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Visual Mental Imagery

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Multisensory Imagery

Abstract

Visual mental imagery is an important aspect of our mental life. Without it, we would be unable to reactivate and transform visual representations of objects and events that are not unfolding in front of us. Until recently, the investigation of visual mental imagery relied on subjective and behavioral paradigms. These paradigms typically only enabled us to examine the end product of visual mental imagery processes, making it impossible to resolve empirical questions such as which representations are shared by visual perception and imagery. This chapter illustrates how the conceptual and methodological frameworks introduced by cognitive neuroscience in the last three decades have enabled researchers to address these kinds of questions by leveraging our knowledge about the neuroscience of the primate visual system.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, University of Plymouth, Drake Circus, Plymouth, Devon, PL4 8AA, UK

    Giorgio Ganis

  2. Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA

    Giorgio Ganis

  3. Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    Giorgio Ganis

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  1. Giorgio Ganis
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Correspondence to Giorgio Ganis .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Department of Neurology, Emory University School of Medicine, WOODRUFF CIRCLE WMB 6207 101, ATLANTA, 30329, Georgia, USA

    Simon Lacey

  2. , School of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Bedford Street South, Liverpool, L69 7ZA, Montserrat

    Rebecca Lawson

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Ganis, G. (2013). Visual Mental Imagery. In: Lacey, S., Lawson, R. (eds) Multisensory Imagery. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5879-1_2

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