Corollary discharge theory
Theory of motion perception
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The first scientific research study looking at corollary discharge was done by Descartes in 1664 when he published his book the Treatise of Man. He was studying apparent motion and developed early theories in an error of the mind to account for efferent signals centuries before corollary discharge theories developed. In his experiment he would take his finger and press it on the side of his eye. In doing this he would move the image across his retina. A signal was then sent to the brain saying that the image had moved and because there was no efference copy signal sent as well, his brain perceived motion. The term corollary discharge was finally coined in 1950 by Roger Sperry while doing studies on fish.
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Physiology
When trying to map out how corollary discharge works in the brain, it is important to begin with the superior colliculus. It is responsible for receiving visual signals from the retina. In studies done on primate brains, a corollary discharge pathway has been found to begin in the superior colliculus. After receiving current information about the visual field, a corollary discharge signal is sent from the superior colliculus to the frontal eye field, via the medial dorsal nucleus of the thalamus. The frontal eye field plays a very important role when it comes to eye movements. Particularly the frontal eye field is responsible for much of the saccadic eye movements that eyes make. Once the frontal eye field is activated by the corollary discharge signal, it sends a predictive signal to the occipital lobe. This signal essentially predicts what the visual field should look like after an eye movement. A signal is sent back from the occipital lobe to the frontal eye field describing actual visual input. In summary, the corollary discharge pathway is responsible for helping guide eye movements as well as keeping stable visual perception. Recent studies suggest that deficiencies within this pathway could be responsible for difficulties that schizophrenic patients have with controlling their own movements.