Self-concept clarity and interoceptive updating in the rubber-hand illusion: A double replication study.

People with less clear and stable self-concepts are more susceptible to the rubber-hand illusion, a bodily illusion where a fake hand is felt as one's own. This replication study found that lower self-concept clarity predicted stronger embodiment of the rubber hand not only in the asynchronous stroking condition, where the illusion is typically unwarranted, but also in the synchronous condition. The results strengthen evidence for a link between abstract self-representations and bodily self-awareness. An attempted replication of oxytocin's effect on the illusion did not succeed, though methodological differences may explain the failure.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Prediction error minimization and embodied cognition theorists posit that abstract self-representations are predicated on models of the self as an embodied agent. While the view of continuity between conceptual and bodily self is common to several frameworks in psychology and cognitive science, empirical tests of this relationship are scant. However, a recent study by Krol et al., (see record 2020-26839-011) found that people low in self-concept clarity (SCC) were more vulnerable to the rubber-hand illusion-in particular, in the asynchronous stroking condition, where the illusion is unwarranted. This study provides preliminary evidence for an association between self-concept strength and vulnerability to illusions regarding the bodily self. Here we sought to replicate this finding in an existing study that assessed SCC and the rubber-hand illusion. Using linear mixed-effects modelling, we found that lower SCC was again associated with greater embodiment of the rubber hand in the asynchronous condition; moreover, we also observed this effect in the synchronous stroking condition, providing additional evidence for the role of SCC in vulnerability to bodily illusions. We discuss the implications of this finding for theories in social cognitive neuroscience. Finally, as the study we drew upon to test the replication effect involved the administration of intranasal oxytocin, we also took this opportunity to replicate a previously observed effect of oxytocin on embodiment of the rubber hand; this effect, however, did not replicate, although methodological difference may have played a role. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).