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Yamamoto E, Hirokawa M, Nunez E, Hakuno Y, Sekine K, Miyahara S, Suzuki K, Minagawa Y. Neural and Physiological Correlates of Prosocial Behavior: Temporoparietal Junction Activity in 3-year-old Children. J Cogn Neurosci 2024; 36:1977-1994. [PMID: 38820551 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_02199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2024]
Abstract
Although the development of prosocial behavior has been widely studied from the behavioral aspect, the neural mechanisms underlying prosocial behavior in the early stages of development remain unclear. Therefore, this study investigated the neural mechanisms underlying the emergence of prosocial behavior in 3-year-old children. Brain activity in the medial pFC and right TPJ (rTPJ) and facial expression activity, which are related to the ability to infer others' mental states (mentalizing), during the observation of prosocial and antisocial scenes were measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy and electromyography, respectively. Subsequently, the children's helping and comforting behaviors toward an experimenter were assessed to examine prosocial behavioral tendencies. A correlation analysis revealed that the children who showed stronger activity levels in the rTPJ while observing prosocial scenes had more immediate helping behaviors toward others than those who did not show stronger response levels. Moreover, the amount of facial expression activity correlated with prosocial behavior, including both helping and comforting behaviors. These results suggest that the development of mentalizing ability and the social evaluation of others' actions, mediated by the rTPJ, contribute to the emergence of prosocial behavior.
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2
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Jimenez AM, Green MF. Disturbance at the self-other boundary in schizophrenia: Linking phenomenology to clinical neuroscience. Schizophr Res 2024; 272:51-60. [PMID: 39190982 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2024.07.048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2024] [Revised: 07/21/2024] [Accepted: 07/24/2024] [Indexed: 08/29/2024]
Abstract
In this selective review, we describe the current neuroscientific literature on disturbances of the self-other boundary in schizophrenia as they relate to structural and experiential aspects of the self. Within these two broad categories, the structural self includes body ownership and agency, and the experiential self includes self-reflection, source monitoring, and self-referential and autobiographical memory. Further, we consider how disturbances in these domains link to the phenomenology of schizophrenia. We identify faulty internal predictive coding as a potential mechanism of disturbance in body ownership and agency, which results in susceptibility to bias (over- or under-attributing outcomes to one's own actions or intentions). This is reflected in reduced activity in the temporoparietal junction (TPJ), a heteromodal association area implicated in several aspects of self-other processing, as well as reduced fronto-parietal functional connectivity. Deficits of the experiential self in schizophrenia may stem from a lack of salience of self-related information, whereby the mental representation of self is not as rich as in healthy controls and therefore does not result in the same level of privileged processing. As a result, memory for self-referential material and autobiographical memory processes is impaired, which hinders creation of a cohesive life narrative. Impairments of the experiential self implicate abnormal activation patterns along the cortical midline, including medial prefrontal cortex and posterior cingulate/precuneus, as well as TPJ. In fact, TPJ appears to be involved in all the reviewed aspects of the self-other disturbance. We conclude with suggestions for future work, including implications for interventions with critical timing considerations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy M Jimenez
- Department of Veterans Affairs, Desert Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, USA; VA Rehabilitation R&D Center on Enhancing Community Integration for Homeless Veterans, USA; Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, UCLA, USA.
| | - Michael F Green
- Department of Veterans Affairs, Desert Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, USA; VA Rehabilitation R&D Center on Enhancing Community Integration for Homeless Veterans, USA; Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, UCLA, USA
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3
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Ciaramidaro A, Toppi J, Vogel P, Freitag CM, Siniatchkin M, Astolfi L. Synergy of the mirror neuron system and the mentalizing system in a single brain and between brains during joint actions. Neuroimage 2024; 299:120783. [PMID: 39187218 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2024] [Revised: 08/04/2024] [Accepted: 08/12/2024] [Indexed: 08/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Cooperative action involves the simulation of actions and their co-representation by two or more people. This requires the involvement of two complex brain systems: the mirror neuron system (MNS) and the mentalizing system (MENT), both of critical importance for successful social interaction. However, their internal organization and the potential synergy of both systems during joint actions (JA) are yet to be determined. The aim of this study was to examine the role and interaction of these two fundamental systems-MENT and MNS-during continuous interaction. To this hand, we conducted a multiple-brain connectivity analysis in the source domain during a motor cooperation task using high-density EEG dual-recordings providing relevant insights into the roles of MNS and MENT at the intra- and interbrain levels. In particular, the intra-brain analysis demonstrated the essential function of both systems during JA, as well as the crucial role played by single brain regions of both neural mechanisms during cooperative activities. Specifically, our intra-brain analysis revealed that both neural mechanisms are essential during Joint Action (JA), showing a solid connection between MNS and MENT and a central role of the single brain regions of both mechanisms during cooperative actions. Additionally, our inter-brain study revealed increased inter-subject connections involving the motor system, MENT and MNS. Thus, our findings show a mutual influence between two interacting agents, based on synchronization of MNS and MENT systems. Our results actually encourage more research into the still-largely unknown realm of inter-brain dynamics and contribute to expand the body of knowledge in social neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela Ciaramidaro
- Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Viale Allegri 9, 42121 Reggio Emilia, Italy; Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528 Frankfurt/Main, Germany.
| | - Jlenia Toppi
- Department of Computer, Control, and Management Engineering, Univ. of Rome "Sapienza", Via Ariosto 25, 00185 Rome, Italy; Neuroelectrical Imaging and Brain Computer Interface Laboratory, Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Via Ardeatina 306/354, 00179 Rome, Italy
| | - Pascal Vogel
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528 Frankfurt/Main, Germany; Institute of Neurophysiology, Neuroscience Center, Goethe University, Heinrich-Hoffmann-Str. 7, 60528 Frankfurt/M, Germany
| | - Christine M Freitag
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528 Frankfurt/Main, Germany
| | - Michael Siniatchkin
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Goethe-University, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528 Frankfurt/Main, Germany; Clinic of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Laura Astolfi
- Department of Computer, Control, and Management Engineering, Univ. of Rome "Sapienza", Via Ariosto 25, 00185 Rome, Italy; Neuroelectrical Imaging and Brain Computer Interface Laboratory, Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Via Ardeatina 306/354, 00179 Rome, Italy
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4
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Liu G, Hao G, Das N, Ranatunga J, Schneider C, Yang L, Quevedo K. Self-compassion, self-referential caudate circuitry, and adolescent suicide ideation. Transl Psychiatry 2024; 14:334. [PMID: 39164232 PMCID: PMC11335956 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-024-03037-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2024] [Revised: 07/17/2024] [Accepted: 07/23/2024] [Indexed: 08/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Suicide is the second leading cause of death in youth, and depression is a strong proximal predictor of adolescent suicide. It is important to identify psychological factors that may protect against suicide ideation in depressed adolescents. Self-compassion may be such a factor. Converging evidence indicates the inverse association between self-compassion and suicide ideation, but the neural mechanisms underlying their link remain unknown. Because self-referential caudate activity is associated with both self-compassion and suicide ideation, its functional connectivity might explain their relationship. In this study, we examined the relationship between self-compassion and caudate functional connectivity during self-appraisals, a typical self-referential paradigm, and their associations with suicide ideation in both depressed and healthy youth. In the scanner, 79 depressed youth and 36 healthy controls evaluated, from various perspectives, whether phrases they heard were self-descriptive. Self-compassion and suicide ideation were rated with self-report and interview-based measures. We found that self-compassion was associated with stronger left caudate functional connectivity with bilateral posterior superior temporal sulcus/temporoparietal junction, the left middle temporal gyrus (MTG), and the left middle occipital gyrus during positive versus negative self-appraisals. Stronger left caudate connectivity with the left MTG explained the association between higher self-compassion and lower suicide ideation, even controlling for non-suicide ideation depression severity, anxiety severity, and non-suicidal self-injurious behavior. The findings suggest that the left caudate to MTG connectivity during positive versus negative self-referential processing could be a biomarker to be targeted by neural stimulation interventions for reducing suicide ideation in depressed youth, combined with self-compassion interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guanmin Liu
- Institute of Applied Psychology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Laboratory of Suicidal Behavior Research, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Guijuan Hao
- Institute of Applied Psychology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- School of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Natasha Das
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Janani Ranatunga
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Corey Schneider
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Li Yang
- Institute of Applied Psychology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Laboratory of Suicidal Behavior Research, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Karina Quevedo
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
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5
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Zhang P, Feng S, Zhang Q, Chen Y, Liu Y, Liu T, Bai X, Yin J. Online chasing action recruits both mirror neuron and mentalizing systems: A pilot fNIRS study. Acta Psychol (Amst) 2024; 248:104363. [PMID: 38905953 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2024.104363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2024] [Revised: 05/28/2024] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 06/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Engaging in chasing, where an actor actively pursues a target, is considered a crucial activity for the development of social skills. Previous studies have focused predominantly on understanding the neural correlates of chasing from an observer's perspective, but the neural mechanisms underlying the real-time implementation of chasing action remain poorly understood. To gain deeper insights into this phenomenon, the current study employed functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) techniques and a novel interactive game. In this interactive game, participants (N = 29) were tasked to engage in chasing behavior by controlling an on-screen character using a gamepad, with the goal of catching a virtual partner. To specifically examine the brain activations associated with the interactive nature of chasing, we included two additional interactive actions: following action of following the path of a virtual partner and free action of moving without a specific pursuit goal. The results revealed that chasing and following actions elicited activation in a broad and overlapping network of brain regions, including the temporoparietal junction (TPJ), medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), premotor cortex (PMC), primary somatosensory cortex (SI), and primary motor cortex (M1). Crucially, these regions were found to be modulated by the type of interaction, with greater activation and functional connectivity during the chasing interaction than during the following and free interactions. These findings suggested that both the MNS, encompassing regions such as the PMC, M1 and SI, and the mentalizing system (MS), involving the TPJ and mPFC, contribute to the execution of online chasing actions. Thus, the present study represents an initial step toward future investigations into the roles of MNS and MS in real-time chasing interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Zhang
- Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China
| | - Shuyuan Feng
- Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China
| | - Qihan Zhang
- Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yixin Chen
- Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yu Liu
- Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China
| | - Tao Liu
- School of Management, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xuejun Bai
- Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.
| | - Jun Yin
- Department of Psychology, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China.
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Alterman BL, Ali S, Keeton E, Binkley K, Hendrix W, Lee PJ, Johnson JT, Wang S, Kling J, Gale MK, Wheaton LA. Grasp Posture Variability Leads to Greater Ipsilateral Sensorimotor Beta Activation During Simulated Prosthesis Use. J Mot Behav 2024; 56:579-591. [PMID: 39041372 PMCID: PMC11343659 DOI: 10.1080/00222895.2024.2364657] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 03/28/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 07/24/2024]
Abstract
Motor behaviour using upper-extremity prostheses of different levels is greatly variable, leading to challenges interpreting ideal rehabilitation strategies. Elucidating the underlying neural control mechanisms driving variability benefits our understanding of adaptation after limb loss. In this follow-up study, non-amputated participants completed simple and complex reach-to-grasp motor tasks using a body-powered transradial or partial-hand prosthesis simulator. We hypothesised that under complex task constraints, individuals employing variable grasp postures will show greater sensorimotor beta activation compared to individuals relying on uniform grasping, and activation will occur later in variable compared to uniform graspers. In the simple task, partial-hand variable and transradial users showed increased neural activation from the early to late phase of the reach, predominantly in the hemisphere ipsilateral to device use. In the complex task, only partial-hand variable graspers showed a significant increase in neural activation of the sensorimotor cortex from the early to the late phase of the reach. These results suggest that grasp variability may be a crucial component in the mechanism of neural adaptation to prosthesis use, and may be mediated by device level and task complexity, with implications for rehabilitation after amputation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bennett L Alterman
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Saif Ali
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Emily Keeton
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Katrina Binkley
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - William Hendrix
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Perry J Lee
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - John T Johnson
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Shuo Wang
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - James Kling
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Mary Kate Gale
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Lewis A Wheaton
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
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7
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Wang LS, Chang YC, Liou S, Weng MH, Chen DY, Kung CC. When "more for others, less for self" leads to co-benefits: A tri-MRI dyad-hyperscanning study. Psychophysiology 2024; 61:e14560. [PMID: 38469655 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2023] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Accepted: 02/08/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024]
Abstract
Unselfishness is admired, especially when collaborations between groups of various scales are urgently needed. However, its neural mechanisms remain elusive. In a tri-MRI dyad-hyperscanning experiment involving 26 groups, each containing 4 participants as two rotating pairs in a coordination game, we sought to achieve reciprocity, or "winning in turn by the two interacting players," as the precursor to unselfishness. Due to its critical role in social processing, the right temporal-parietal junction (rTPJ) was the seed for both time domain (connectivity) and frequency domain (i.e., coherence) analyses. For the former, negative connectivity between the rTPJ and the mentalizing network areas (e.g., the right inferior parietal lobule, rIPL) was identified, and such connectivity was further negatively correlated with the individual's final gain, supporting our task design that "rewarded" the reciprocal participants. For the latter, cerebral coherences of the rTPJs emerged between the interacting pairs (i.e., within-group interacting pairs), and the coupling between the rTPJ and the right superior temporal gyrus (rSTG) between the players who were not interacting with each other (i.e., within-group noninteracting pairs). These coherences reinforce the hypotheses that the rTPJ-rTPJ coupling tracks the collaboration processes and the rTPJ-rSTG coupling for the emergence of decontextualized shared meaning. Our results underpin two social roles (inferring others' behavior and interpreting social outcomes) subserved by the rTPJ-related network and highlight its interaction with other-self/other-concerning brain areas in reaching co-benefits among unselfish players.
