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Catmur C, Cross ES, Over H. Understanding self and others: from origins to disorders. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150066. [PMID: 26644602 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In order to interpret and engage with the social world, individuals must understand how they relate to others. Self-other understanding forms the backbone of social cognition and is a central concept explored by research into basic processes such as action perception and empathy, as well as research on more sophisticated social behaviours such as cooperation and intergroup interaction. This theme issue integrates the latest research into self-other understanding from evolutionary biology, anthropology, psychology, neuroscience and psychiatry. By gathering perspectives from a diverse range of disciplines, the contributions showcase ways in which research in these areas both informs and is informed by approaches spanning the biological and social sciences, thus deepening our understanding of how we relate to others in a social world.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Harriet Over
- Department of Psychology, University of York, York, UK
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Sharpe E, Wallis DJ, Ridout N. The influence of variations in eating disorder-related symptoms on processing of emotional faces in a non-clinical female sample: An eye-tracking study. Psychiatry Res 2016; 240:321-327. [PMID: 27138825 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2016.04.065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2015] [Revised: 04/19/2016] [Accepted: 04/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
This study aimed to: (i) determine if the attention bias towards angry faces reported in eating disorders generalises to a non-clinical sample varying in eating disorder-related symptoms; (ii) examine if the bias occurs during initial orientation or later strategic processing; and (iii) confirm previous findings of impaired facial emotion recognition in non-clinical disordered eating. Fifty-two females viewed a series of face-pairs (happy or angry paired with neutral) whilst their attentional deployment was continuously monitored using an eye-tracker. They subsequently identified the emotion portrayed in a separate series of faces. The highest (n=18) and lowest scorers (n=17) on the Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI) were compared on the attention and facial emotion recognition tasks. Those with relatively high scores exhibited impaired facial emotion recognition, confirming previous findings in similar non-clinical samples. They also displayed biased attention away from emotional faces during later strategic processing, which is consistent with previously observed impairments in clinical samples. These differences were related to drive-for-thinness. Although we found no evidence of a bias towards angry faces, it is plausible that the observed impairments in emotion recognition and avoidance of emotional faces could disrupt social functioning and act as a risk factor for the development of eating disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma Sharpe
- Loughborough University Centre for Eating Disorders, School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK.
| | - Deborah J Wallis
- Loughborough University Centre for Eating Disorders, School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK.
| | - Nathan Ridout
- Department of Psychology, School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston University, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK.
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53
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Suslow T, Kugel H, Rufer M, Redlich R, Dohm K, Grotegerd D, Zaremba D, Dannlowski U. Alexithymia is associated with attenuated automatic brain response to facial emotion in clinical depression. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2016; 65:194-200. [PMID: 26482526 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2015.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2015] [Revised: 09/23/2015] [Accepted: 10/15/2015] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Alexithymia is a clinically relevant personality trait related to difficulties in recognizing and describing emotions. Previous studies examining the neural correlates of alexithymia have shown mainly decreased response of several brain areas during emotion processing in healthy samples and patients suffering from autism or post-traumatic stress disorder. In the present study, we examined the effect of alexithymia on automatic brain reactivity to negative and positive facial expressions in clinical depression. METHODS Brain activation in response to sad, happy, neutral, and no facial expression (presented for 33 ms and masked by neutral faces) was measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging at 3 T in 26 alexithymic and 26 non-alexithymic patients with major depression. RESULTS Alexithymic patients manifested less activation in response to masked sad and happy (compared to neutral) faces in right frontal regions and right caudate nuclei than non-alexithymic patients. CONCLUSIONS Our neuroimaging study provides evidence that the personality trait alexithymia has a modulating effect on automatic emotion processing in clinical depression. Our findings support the idea that alexithymia could be associated with functional deficits of the right hemisphere. Future research on the neural substrates of emotion processing in depression should assess and control alexithymia in their analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Suslow
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
| | - Harald Kugel
- Department of Clinical Radiology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Michael Rufer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Ronny Redlich
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Katharina Dohm
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Dominik Grotegerd
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Dario Zaremba
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Udo Dannlowski
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Münster, Münster, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
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Hogeveen J, Bird G, Chau A, Krueger F, Grafman J. Acquired alexithymia following damage to the anterior insula. Neuropsychologia 2016; 82:142-148. [PMID: 26801227 PMCID: PMC4752907 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.01.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2015] [Revised: 01/06/2016] [Accepted: 01/17/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Alexithymia is a subclinical condition characterized by impaired awareness of one's emotional states, which has profound effects on mental health and social interaction. Despite the clinical significance of this condition, the neurocognitive impairment(s) that lead to alexithymia remain unclear. Recent theoretical models suggest that impaired anterior insula (AI) functioning might be involved in alexithymia, but conclusive evidence for this hypothesis is lacking. We measured alexithymia levels in a large sample of brain-injured patients (N=129) and non-brain-injured control participants (N=33), to determine whether alexithymia can be acquired after pronounced damage to the AI. Alexithymia levels were first analysed as a function of group, with patients separated into four groups based on AI damage: patients with >15% damage to AI, patients with <15% damage to AI, patients with no damage to AI, and healthy controls. An ANOVA revealed that alexithymia levels varied across groups (p=0.009), with >15% AI damage causing higher alexithymia relative to all other groups (all p<0.01). Next, a multiple linear regression model was fit with the degree of damage to AI, the degree of damage to a related region (the anterior cingulate cortex, ACC), and the degree of damage to the whole brain as predictor variables, and alexithymia as the dependent variable. Critically, increased AI damage predicted increased alexithymia after controlling for the other two regressors (ACC damage; total lesion volume). Collectively, our results suggest that pronounced AI damage causes increased levels of alexithymia, providing critical evidence that this region supports emotional awareness.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Hogeveen
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.
