motor homunculus

a figurative representation, in distorted human form, of the somatotopic organization of the motor cortex as originally mapped by U.S.-born Canadian neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield (1891–1976). Within this mapping, the size of the brain region associated with a body part reflects the complexity of the activities carried out with that part of the body rather than its actual size. Compare sensory homunculus.

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

November 16th 2024

borderline disorder

1. see borderline personality disorder.

2. historically, any psychological condition that lies between normality and neurosis, between normality and psychosis, or between normal intelligence and intellectual disability.