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Affiliation(s)
- Le-Si Wang
- Institute of Creative Industries Design, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Cing Chang
- Department of Psychology, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Shyhnan Liou
- Institute of Creative Industries Design, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Ming-Hung Weng
- Department of Economics, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Der-Yow Chen
- Department of Psychology, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan
- Mind Research and Imaging Center (MRIC), Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Chun-Chia Kung
- Department of Psychology, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan
- Mind Research and Imaging Center (MRIC), Tainan, Taiwan
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Dauvermann MR, Moreno-Lopéz L, Vai B, González-García N, Orellana S, Jones PB, Bullmore E, Goodyer IM, van Harmelen AL. Early adolescent perceived friendship quality aids affective and neural responses to social inclusion and exclusion in young adults with and without adverse childhood experiences. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2024; 19:nsae044. [PMID: 38902943 PMCID: PMC11219303 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsae044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 05/17/2024] [Accepted: 06/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Friendships increase mental wellbeing and resilient functioning in young people with childhood adversity (CA). However, the mechanisms of this relationship are unknown. We examined the relationship between perceived friendship quality at age 14 after the experience of CA and reduced affective and neural responses to social exclusion at age 24. Resilient functioning was quantified as psychosocial functioning relative to the degree of CA severity in 310 participants at age 24. From this cohort, 62 young people with and without CA underwent functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging to assess brain responses to social inclusion and exclusion. We observed that good friendship quality was significantly associated with better resilient functioning. Both friendship quality and resilient functioning were related to increased affective responses to social inclusion. We also found that friendship quality, but not resilient functioning, was associated with increased dorsomedial prefrontal cortex responses to peer exclusion. Our findings suggest that friendship quality in early adolescence may contribute to the evaluation of social inclusion by increasing affective sensitivity to positive social experiences and increased brain activity in regions involved in emotion regulation to negative social experiences. Future research is needed to clarify this relationship with resilient functioning in early adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria R Dauvermann
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
- Institute for Mental Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT, United Kingdom
| | - Laura Moreno-Lopéz
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
| | - Benedetta Vai
- Psychiatry & Clinical Psychobiology Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, 20127, Italy
| | - Nadia González-García
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
- Laboratory of Neurosciences, Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez, Mexico City, 06720, Mexico
| | - Sofia Orellana
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
| | - Peter B Jones
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
| | - Ed Bullmore
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
- Department of Research and Development, Cambridgeshire & Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, CB21 5EF, United Kingdom
| | - Ian M Goodyer
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
| | - Anne-Laura van Harmelen
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, United Kingdom
- Institute of Education and Child Studies, Leiden University, Leiden, AK 2333, The Netherlands
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Haihambo N, Li M, Ma Q, Baeken C, Deroost N, Baetens K, Van Overwalle F. Exciting the social butterfly: Anodal cerebellar transcranial direct current stimulation modulates neural activation during predictive social mentalizing. Int J Clin Health Psychol 2024; 24:100480. [PMID: 39055855 PMCID: PMC11269293 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijchp.2024.100480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) has emerged as a promising tool for enhancing social cognition. The posterior cerebellum, which is part of the mentalizing network, has been implicated in social processes. In our combined tDCS-fMRI study, we investigated the effects of offline anodal cerebellar tDCS on activation in the cerebellum during social action prediction. Forty-one participants were randomly assigned to receive either anodal (2 mA) or sham (0 mA) stimulation over the midline of the posterior cerebellum for 20 min. Twenty minutes post stimulation, participants underwent a functional MRI scan to complete a social action prediction task, during which they had to correctly order randomly presented sentences that described either actions of social agents (based on their personality traits) or events of objects (based on their characteristics). As hypothesized, our results revealed that participants who received anodal cerebellar tDCS exhibited increased activation in the posterior cerebellar Crus 2 and lobule IX, and in key cerebral mentalizing areas, including the medial prefrontal cortex, temporo-parietal junction, and precuneus. Contrary to our hypotheses, participants who received anodal stimulation demonstrated faster responses to non-social objects compared to social agents, while sham participants showed no significant differences. We did not find a significant relationship between electric field magnitude, neural activation and behavioral outcomes. These findings suggest that tDCS targeting the posterior cerebellum selectively enhances activation in social mentalizing areas, while only facilitating behavioral performance of non-social material, perhaps because of a ceiling effect due to familiarity with social processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naem Haihambo
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
- Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Bochum, Germany
- Social Neuroscience, Research Center One Health Ruhr of the University Alliance Ruhr, Faculty of Medicine, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany
| | - Meijia Li
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
- Language Pathology and Brain Science MEG Lab, School of Communication Sciences, Beijing Language and Culture University, Beijing, China
| | - Qianying Ma
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Head and Skin, Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent Experimental, Ghent University, Ghent 9000, Belgium
- Department of Psychiatry, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1090, Belgium
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven 5600, The Netherlands
| | - Chris Baeken
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
| | - Natacha Deroost
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
| | - Kris Baetens
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
| | - Frank Van Overwalle
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
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10
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Safari N, Fang H, Veerareddy A, Xu P, Krueger F. The anatomical structure of sex differences in trust propensity: A voxel-based morphometry study. Cortex 2024; 176:260-273. [PMID: 38677959 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2024.02.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2023] [Revised: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 04/29/2024]
Abstract
Trust is a key component of human relationships. Sex differences in trust behavior have been elucidated by parental investment theory and social role theory, attributing men's higher trust propensity to their increased engagement in physically and socially risky activities aimed at securing additional resources. Although sex differences in trust behavior exist and the neuropsychological signatures of trust are known, the underlying anatomical structure of sex differences is still unexplored. Our study aimed to investigate the anatomical structure of sex differences in trust behavior toward strangers (i.e., trust propensity, TP) by employing voxel-based morphometry (VBM) in a sample of healthy young adults. We collected behavioral data for TP as measured with participants in the role of trustors completing the one-shot trust game (TG) with anonymous partners as trustees. We conducted primary region of interest (ROI) and exploratory whole-brain (WB) VBM analyses of high-resolution structural images to test for the association between TP and regional gray matter volume (GMV) associated with sex differences. Confirming previous studies, our behavioral results demonstrated that men trusted more than women during the one-shot TG. Our WB analysis showed a greater GMV related to TP in men than women in the precuneus (PreC), whereas our ROI analysis in regions of the default-mode network (dorsomedial prefrontal cortex [dmPFC], PreC, superior temporal gyrus) to simulate the partner's trustworthiness, central-executive network (ventrolateral PFC) to implement a calculus-based trust strategy, and action-perception network (precentral gyrus) to performance cost-benefit calculations, as proposed by a neuropsychoeconomic model of trust. Our findings advance the neuropsychological understanding of sex differences in TP, which has implications for interpersonal partnerships, financial transactions, and societal engagements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nooshin Safari
- School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA
| | - Huihua Fang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Affective and Social Neuroscience, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, China; Department of Psychology, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
| | | | - Pengfei Xu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (BNU), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; Center for Neuroimaging, Shenzhen Institute of Neuroscience, Shenzhen, China.
| | - Frank Krueger
- School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
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11
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Jastrzab LE, Chaudhury B, Ashley SA, Koldewyn K, Cross ES. Beyond human-likeness: Socialness is more influential when attributing mental states to robots. iScience 2024; 27:110070. [PMID: 38947497 PMCID: PMC11214418 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.110070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Revised: 03/08/2024] [Accepted: 05/17/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024] Open
Abstract
We sought to replicate and expand previous work showing that the more human-like a robot appears, the more willing people are to attribute mind-like capabilities and socially engage with it. Forty-two participants played games against a human, a humanoid robot, a mechanoid robot, and a computer algorithm while undergoing functional neuroimaging. We confirmed that the more human-like the agent, the more participants attributed a mind to them. However, exploratory analyses revealed that the perceived socialness of an agent appeared to be as, if not more, important for mind attribution. Our findings suggest top-down knowledge cues may be equally or possibly more influential than bottom-up stimulus cues when exploring mind attribution in non-human agents. While further work is now required to test this hypothesis directly, these preliminary findings hold important implications for robotic design and to understand and test the flexibility of human social cognition when people engage with artificial agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura E. Jastrzab
- Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Human and Behavioural Science, Bangor University, Wales, UK
- Institute for Neuroscience and Psychology, School of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Bishakha Chaudhury
- Institute for Neuroscience and Psychology, School of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Sarah A. Ashley
- Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Human and Behavioural Science, Bangor University, Wales, UK
- Division of Psychiatry, Institute of Mental Health, University College London, London, UK
| | - Kami Koldewyn
- Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Human and Behavioural Science, Bangor University, Wales, UK
| | - Emily S. Cross
- Institute for Neuroscience and Psychology, School of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Chair for Social Brain Sciences, Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences, ETHZ, Zürich, Switzerland
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12
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Martín-Monzón I, Amores-Carrera L, Sabsevitz D, Herbet G. Intraoperative mapping of the right hemisphere: a systematic review of protocols that evaluate cognitive and social cognitive functions. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1415523. [PMID: 38966723 PMCID: PMC11222673 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1415523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2024] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/06/2024] Open
Abstract
The right hemisphere of the brain is often referred to as the non-dominant hemisphere. Though this is meant to highlight the specialized role of the left hemisphere in language, the use of this term runs the risk of oversimplifying or minimizing the essential functions of the right hemisphere. There is accumulating evidence from functional MRI, clinical lesion studies, and intraoperative mapping data that implicate the right hemisphere in a diverse array of cognitive functions, including visuospatial functions, attentional processes, and social cognitive functions. Neuropsychological deficits following right hemisphere resections are well-documented, but there is a general paucity of literature focusing on how to best map these functions during awake brain surgery to minimize such deficits. To address this gap in the literature, a systematic review was conducted to examine the cognitive and emotional processes associated with the right hemisphere and the neuropsychological tasks frequently used for mapping the right hemisphere during awake brain tumor surgery. It was found that the most employed tests to assess language and speech functions in patients with lesions in the right cerebral hemisphere were the naming task and the Pyramids and Palm Trees Test (PPTT). Spatial cognition was typically evaluated using the line bisection task, while social cognition was assessed through the Reading the Mind in the Eyes (RME) test. Dual-tasking and the movement of the upper and lower limbs were the most frequently used methods to evaluate motor/sensory functions. Executive functions were typically assessed using the N-back test and Stroop test. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive review to help provide guidance on the cognitive functions most at risk and methods to map such functions during right awake brain surgery. Systematic Review Registration PROSPERO database [CRD42023483324].
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Martín-Monzón
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Campus Santiago Ramón y Cajal, University of Seville, Seville, Spain
| | - Laura Amores-Carrera
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Campus Santiago Ramón y Cajal, University of Seville, Seville, Spain
| | - David Sabsevitz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Division of Neuropsychology, Mayo Clinic Florida, Jacksonville, FL, United States
| | - Guillaume Herbet
- Department of Neurosurgery, Gui de Chauliac Hospital, Montpellier, France
- Praxiling Lab, UMR5267 CNRS & Paul Valéry University, Bâtiment de Recherche Marc Bloch, Montpellier, France
- Department of Medicine, University of Montpellier, Campus ADV, Montpellier, France
- Institut Universitaire de France, Paris, France
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13
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Katsumi A, Iwata S, Tsukiura T. Roles of the Default Mode Network in Different Aspects of Self-representation When Remembering Social Autobiographical Memories. J Cogn Neurosci 2024; 36:1021-1036. [PMID: 38527069 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_02143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/27/2024]
Abstract
Autobiographical memory (AM) is episodic memory for personally experienced events, in which self-representation is more important than that in laboratory-based memory. Theoretically, self-representation in a social context is categorized as the interpersonal self (IS) referred to in a social interaction with a person or the social-valued self (SS) based on the reputation of the self in the surrounding society. Although functional neuroimaging studies have demonstrated the involvement of the default mode network (DMN) in self-representation, little is known about how the DMN subsystems contribute differentially to IS-related and SS-related AMs. To elucidate this issue, we used fMRI to scan healthy young adults during the recollection of AMs. We performed multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) and assessed functional connectivity in the DMN subsystems: the midline core, medial temporal lobe (MTL), and dorsomedial pFC (dmPFC) subsystems. The study yielded two main sets of findings. First, MVPA revealed that all DMN subsystems showed significant classification accuracy between IS-related and nonsocial-self-related AMs, and IS-related functional connectivity of the midline core regions with the retrosplenial cortex of the MTL subsystem and the dmPFC of the dmPFC subsystem was significant. Second, MVPA significantly distinguished between SS-related and nonsocial-self-related AMs in the midline core and dmPFC subsystems but not in the MTL subsystem, and SS-related functional connectivity with the midline core regions was significant in the temporal pole and TPJ of the dmPFC subsystem. Thus, dissociable neural mechanisms in the DMN could contribute to different aspects of self-representation in social AMs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Saeko Iwata
- Kyoto University
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
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14
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Van Overwalle F, Ma Q, Haihambo N, Bylemans T, Catoira B, Firouzi M, Li M, Pu M, Heleven E, Baeken C, Baetens K, Deroost N. A Functional Atlas of the Cerebellum Based on NeuroSynth Task Coordinates. CEREBELLUM (LONDON, ENGLAND) 2024; 23:993-1012. [PMID: 37608227 PMCID: PMC11102394 DOI: 10.1007/s12311-023-01596-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
Although the human cerebellum has a surface that is about 80% of that of the cerebral cortex and has about four times as many neurons, its functional organization is still very much uncharted. Despite recent attempts to provide resting-state and task-based parcellations of the cerebellum, these two approaches lead to large discrepancies. This article describes a comprehensive task-based functional parcellation of the human cerebellum based on a large-scale functional database, NeuroSynth, involving an unprecedented diversity of tasks, which were reliably associated with ontological key terms referring to psychological functions. Involving over 44,500 participants from this database, we present a parcellation that exhibits replicability with earlier resting-state parcellations across cerebellar and neocortical structures. The functional parcellation of the cerebellum confirms the major networks revealed in prior work, including sensorimotor, directed (dorsal) attention, divided (ventral) attention, executive control, mentalizing (default mode) networks, tiny patches of a limbic network, and also a unilateral language network (but not the visual network), and the association of these networks with underlying ontological key terms confirms their major functionality. The networks are revealed at locations that are roughly similar to prior resting-state cerebellar parcellations, although they are less symmetric and more fragmented across the two hemispheres. This functional parcellation of the human cerebellum and associated key terms can provide a useful guide in designing studies to test specific functional hypotheses and provide a reference for interpreting the results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frank Van Overwalle
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium.
| | - Qianying Ma
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Naem Haihambo
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Tom Bylemans
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Beatriz Catoira
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Mahyar Firouzi
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Meijia Li
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Min Pu
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Elien Heleven
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Chris Baeken
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Psychiatry, Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Psychiatry, Ghent Experimental Psychiatry Lab, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Kris Baetens
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Natacha Deroost
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
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15
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Christian P, Kaiser J, Taylor PC, George M, Schütz-Bosbach S, Soutschek A. Belief Updating during Social Interactions: Neural Dynamics and Causal Role of Dorsomedial Prefrontal Cortex. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e1669232024. [PMID: 38649270 PMCID: PMC11140663 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1669-23.2024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 02/11/2024] [Accepted: 03/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
In competitive interactions, humans have to flexibly update their beliefs about another person's intentions in order to adjust their own choice strategy, such as when believing that the other may exploit their cooperativeness. Here we investigate both the neural dynamics and the causal neural substrate of belief updating processes in humans. We used an adapted prisoner's dilemma game in which participants explicitly predicted the coplayer's actions, which allowed us to quantify the prediction error between expected and actual behavior. First, in an EEG experiment, we found a stronger medial frontal negativity (MFN) for negative than positive prediction errors, suggesting that this medial frontal ERP component may encode unexpected defection of the coplayer. The MFN also predicted subsequent belief updating after negative prediction errors. In a second experiment, we used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to investigate whether the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) causally implements belief updating after unexpected outcomes. Our results show that dmPFC TMS impaired belief updating and strategic behavioral adjustments after negative prediction errors. Taken together, our findings reveal the time course of the use of prediction errors in social decisions and suggest that the dmPFC plays a crucial role in updating mental representations of others' intentions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia Christian
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
| | - Jakob Kaiser
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
| | - Paul Christopher Taylor
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
| | - Michelle George
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
| | - Simone Schütz-Bosbach
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
| | - Alexander Soutschek
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
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16
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Lee Masson H, Chang L, Isik L. Multidimensional neural representations of social features during movie viewing. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2024; 19:nsae030. [PMID: 38722755 PMCID: PMC11130526 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsae030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2023] [Revised: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
The social world is dynamic and contextually embedded. Yet, most studies utilize simple stimuli that do not capture the complexity of everyday social episodes. To address this, we implemented a movie viewing paradigm and investigated how everyday social episodes are processed in the brain. Participants watched one of two movies during an MRI scan. Neural patterns from brain regions involved in social perception, mentalization, action observation and sensory processing were extracted. Representational similarity analysis results revealed that several labeled social features (including social interaction, mentalization, the actions of others, characters talking about themselves, talking about others and talking about objects) were represented in the superior temporal gyrus (STG) and middle temporal gyrus (MTG). The mentalization feature was also represented throughout the theory of mind network, and characters talking about others engaged the temporoparietal junction (TPJ), suggesting that listeners may spontaneously infer the mental state of those being talked about. In contrast, we did not observe the action representations in the frontoparietal regions of the action observation network. The current findings indicate that STG and MTG serve as key regions for social processing, and that listening to characters talk about others elicits spontaneous mental state inference in TPJ during natural movie viewing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lucy Chang
- Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore 21218, USA
| | - Leyla Isik
- Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore 21218, USA
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17
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Cai CQ, Lavan N, Chen SHY, Wang CZX, Ozturk OC, Chiu RMY, Gilbert SJ, White SJ, Scott SK. Mapping the differential impact of spontaneous and conversational laughter on brain and mind: an fMRI study in autism. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhae199. [PMID: 38752979 PMCID: PMC11097909 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2024] [Revised: 04/23/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Spontaneous and conversational laughter are important socio-emotional communicative signals. Neuroimaging findings suggest that non-autistic people engage in mentalizing to understand the meaning behind conversational laughter. Autistic people may thus face specific challenges in processing conversational laughter, due to their mentalizing difficulties. Using fMRI, we explored neural differences during implicit processing of these two types of laughter. Autistic and non-autistic adults passively listened to funny words, followed by spontaneous laughter, conversational laughter, or noise-vocoded vocalizations. Behaviourally, words plus spontaneous laughter were rated as funnier than words plus conversational laughter, and the groups did not differ. However, neuroimaging results showed that non-autistic adults exhibited greater medial prefrontal cortex activation while listening to words plus conversational laughter, than words plus genuine laughter, while autistic adults showed no difference in medial prefrontal cortex activity between these two laughter types. Our findings suggest a crucial role for the medial prefrontal cortex in understanding socio-emotionally ambiguous laughter via mentalizing. Our study also highlights the possibility that autistic people may face challenges in understanding the essence of the laughter we frequently encounter in everyday life, especially in processing conversational laughter that carries complex meaning and social ambiguity, potentially leading to social vulnerability. Therefore, we advocate for clearer communication with autistic people.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ceci Qing Cai
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Nadine Lavan
- Department of Biological and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London E1 4NS, United Kingdom
| | - Sinead H Y Chen
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Claire Z X Wang
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Ozan Cem Ozturk
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Roni Man Ying Chiu
- Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Sam J Gilbert
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Sarah J White
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Sophie K Scott
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
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18
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Hensel L, Lüdtke J, Brouzou KO, Eickhoff SB, Kamp D, Schilbach L. Noninvasive brain stimulation in autism: review and outlook for personalized interventions in adult patients. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:8-18. [PMID: 38696602 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2023] [Revised: 02/13/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 05/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) has been increasingly investigated during the last decade as a treatment option for persons with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Yet, previous studies did not reach a consensus on a superior treatment protocol or stimulation target. Persons with ASD often suffer from social isolation and high rates of unemployment, arising from difficulties in social interaction. ASD involves multiple neural systems involved in perception, language, and cognition, and the underlying brain networks of these functional domains have been well documented. Aiming to provide an overview of NIBS effects when targeting these neural systems in late adolescent and adult ASD, we conducted a systematic search of the literature starting at 631 non-duplicate publications, leading to six studies corresponding with inclusion and exclusion criteria. We discuss these studies regarding their treatment rationale and the accordingly chosen methodological setup. The results of these studies vary, while methodological advances may allow to explain some of the variability. Based on these insights, we discuss strategies for future clinical trials to personalize the selection of brain stimulation targets taking into account intersubject variability of brain anatomy as well as function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas Hensel
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Moorenstraße 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
- Department of General Psychiatry 2, LVR-Klinikum Düsseldorf, Bergische Landstraße 2, 40629 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Jana Lüdtke
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Moorenstraße 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
- Department of General Psychiatry 2, LVR-Klinikum Düsseldorf, Bergische Landstraße 2, 40629 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Katia O Brouzou
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Moorenstraße 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
- Department of General Psychiatry 2, LVR-Klinikum Düsseldorf, Bergische Landstraße 2, 40629 Düsseldorf, Germany
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Moorenstraße 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Simon B Eickhoff
