Projecting the new body: How body image evolves during learning to walk with a wearable robot.

ABSTRACT: Advances in wearable robotics challenge the traditional definition of human motor systems, as wearable robots redefine body structure, movement capability, and wearers' perception of their bodies. While these devices can empower the wearer's motor performance, there is limited understanding of how they affect the wearer's conscious, subjective experience of their own body (or body image), especially with regard to dynamic movements. This study examined changes in perceived body image as individuals learned to walk with a robotic leg over multi-day training. We measured gait performance and perceived body image via the selected coefficient of perceived motion after each training session. By extending human motor learning theory to wearer-robot systems, we hypothesized that perceived body im

SUBMITTER: Lee IC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12910506 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature