title: Is the Prosthetic Homologue Necessary for Embodiment?
abstract: Embodiment is the process by which patients with limb loss come to accept their peripheral device as a natural extension of self. However, there is little guidance as to how exacting the prosthesis must be in order for embodiment to take place: is it necessary for the prosthetic hand to look just like the absent hand? Here, we describe a protocol for testing whether an individual would select a hand that looks like their own from among a selection of five hands, and whether the hand selection (regardless of homology) is consistent across multiple exposures to the same (but reordered) set of candidate hands. Pilot results using healthy volunteers reveals that hand selection is only modestly consistent, and that selection of the prosthetic homologue is atypical (61 of 192 total exposures). Our protocol can be executed in minutes, and makes use of readily available equipment and softwares. We present both a face-to-face and a virtual protocol, for maximum flexibility of implementation.
authors.affiliation: Prosthetics and Orthotics Program, University of HartfordWest Hartford, CT, USA; ABC Prosthetics and OrthoticsOrlando, FL, USA.
authors.forename: Chelsea
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dornfeld
authors.affiliation: Prosthetics and Orthotics Program, University of HartfordWest Hartford, CT, USA; Mountain Orthotic and Prosthetic ServicesLake Placid, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Swanston
authors.affiliation: Prosthetics and Orthotics Program, University of HartfordWest Hartford, CT, USA; New England Orthotics and Prosthetics SystemsBranford, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cassella
authors.affiliation: Prosthetics and Orthotics Program, University of HartfordWest Hartford, CT, USA; Hanger ClinicEast Syracuse, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Casey
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Beasley
authors.affiliation: Prosthetics and Orthotics Program, University of HartfordWest Hartford, CT, USA; Hanger ClinicSomersworth, NH, USA.
authors.forename: Jacob
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Green
authors.affiliation: Prosthetics and Orthotics Program, University of HartfordWest Hartford, CT, USA; Orthocraft, Inc.Brooklyn, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Yonatan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Moshayev
authors.affiliation: Prosthetics and Orthotics Program, University of HartfordWest Hartford, CT, USA; Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT, USA; Cooperative Studies Program, Department of Veterans AffairsWest Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wininger
keywords: aesthetics; design; embodiment; human-machine interface; prosthetics