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Moorenstraße 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, Brain and Behaviour (INM-7), Research Centre Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Straße 1, 52428 Jülich, Germany
| | - Daniel Kamp
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Moorenstraße 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
- Department of General Psychiatry 2, LVR-Klinikum Düsseldorf, Bergische Landstraße 2, 40629 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Leonhard Schilbach
- Department of General Psychiatry 2, LVR-Klinikum Düsseldorf, Bergische Landstraße 2, 40629 Düsseldorf, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Nußbaumstraße 7, 80336 Munich, Germany
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19
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Fornaro S, Menardi A, Vallesi A. Topological features of functional brain networks and subclinical impulsivity: an investigation in younger and older adults. Brain Struct Funct 2024; 229:865-877. [PMID: 38446245 PMCID: PMC11003924 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-023-02745-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/07/2024]
Abstract
Impulsive traits (i.e., the tendency to act without forethought regardless of negative outcomes) are frequently found in healthy populations. When exposed to risk factors, individuals may develop debilitating disorders of impulse control (addiction, substance abuse, gambling) characterized by behavioral and cognitive deficits, eventually leading to huge socioeconomic costs. With the far-reaching aim of preventing the onset of impulsive disorders, it is relevant to investigate the topological organization of functional brain networks associated with impulsivity in sub-clinical populations. Taking advantage of the open-source LEMON dataset, we investigated the topological features of resting-state functional brain networks associated with impulsivity in younger (n = 146, age: 20-35) and older (n = 61, age: 59-77) individuals, using a graph-theoretical approach. Specifically, we computed indices of segregation and integration at the level of specific circuits and nodes known to be involved in impulsivity (frontal, limbic, and striatal networks). In younger individuals, results revealed that impulsivity was associated with a more widespread, less clustered and less efficient functional organization, at all levels of analyses and in all selected networks. Conversely, impulsivity in older individuals was associated with reduced integration and increased segregation of striatal regions. Speculatively, such alterations of functional brain networks might underlie behavioral and cognitive abnormalities associated with impulsivity, a working hypothesis worth being tested in future research. Lastly, differences between younger and older individuals might reflect the implementation of age-specific adaptive strategies, possibly accounting for observed differences in behavioral manifestations. Potential interpretations, limitations and implications are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Fornaro
- Department of Neuroscience (DNS), University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
| | - Arianna Menardi
- Department of Neuroscience (DNS), University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Antonino Vallesi
- Department of Neuroscience (DNS), University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
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20
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Li M, Pu M, Ma Q, Heleven E, Baeken C, Baetens K, Deroost N, Van Overwalle F. One step too far: social cerebellum in norm-violating navigation. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2024; 19:nsae027. [PMID: 38536051 PMCID: PMC11037276 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsae027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2023] [Revised: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Social norms are pivotal in guiding social interactions. The current study investigated the potential contribution of the posterior cerebellum, a critical region involved in perceiving and comprehending the sequential dynamics of social actions, in detecting actions that either conform to or deviate from social norms. Participants engaged in a goal-directed task in which they observed others navigating towards a goal. The trajectories demonstrated either norm-violating (trespassing forbidden zones) or norm-following behaviors (avoiding forbidden zones). Results revealed that observing social norm-violating behaviors engaged the bilateral posterior cerebellar Crus 2 and the right temporoparietal junction (TPJ) from the mentalizing network, and the parahippocampal gyrus (PHG) to a greater extent than observing norm-following behaviors. These mentalizing regions were also activated when comparing social sequences against non-social and non-sequential control conditions. Reproducing norm-violating social trajectories observed earlier, activated the left cerebellar Crus 2 and the right PHG compared to reproducing norm-following trajectories. These findings illuminate the neural mechanisms in the cerebellum associated with detecting norm transgressions during social navigation, emphasizing the role of the posterior cerebellum in detecting and signaling deviations from anticipated sequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meijia Li
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Min Pu
- Department of Decision Neuroscience and Nutrition, German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke, Nuthetal 14558, Germany
| | - Qianying Ma
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
- Language Pathology and Brain Science MEG Lab, School of Communication Sciences, Beijing Language and Culture University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Elien Heleven
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Chris Baeken
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Head and Skin, Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) lab, Ghent University, Ghent 9000, Belgium
- Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital (UZBrussel), Brussels 1090, Belgium
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven 5600, Netherlands
| | - Kris Baetens
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Natacha Deroost
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Frank Van Overwalle
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
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21
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Invitto S, Moselli P. Exploring Embodied and Bioenergetic Approaches in Trauma Therapy: Observing Somatic Experience and Olfactory Memory. Brain Sci 2024; 14:385. [PMID: 38672034 PMCID: PMC11048503 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci14040385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2024] [Revised: 04/09/2024] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Recent studies highlight how body psychotherapy is becoming highly cited, especially in connection with studies on trauma-related disorders. This review highlights the theoretical assumptions and recent points in common with embodied simulation and new sensory theories by integrating bioenergetic analysis, embodiment, and olfactory memory in trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) therapy. Embodied memory, rooted in sensorimotor experiences, shapes cognitive functions and emotional responses. Trauma, embodied in somatic experiences, disrupts these processes, leading to symptoms such as chronic pain and dissociation. The literature discussed highlights the impact of burning odors on individuals with PTSD and those who have experienced childhood maltreatment. Burning odors can increase stress and heart rate in war veterans, with sensitivity to these odors intensifying over time since the trauma. Additionally, adults who experienced childhood maltreatment exhibit faster processing of unpleasant odors and increased symptom severity. Grounding techniques, such as adopting a balanced posture, enhance breathing and sensory capabilities, potentially aiding in managing symptoms associated with trauma-related disorders such as PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Invitto
- Laboratory on Psychophysiological and Cognitive Olfactory Processes, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
- SIAB—Società Italiana Analisi Bioenergetica, 00183 Roma, Italy;
- IIBA International Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis, 08670 Navàs, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Patrizia Moselli
- SIAB—Società Italiana Analisi Bioenergetica, 00183 Roma, Italy;
- IIBA International Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis, 08670 Navàs, Barcelona, Spain
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22
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Vai B, Calesella F, Pelucchi A, Riberto M, Poletti S, Bechi M, Cavallaro R, Francesco B. Adverse childhood experiences differently affect Theory of Mind brain networks in schizophrenia and healthy controls. J Psychiatr Res 2024; 172:81-89. [PMID: 38367321 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2024.02.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Revised: 02/13/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/19/2024]
Abstract
Patients with schizophrenia (SZ) show impairments in both affective and cognitive dimensions of theory of mind (ToM). SZ are also particularly vulnerable to detrimental effect of adverse childhood experiences (ACE), influencing the overall course of the disorder and fostering poor social functioning. ACE associate with long-lasting detrimental effects on brain structure, function, and connectivity in regions involved in ToM. Here, we investigated whether ToM networks are differentially affected by ACEs in healthy controls (HC) and SZ, and if these effects can predict the disorder clinical outcome. 26 HC and 33 SZ performed a ToM task during an fMRI session. Whole-brain functional response and connectivity (FC) were extracted, investigating the interaction between ACEs and diagnosis. FC values significantly affected by ACEs were entered in a cross-validated LASSO regression predicting Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), and task performance. ACEs and diagnosis showed a widespread interaction at both affective and cognitive tasks, including connectivity between vmPFC, ACC, precentral and postcentral gyri, insula, PCC, precuneus, parahippocampal gyrus, temporal pole, thalamus, and cerebellum, and functional response in the ACC, thalamus, parahippocampal gyrus and putamen. FC predicted the PANSS score, the fantasy dimension of IRI, and the AToM response latency. Our results highlight the crucial role of early stress in differentially shaping ToM related brain networks in HC and SZ. These effects can also partially explain the clinical and behavioral outcomes of the disorder, extending our knowledge of the effects of ACEs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benedetta Vai
- Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy; Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milano, Italy.
