Henrik Ehrsson, MD, PhD
(Associate Professor)

Research

Henrik Ehrsson is a cognitive neuroscientist interested in the problem of how we come to sense that we own our body. He thinks the key to solving this problem is to identify the multisensory mechanisms whereby the central nervous system distinguishes between sensory signals from one's body and from the environment. By clarifying how the normal brain produces a sense of ownership of one's body, we can learn to project ownership onto artificial bodies and simulated virtual ones; and even make two people have the experience of swapping bodies with one another. This could have important applications in the fields of virtual reality and neuro-prosthetics.

Sample Publications

Ehrsson HH. The experimental induction of out-of-body experiences. Science (2007), 317:1048.PDF

Ehrsson HH, Spence C and Passingham RE. 'That's my hand!' Activity in the premotor cortex reflects feeling of ownership of a limb. Science, (2004) 305:875-877.PDF

Ehrsson HH, Fagergren A, Jonsson T, Westling G, Johansson RS and Forssberg H. Cortical activity in precision versus power-grip tasks: An fMRI study. J. Neurophysiol. (2000), 83: 528-536.PDF

Click here for a comprehensive list of publications.

Contact

Henrik Ehrsson, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Neuroscience
Karolinska Institutet
Retzius väg 8, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden

email: henrik.ehrsson @ ki.se
office phone: (+46) 8 524 87 231