Several other possible mechanisms have been proposed:
* EMDR may impactaffect working memory.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = van den Hout MA, Engelhard IM, Beetsma D, Slofstra C, Hornsveld H, Houtveen J, Leer A | title = EMDR and mindfulness. Eye movements and attentional breathing tax working memory and reduce vividness and emotionality of aversive ideation | journal = Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry | volume = 42 | issue = 4 | pages = 423–431 | date = December 2011 | pmid = 21570931 | doi = 10.1016/j.jbtep.2011.03.004 }}</ref> If a patient performs bilateral stimulation task while remembering the trauma, the amount of information they can recall is thought to be reduced, making the resulting [[negative emotion]]s less intense and more bearable.<ref name="Chen2015">{{cite journal | vauthors = Chen L, Zhang G, Hu M, Liang X | title = Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing versus cognitive-behavioral therapy for adult posttraumatic stress disorder: systematic review and meta-analysis | journal = The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease | volume = 203 | issue = 6 | pages = 443–451 | date = June 2015 | pmid = 25974059 | doi = 10.1097/NMD.0000000000000306 | s2cid = 34850645 }}</ref> This is seen by Robin Logie of the EMDR Association UK and Ireland as a "distancing effect". The client is then believed to re-evaluate the trauma and process it in a less-harmful environment.<ref name=Logie2014>{{cite journal | vauthors = Logie R |title=EMDR - more than just a therapy for PTSD? |journal=The Psychologist |date=July 2014 |volume=27 |issue=7 |pages=512–517 |url=https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/volume-27/edition-7/emdr-more-just-therapy-ptsd }}</ref> This explanation is plausible, given research showing that memories are more modifiable once recalled.<ref name=epid/>
* Horizontal eye movement is thought to trigger an "[[orienting response]]" in the brain, used in scanning the environment for threats and opportunities.<ref name="Jeffries & Davis 2012">{{cite journal | vauthors = Jeffries FW, Davis P | title = What is the role of eye movements in eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)? a review | journal = Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy | volume = 41 | issue = 3 | pages = 290–300 | date = May 2013 | pmid = 23102050 | doi = 10.1017/S1352465812000793 | s2cid = 33309479 }}</ref>
* The idea that eye movement prompts communication between the two sides of the brain. This idea is not grounded in accepted [[neuroscience]].<ref name=epid>{{cite book |veditors=Zeigler-Hill V, Shackelford TR |entry= Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) |title= Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences |year= 2020 |vauthors= Patihis L, Cruz CS, McNally R |publisher=Springer |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_895 }}</ref>