| | - Federico Calesella
- Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy; Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milano, Italy
| | - Alice Pelucchi
- Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
| | - Martina Riberto
- Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
| | - Sara Poletti
- Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy; Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milano, Italy
| | - Margherita Bechi
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
| | - Roberto Cavallaro
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milano, Italy; Department of Clinical Neurosciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
| | - Benedetti Francesco
- Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy; Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milano, Italy
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23
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Li M, Haihambo N, Bylemans T, Ma Q, Heleven E, Baeken C, Baetens K, Deroost N, Van Overwalle F. Create your own path: social cerebellum in sequence-based self-guided navigation. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2024; 19:nsae015. [PMID: 38554289 PMCID: PMC10981473 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsae015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Revised: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 04/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Spatial trajectory planning and execution in a social context play a vital role in our daily lives. To study this process, participants completed a goal-directed task involving either observing a sequence of preferred goals and self-planning a trajectory (Self Sequencing) or observing and reproducing the entire trajectory taken by others (Other Sequencing). The results indicated that in the observation phase, witnessing entire trajectories created by others (Other Sequencing) recruited cerebellar mentalizing areas (Crus 2 and 1) and cortical mentalizing areas in the precuneus, ventral and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex and temporo-parietal junction more than merely observing several goals (Self Sequencing). In the production phase, generating a trajectory by oneself (Self Sequencing) activated Crus 1 more than merely reproducing the observed trajectories from others (Other Sequencing). Additionally, self-guided observation and planning (Self Sequencing) activated the cerebellar lobules IV and VIII more than Other Sequencing. Control conditions involving non-social objects and non-sequential conditions where the trajectory did not have to be (re)produced revealed no differences with the main Self and Other Sequencing conditions, suggesting limited social and sequential specificity. These findings provide insights into the neural mechanisms underlying trajectory observation and production by the self or others during social navigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meijia Li
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Naem Haihambo
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Tom Bylemans
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Qianying Ma
- Language Pathology and Brain Science MEG Lab, School of Communication Sciences, Beijing Language and Culture University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Elien Heleven
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Chris Baeken
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Head and Skin, Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent University, Ghent 9000, Belgium
- Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital (UZBrussel), Brussels 1090, Belgium
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven 5600, the Netherlands
| | - Kris Baetens
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Natacha Deroost
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
| | - Frank Van Overwalle
- Faculty of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels 1050, Belgium
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24
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Qiao-Tasserit E, Corradi-Dell’Acqua C, Vuilleumier P. Influence of transient emotional episodes on affective and cognitive theory of mind. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2024; 19:nsae016. [PMID: 38442706 PMCID: PMC10914405 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsae016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Our emotions may influence how we interact with others. Previous studies have shown an important role of emotion induction in generating empathic reactions towards others' affect. However, it remains unclear whether (and to which extent) our own emotions can influence the ability to infer people's mental states, a process associated with Theory of Mind (ToM) and implicated in the representation of both cognitive (e.g. beliefs and intentions) and affective conditions. We engaged 59 participants in two emotion-induction experiments where they saw joyful, neutral and fearful clips. Subsequently, they were asked to infer other individuals' joy, fear (affective ToM) or beliefs (cognitive ToM) from verbal scenarios. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we found that brain activity in the superior temporal gyrus, precuneus and sensorimotor cortices were modulated by the preceding emotional induction, with lower response when the to-be-inferred emotion was incongruent with the one induced in the observer (affective ToM). Instead, we found no effect of emotion induction on the appraisal of people's beliefs (cognitive ToM). These findings are consistent with embodied accounts of affective ToM, whereby our own emotions alter the engagement of key brain regions for social cognition, depending on the compatibility between one's own and others' affect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emilie Qiao-Tasserit
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of Neuroscience, University Medical Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Geneva Neuroscience Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1209, Switzerland
| | - Corrado Corradi-Dell’Acqua
- Geneva Neuroscience Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Theory of Pain Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPSE), University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1211, Switzerland
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Rovereto IT-38068, Italy
| | - Patrik Vuilleumier
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of Neuroscience, University Medical Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Geneva Neuroscience Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1209, Switzerland
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25
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Shamay-Tsoory SG, Marton-Alper IZ, Markus A. Post-interaction neuroplasticity of inter-brain networks underlies the development of social relationship. iScience 2024; 27:108796. [PMID: 38292433 PMCID: PMC10825012 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.108796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Revised: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 01/02/2024] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Inter-brain coupling has been increasingly recognized for its role in supporting connectedness during social communication. Here we investigate whether inter-brain coupling is plastic and persists beyond the offset of social interaction, facilitating the emergence of social closeness. Dyads were concurrently scanned using functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) while engaging in a task that involved movement synchronization. To assess post-interaction neuroplasticity, participants performed a baseline condition with no interaction before and after the interaction. The results reveal heightened inter-brain coupling in neural networks comprising the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex in the post-task compared to the pre-task baseline. Critically, the right IFG emerged as a highly connected hub, with post-task inter-brain coupling in this region predicting the levels of motivation to connect socially. We suggest that post-interactions inter-brain coupling may reflect consolidation of socially related cues, underscoring the role of inter-brain plasticity in fundamental aspects of relationship development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone G. Shamay-Tsoory
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
- The Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center (IBBRC), Haifa, Israel
| | | | - Andrey Markus
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
- The Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center (IBBRC), Haifa, Israel
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26
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Hernandez Pena L, Weidacker K, Massau C, Wetzel K, Brand AL, Weckes K, Opwis M, Schiffer B, Kärgel C. Can people empathize with offenders and victims during violent scenes? Behavioral and brain correlates of affective and cognitive empathy considering victim vs. offender perspective using the Bochumer affective and cognitive empathy task (BACET). Neuropsychologia 2024; 194:108784. [PMID: 38159801 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Revised: 11/15/2023] [Accepted: 12/27/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Empathy is defined as the capacity to resonate with others' emotions and can be subdivided into affective and cognitive components. Few studies have focused on the role of perspective-taking within this ability. Utilizing the novel Bochumer Affective and Cognitive Empathy Task (BACET), the present study aims to determine the characteristics of specific empathy components, as well as the impact of offender vs. victim perspective-taking. A total of 21 male participants (mean age = 30.6) underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while watching 60 videos showing two protagonists in neutral (n = 30) or violent interactions (n = 30) thereby adopting the perspective of the (later) offender or victim. Our data show that videos showing emotional (violent) content, compared to those with neutral content, were rated more emotionally negative and induced higher affective empathic involvement, particularly when adopting the victim's perspective compared to the offender's point of view. The correct assignment of people's appropriate emotion (cognitive empathy) was found to be more accurate and faster in the emotional condition relative to the neutral one. However, no significant differences in cognitive empathy performance were observed when comparing victim vs offender conditions. On a neural level, affective empathy processing, during emotional compared to neutral videos, was related to brain areas generally involved in social information processing, particularly in occipital, parietal, insular, and frontal regions. Cognitive aspects of empathy, relative to factual reasoning questions, were located in inferior occipital areas, fusiform gyrus, temporal pole, and frontal cortex. Neural differences were found depending on the perspective, i.e., empathizing with the victim, compared to the offender, during affective empathy activated parts of the right temporal lobe, whereas empathy towards the role of the offender revealed stronger activation in the right lingual gyrus. During cognitive empathy, empathy toward the victim, relative to the offender, enhanced activity of the right supramarginal and left precentral gyri. The opposite contrast did not show any significant differences. We conclude that the BACET can be a useful tool for further studying behavioral and neurobiological underpinnings of affective and cognitive empathy, especially in forensic populations since response patterns point to a significant impact of the observer's perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucia Hernandez Pena
- Division of Forensic Psychiatry, LWL-University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany; JARA-Institute Brain Structure Function Relationship, Research Center Jülich and RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Kathrin Weidacker
- School of Psychology, University of Swansea, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Claudia Massau
- Division of Forensic Psychiatry, LWL-University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany
| | - Kai Wetzel
- Division of Forensic Psychiatry, LWL-University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany
| | - Anna-Lena Brand
- Division of Forensic Psychiatry, LWL-University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany
| | - Katharina Weckes
- Division of Forensic Psychiatry, LWL-University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany
| | - Mareile Opwis
- Department of Health Psychology, Distance University Hagen, Hagen, Germany
| | - Boris Schiffer
- Division of Forensic Psychiatry, LWL-University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany
| | - Christian Kärgel
- Division of Forensic Psychiatry, LWL-University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany.
