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Abstract
Motor imagery may be defined as a dynamic state during which representations of a
given motor act are internally rehearsed in working memory without any overt motor
output. What neural processes underlie the generation of motor imagery? This paper
reviews physiological evidence from measurements of regional brain activity and from
measurements of autonomic responses in normal subjects and behavioral observations
from brain damaged patients. It is proposed that motor imagery shares neural mechanisms
with processes used in motor control. This review emphasizes the importance of the
prefrontal cortex and its connections to the basal ganglia in maintaining dynamic
motor representations in working memory. This view fits with the general idea that
the prefrontal cortex is responsible for the creation and maintenance of explicit
representations that guide thought and action.