| | - G Bird
- MRC Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychology Centre, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - A Chau
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - F Krueger
- Molecular Neuroscience Department, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA; Department of Psychology, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA
| | - J Grafman
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Neurology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, USA.
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55
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Dapelo MM, Surguladze S, Morris R, Tchanturia K. Emotion Recognition in Blended Facial Expressions in Women with Anorexia Nervosa. EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW 2015; 24:34-42. [PMID: 26364834 DOI: 10.1002/erv.2403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2015] [Revised: 07/31/2015] [Accepted: 08/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
People with anorexia nervosa (AN) have difficulties in the social domain, and problems in the ability to recognise emotions in people's faces may contribute to these difficulties. This study aimed to investigate emotion recognition in women with AN and healthy controls (HC), using pictures of faces portraying blended emotions at different levels of ambiguity, which resemble real-life expressions more closely than prototypical expressions used in past studies. Seventy-seven participants (35 AN; 42 HC) completed the emotion recognition task. Results indicated that participants with AN were less accurate than HC recognising expressions of disgust, when shown less ambiguously. There were no differences in the recognition of other emotions. Participants with AN also showed response bias towards anger. These findings suggest a generally preserved ability to recognise emotions in women with AN, with the exception of disgust recognition. They also support previous findings of bias towards anger in AN patients.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Robin Morris
- Department of Psychology, IoPPN, King's College London (KCL), UK
| | - Kate Tchanturia
- Psychological Medicine, IoPPN, King's College London (KCL), UK.,Ilia State University Tbilisi, Georgia
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Commentary on “Autism, oxytocin and interoception”: Alexithymia, not Autism Spectrum Disorders, is the consequence of interoceptive failure. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2015; 56:348-53. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2015] [Revised: 07/08/2015] [Accepted: 07/15/2015] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
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57
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Mezzavilla M, Ulivi S, Bianca ML, Carlino D, Gasparini P, Robino A. Analysis of functional variants reveals new candidate genes associated with alexithymia. Psychiatry Res 2015; 227:363-5. [PMID: 25882097 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2015.03.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2014] [Revised: 03/11/2015] [Accepted: 03/19/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
In this study we explored the possible association between 36,915 functional variants and alexithymia, a personality trait characterized by the inability to identify and describe emotions and feelings. From our analysis, variants in the genes ABCB4, TP53AIP1, ARHGAP32 and TMEM88B were identified linked to the alexithymia phenotype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimo Mezzavilla
- Institute for Maternal and Child Health-IRCCS "Burlo Garofolo" - Trieste, Italy; Department of Medical Sciences, University of Trieste, Piazza dell׳Ospitale, 1, 34125 Trieste, Italy.
| | - Sheila Ulivi
- Institute for Maternal and Child Health-IRCCS "Burlo Garofolo" - Trieste, Italy
| | - Martina La Bianca
- Institute for Maternal and Child Health-IRCCS "Burlo Garofolo" - Trieste, Italy
| | | | - Paolo Gasparini
- Institute for Maternal and Child Health-IRCCS "Burlo Garofolo" - Trieste, Italy; Department of Medical Sciences, University of Trieste, Piazza dell׳Ospitale, 1, 34125 Trieste, Italy
| | - Antonietta Robino
- Institute for Maternal and Child Health-IRCCS "Burlo Garofolo" - Trieste, Italy
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Brewer R, Collins F, Cook R, Bird G. Atypical trait inferences from facial cues in alexithymia. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 15:637-43. [PMID: 25867918 PMCID: PMC4768128 DOI: 10.1037/emo0000066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
It is often difficult to distinguish strangers’ permanent facial shapes from their transient facial expressions, for example, whether they are scowling or have narrow-set eyes. Overinterpretation of ambiguous cues may contribute to the rapid character judgments we make about others. Someone with narrow eyes might be judged untrustworthy, because of strong associations between facial anger and threat. To test this hypothesis, we investigated the trait judgments made by individuals with severe alexithymia, associated with impaired recognition of facial emotion. Consistent with the hypothesis, alexithymic participants demonstrated reduced interrater consistency when judging the character traits of unfamiliar faces, and the presence of subtle emotions. Nevertheless, where alexithymics perceived, or misperceived, emotion cues, the character traits inferred thereafter were broadly typical. The finding that individuals with developmental deficits of emotion recognition exhibit atypical attribution of character traits, confirms the hypothesis that emotion-recognition mechanisms play a causal role in character judgments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca Brewer
- MRC Social, Genetic, & Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London
| | | | - Richard Cook
- Department of Psychology, City University London
| | - Geoffrey Bird
- MRC Social, Genetic, & Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London
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