Movement from the Social Cognitive Neuroscience: The Case of Parkinson’s Disease

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease is a multisystemic disorder that affects movement in its different levels of integration from the simplest motor act to the complexity of communication and social inclusion. The study of movement from the social cognitive neuroscience can contribute elements to the development of better rehabilitation treatments for Parkinson’s disease patients. As a cognitive and social phenomenon, movement involves perception and action; paradoxical kinesia, as a property of motor system, is shown in this perception-action dialogue. We introduce the internal-external control hypothesis as a possible explanatory model of movement in Parkinson’s disease patients. This model can explain the occurrence of paradoxical kinesia and, combined with the mirror neurons theory, accounts for the capability of people with Parkinson’s disease to move like healthy controls do when there is a given sensorial space with emotional and ludic languages. Eventually, we highlight the utility of paradoxical kinesia as a rehabilitation tool for movement in people with Parkinson’s disease.