The Induced Finger Movements Effect

The Sense of Embodiment in Virtual Reality is one of the key components to provide users with a convincing experience. Our contribution to a better understanding of the phenomenon focuses on the analysis of the motor reaction of the users to an alien finger movement. We assess quantitatively that the view of an alien movement (i.e. a movement of the self-avatar caused by an alien will) induces a finger posture variation, that we refer to as the Induced Finger Movements Effect. This only happens in case of embodiment, while in a disembodied setup the effect disappears. The principle of the investigation is being tested as a base for neuro-rehabilitation, based on the concept of inducing movements in post-stroke hemiplegic patients.