower at judging feet presented in awkward postures than natural postures, replicating previous studies and validating our online paradigm. The results are discussed in terms of the robust nature of visual and sensorimotor lower-limb representations, whether related to the self or as prototype, in the context of disturbed lower-limb integrity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kayla D. Stone
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - H. Chris Dijkerman
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Robin Bekrater-Bodmann
- Department of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Anouk Keizer
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Sex differences in perceptual hand maps: A meta-analysis. Acta Psychol (Amst) 2019; 196:1-10. [PMID: 30933684 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2019.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2018] [Revised: 02/08/2019] [Accepted: 03/07/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
A large body of research has suggested that localisation of the hand in external space relies on distorted representations of the hand. We developed a paradigm for measuring implicit perceptual maps of the hand (Longo & Haggard, 2010, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 107, 11727-11732), which show systematic deviation from actual hand shape, including overestimation of hand width and underestimation of finger length. Recently, Coelho and Gonzalez (in press, Psychol Res) reported sex differences in these perceptual hand maps, with women showing greater overestimation of hand width, but less underestimation of finger length than men. In the current study, I conducted a meta-analysis of 19 experiments using this paradigm by myself and my colleagues. The results replicated the sex differences reported by Coelho and Gonzalez. Importantly, however, these sex differences were not apparent when actual hand size was included as a covariate in analyses, suggesting that they may, at least in part, be due to women having smaller hands on average than men.
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Stone KD, Bullock F, Keizer A, Dijkerman HC. The disappearing limb trick and the role of sensory suggestibility in illusion experience. Neuropsychologia 2018; 117:418-427. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.07.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2018] [Revised: 07/09/2018] [Accepted: 07/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Oddo-Sommerfeld S, Hänggi J, Coletta L, Skoruppa S, Thiel A, Stirn AV. Brain activity elicited by viewing pictures of the own virtually amputated body predicts xenomelia. Neuropsychologia 2018; 108:135-146. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.11.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2017] [Revised: 10/29/2017] [Accepted: 11/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
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