{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,27]],"date-time":"2026-02-27T04:01:34Z","timestamp":1772164894405,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"MIT Press","issue":"1","content-domain":{"domain":["direct.mit.edu"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2018,2,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>When people embody a virtual or a robotic avatar, their sense of self extends to the body of that avatar. We argue that, as a consequence, if the avatar gets harmed, the person embodied in that avatar suffers the harm in the first person. Potential scenarios involving physical or psychological harm caused to avatars gives rise to legal, moral, and policy implications that need to be considered by policymakers. We maintain that the prevailing distinction in law between \u201cproperty\u201d and \u201cperson\u201d categories compromises the legal protection of the embodied users. We advocate for the inclusion of robotic and virtual avatars in a double category, property\u2013person, as the property and the person mingle in one: the avatar. This hybrid category is critical to protecting users of mediated embodiment experiences both from potential physical or psychological harm and property damage.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1162\/pres_a_00312","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,3]],"date-time":"2019-10-03T09:34:42Z","timestamp":1570095282000},"page":"63-67","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1162\/mitpressjournals.corrections.policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["What We Learned from Mediated Embodiment Experiments and Why It Should Matter to Policymakers"],"prefix":"10.1162","volume":"27","author":[{"given":"Laura","family":"Aymerich-Franch","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Pompeu Fabra University"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Eduard","family":"Fosch-Villaronga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"281","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2018,2,1]]},"reference":[{"key":"2024112015003597000_B1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ahn,  S. J. G., Bostick,  J., Ogle,  E., Nowak,  K. L., McGillicuddy,  K. T., & Bailenson,  J. N. (2016). Experiencing nature: Embodying animals in immersive virtual environments increases inclusion of nature in self and involvement with nature. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 21(6), 399\u2013419. Retrieved fromhttp:\/\/doi.org\/10.1111\/jcc4.12173","DOI":"10.1111\/jcc4.12173"},{"key":"2024112015003597000_B2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Aymerich-Franch,  L.\n           (2018). Is mediated embodiment the response to embodied cognition? New Ideas in Psychology, 50, 1\u20135. Retrieved fromhttp:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.newideapsych.2018.02.003","DOI":"10.1016\/j.newideapsych.2018.02.003"},{"key":"2024112015003597000_B3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Aymerich-Franch,  L., & Ganesh,  G. (2015). The role of functionality in the body model for self-attribution. Neuroscience Research. Retrieved fromhttp:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.neures.2015.11.001","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neures.2015.11.001"},{"key":"2024112015003597000_B4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Aymerich-Franch,  L., Petit,  D., Ganesh,  G., & Kheddar,  A. (2016). The second me: Seeing the real body during humanoid robot embodiment produces an illusion of bi-location. Consciousness and Cognition, 46, 99\u2013109. Retrieved fromhttp:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.concog.2016.09.017","DOI":"10.1016\/j.concog.2016.09.017"},{"key":"2024112015003597000_B5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Aymerich-Franch,  L., Petit,  D., Ganesh,  G., & Kheddar,  A. (2017a). Non-human looking robot arms induce illusion of embodiment. International Journal of Social Robotics, 9(4). Retrieved fromhttp:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s12369-017-0397-8","DOI":"10.1007\/s12369-017-0397-8"},{"key":"2024112015003597000_B6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Aymerich-Franch,  L., Petit,  D., Ganesh,  G., & Kheddar,  A. 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