Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

Intention is central to the concept of voluntary action. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we compared conditions in which participants made self-paced actions and attended either to their intention to move or to the actual movement. When they attended to their intention rather than their movement, there was an enhancement of activity in the pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA). We also found activations in the right dorsal prefrontal cortex and left intraparietal cortex. Prefrontal activity, but not parietal activity, was more strongly coupled with activity in the pre-SMA. We conclude that activity in the pre-SMA reflects the representation of intention.

Original publication

DOI

10.1126/science.1090973

Type

Journal article

Journal

Science

Publication Date

20/02/2004

Volume

303

Pages

1208 - 1210

Keywords

Attention, Brain, Brain Mapping, Gyrus Cinguli, Humans, Intention, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Motor Activity, Motor Cortex, Parietal Lobe, Prefrontal Cortex, Regional Blood Flow, Time Factors