Anatomy · functional reading

Proprioception

Proprioception is the body’s ability to perceive the position, movement and effort of its various parts without needing to look at them.

Scientific basis

Proprioceptive information comes mainly from receptors in the muscles (muscle spindles, sensitive to stretch), the tendons (Golgi tendon organs, sensitive to tension), the joints and the skin. Fascial tissues, rich in nerve endings, may also contribute.

This information is not used on its own: the nervous system combines it with vision and the vestibular system to estimate the state of the body and adjust posture. If one source becomes less reliable, the weight given to the others can change.

Blue Portance / SBNFA™ reading

The SBNFA™ sets a clear limit: a seat does not “produce” proprioception. The question is how it handles the mechanical information the body transmits to it (pressures, tilts, micro-movements): it can block it, absorb it or respond to it in a differentiated way.

In the framework, this loop between movement, information and adjustment is a function in its own right within seating analysis.

Contribution to the analysis of sitting

A seat can be analyzed according to the variety of mechanical information it leaves available to the body: room for micro-movements, differentiation between left and right support, a proportionate response to movements of the pelvis.

Not to be confused with

Kinesthesia, the perception of movement, often used as a partial synonym; interoception, the perception of the body’s internal state; balance, the result of integrating several sources of information.

Sources and scope

Established neurophysiology. The contribution of fascia to proprioception is debated; its precise role remains to be characterized.