---
type: source
id: saygin-2012-predictive-coding
title: 'The thing that should not be: predictive coding and the uncanny valley in perceiving human and humanoid robot actions'
authors:
- Ayse Pinar Saygin
- Thierry Chaminade
- Hiroshi Ishiguro
- Jon Driver
- Chris Frith
year: 2012
venue: Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience
volume: 7(4)
pages: 413-422
doi: 10.1093/scan/nsr025
peer_review: peer-reviewed-journal
evidence_tier: B
design: Event-related fMRI repetition suppression (3T); 2-s grayscale clips of 8 actions by a human, the Repliee Q2 android (human appearance, mechanical motion) and the same robot with skin removed (mechanical appearance and motion)
modality:
- video
- robot
stimuli: 'Action videos: Human, Android, Robot'
n_participants: 19
n_note: 20 recruited; 1 excluded for head motion
topics:
- uncanny-valley
- neural
- predictive-coding
summary: Repetition suppression in bilateral anterior intraparietal sulcus was stronger for the android (appearance–motion mismatch) than for the human or robot, interpreted as prediction error; authors state this cannot establish a causal link to the uncanny valley.
results:
- metric: aIPS repetition suppression
  value: Android > Human and Robot (bilateral)
  note: key action-perception node
  source_location: null
- metric: Left extrastriate body area
  value: Human and Android > Robot
  note: sensitive to humanlike form
  source_location: null
- metric: Selectivity for appearance or motion alone
  value: little (outside EBA)
  note: network responded to the match between them
  source_location: null
moderators: []
limitations:
- N=19
- Single android
- 'Authors: no conclusive or causal link to the uncanny valley'
mechanism_supported:
- perceptual-mismatch
- predictive-coding
verification:
  status: verified-fulltext
  confidence: high
  checked: 2026-10-07
  via: academic.oup.com article page
url: null
pmid: null
pmcid: null
arxiv_id: null
openalex_id: null
oa_url: null
cited_in:
- MR-0002
updated: '2026-10-07'
---

# The thing that should not be: predictive coding and the uncanny valley in perceiving human and humanoid robot actions

> **Source record** `saygin-2012-predictive-coding` · 2012 · Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience  
> **Evidence tier:** B (peer-reviewed-journal) · **Verification:** verified-fulltext  
> **Bottom line:** Repetition suppression in bilateral anterior intraparietal sulcus was stronger for the android (appearance–motion mismatch) than for the human or robot, interpreted as prediction error; authors state this cannot establish a causal link to the uncanny valley.

## Citation {#citation}

Ayse Pinar Saygin, Thierry Chaminade, Hiroshi Ishiguro, Jon Driver, Chris Frith (2012). The thing that should not be: predictive coding and the uncanny valley in perceiving human and humanoid robot actions. *Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience*, 7(4), 413-422. https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsr025

Verification entry (identifiers, resolvers, claims with source locations): [/data/citations.json#saygin-2012-predictive-coding](/data/citations.json#saygin-2012-predictive-coding)

## Study design {#design}

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Design | Event-related fMRI repetition suppression (3T); 2-s grayscale clips of 8 actions by a human, the Repliee Q2 android (human appearance, mechanical motion) and the same robot with skin removed (mechanical appearance and motion) |
| Modality | video, robot |
| Stimuli | Action videos: Human, Android, Robot |
| Participants (N) | 19 |
| N detail | 20 recruited; 1 excluded for head motion |
| Topics | uncanny-valley, neural, predictive-coding |

## Results {#results}

| Metric | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| aIPS repetition suppression | Android > Human and Robot (bilateral) | key action-perception node |
| Left extrastriate body area | Human and Android > Robot | sensitive to humanlike form |
| Selectivity for appearance or motion alone | little (outside EBA) | network responded to the match between them |

## Mechanism relevance {#mechanism}

`perceptual-mismatch`, `predictive-coding`

## Limitations {#limitations}

- N=19
- Single android
- Authors: no conclusive or causal link to the uncanny valley

## Cited in {#cited-in}

- [MR-0002](/metareports/uncanny-valley-and-synthetic-faces.md): The Uncanny Valley and Synthetic Media: Does It Exist, What Causes It, and Have Deepfakes Crossed It?

## Verification {#verification}

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Status | `verified-fulltext` |
| Compiler confidence | high |
| Checked on | 2026-10-07 |
| Via | academic.oup.com article page |