Virtual body, real embodiment: engaging the motor imagery system during video game play

2011-08-08As video games increase their prevalence in experimenters’ toolboxes, it becomes increasingly important to be able to gauge when, whether, and to what extent participants are treating virtual experiences like the real ones they are designed to simulate. With this study, I set out to develop and validate a real<time measure of engagement and motor imagery (MI) during video game play, using electromyography (EMG). By customizing a classic game, Nethack, I created a controllable yet engaging video game experience with well<defined virtual actions, during which EMG signals were recorded from muscles that are known to be involved in equivalent real actions, as well as from muscles not involved with those target actions. In addition, EMG was also measured from all these muscles during both non