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27
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Quaranta D, Di Tella S, Cassano V, L'Abbate F, Bruno M, Gaudino S, Panfili M, Silveri MC, Marra C. Neural correlates of empathy in mild cognitive impairment. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2024; 24:171-183. [PMID: 38158451 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-023-01146-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/08/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
The occurrence of clinically significant changes in empathy is a matter of debate in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Altered empathic mechanisms observed in AD may be a consequence of cognitive impairment, more specifically of reduced mental flexibility and self-regulation. The present study explored possible changes in empathy for subjects in the prodromal phase of AD, namely mild cognitive impairment (MCI) due to AD, and of their neural substrates. Eighteen MCI patients and 20 healthy controls (HC) were included in the study. The Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) questionnaire was administered to each participant. The IRI encompasses four factors: Perspective Taking; Fantasy; Empathic Concern; Personal Distress. MCI patients underwent a magnetic resonance imaging structural examination and were compared to 30 healthy controls (HC-MRI). A limited number of cortical and subcortical regions involved in social cognition was selected as regions of interest (ROIs). MCI individuals obtained lower scores than HC in the Perspective Taking and Fantasy subscales of the IRI, whereas they obtained higher scores on Empathic Concern. Regarding neuroimaging data, a significant correlation emerged between IRI scores and the neural measurements of different regions involved in empathy, especially covering the temporoparietal junction, which is a critical region engaged in both affective and cognitive dimensions of empathy. The results of the present study suggest that a subtle impairment in regulatory mechanisms of empathy may occur very early during the course of AD, possibly as a consequence of neuropathological changes occurring in brain regions involved in social cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Quaranta
- Neurology Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli" IRCCS, Rome, Italy.
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy.
- Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy.
| | - Sonia Di Tella
- Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Federica L'Abbate
- Neurology Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli" IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Matilde Bruno
- Memory Clinic, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Simona Gaudino
- Radiology and Neuroradiology Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli" IRCSS, Rome, Italy
| | - Marco Panfili
- Radiology and Neuroradiology Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli" IRCSS, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Camillo Marra
- Neurology Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli" IRCCS, Rome, Italy
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy
- Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
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28
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Vinton LC, Preston C, de la Rosa S, Mackie G, Tipper SP, Barraclough NE. Four fundamental dimensions underlie the perception of human actions. Atten Percept Psychophys 2024; 86:536-558. [PMID: 37188862 PMCID: PMC10185378 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-023-02709-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/30/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
We evaluate the actions of other individuals based upon a variety of movements that reveal critical information to guide decision making and behavioural responses. These signals convey a range of information about the actor, including their goals, intentions and internal mental states. Although progress has been made to identify cortical regions involved in action processing, the organising principles underlying our representation of actions still remains unclear. In this paper we investigated the conceptual space that underlies action perception by assessing which qualities are fundamental to the perception of human actions. We recorded 240 different actions using motion-capture and used these data to animate a volumetric avatar that performed the different actions. 230 participants then viewed these actions and rated the extent to which each action demonstrated 23 different action characteristics (e.g., avoiding-approaching, pulling-pushing, weak-powerful). We analysed these data using Exploratory Factor Analysis to examine the latent factors underlying visual action perception. The best fitting model was a four-dimensional model with oblique rotation. We named the factors: friendly-unfriendly, formidable-feeble, planned-unplanned, and abduction-adduction. The first two factors of friendliness and formidableness explained approximately 22% of the variance each, compared to planned and abduction, which explained approximately 7-8% of the variance each; as such we interpret this representation of action space as having 2 + 2 dimensions. A closer examination of the first two factors suggests a similarity to the principal factors underlying our evaluation of facial traits and emotions, whilst the last two factors of planning and abduction appear unique to actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura C Vinton
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Catherine Preston
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Stephan de la Rosa
- Department of Social Sciences, IU University of Applied Sciences, Juri-Gagarin-Ring 152, 99084, Erfurt, Germany
| | - Gabriel Mackie
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Steven P Tipper
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Nick E Barraclough
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK.
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29
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Gamble RS, Henry JD, Decety J, Vanman EJ. The role of external factors in affect-sharing and their neural bases. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 157:105540. [PMID: 38211739 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
Affect-sharing, the ability to vicariously feel another person's emotions, is the primary component of empathy that is typically thought to rely on the observer's capacity to feel the emotions of others. However, external signals, such as the target's physical characteristics, have been demonstrated to influence affect-sharing in the neuroscientific literature that speaks to the underappreciated role of external factors in eliciting affect-sharing. We consider factors that influence affect-sharing, including physical cues, emotional cues, situational factors, and observer-target relationships, as well as the neural circuits involved in these processes. Our review reveals that, while neural network activation is primarily responsible for processing affect-sharing, external factors also co-activate a top-down cognitive processing network to modulate the conscious process of affect-sharing. From this knowledge, an integrative framework of external factor interactions with affect-sharing are explained in detail. Finally, we identify critical areas for future research in social and affective neuroscience, including research gaps and incorporation of ecologically valid paradigms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roger S Gamble
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, 4072 Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
| | - Julie D Henry
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, 4072 Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Jean Decety
- Department of Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Eric J Vanman
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, 4072 Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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30
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Zhao H, Xu Y, Li L, Liu J, Cui F. The neural mechanisms of identifiable victim effect in prosocial decision-making. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26609. [PMID: 38339893 PMCID: PMC10836171 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 01/04/2024] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The phenomenon known as the "identifiable victim effect" describes how individuals tend to offer more assistance to victims they can identify with than to those who are vague or abstract. The neural underpinnings of this effect, however, remain elusive. Our study utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging to delve into how the "identifiable victim effect" influences prosocial decision-making, considering different types of helping costs, across two distinct tasks. Participants were instructed to decide whether to help a victim with personal information shown (i.e., the identifiable victim) and an unidentifiable one by costing their money (task 1) or physical effort (task 2). Behaviorally, we observed a pronounced preference in both tasks for aiding identifiable victims over anonymous ones, highlighting a robust "identifiable victim effect." On a neural level, this effect was associated with heightened activity in brain areas like the bilateral temporoparietal junction (TPJ) when participants confronted anonymous victims, potentially indicating a more intensive mentalizing process for less concrete victims. Additionally, we noted that the TPJ's influence on value judgment processes is mediated through its functional connectivity with the medial prefrontal cortex. These insights contribute significantly to our understanding of the psychological and neural dynamics underlying the identifiable victim effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hailing Zhao
- School of PsychologyShenzhen UniversityShenzhenChina
| | - Yashi Xu
- School of PsychologyShenzhen UniversityShenzhenChina
| | - Lening Li
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringThe Hong Kong Polytechnic UniversityHong KongChina
| | - Jie Liu
- School of PsychologyShenzhen UniversityShenzhenChina
- Center for Brain Disorders and Cognitive NeuroscienceShenzhen UniversityShenzhenChina
| | - Fang Cui
- School of PsychologyShenzhen UniversityShenzhenChina
- Center for Brain Disorders and Cognitive NeuroscienceShenzhen UniversityShenzhenChina
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31
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Bas LM, Roberts ID, Hutcherson C, Tusche A. A neurocomputational account of the link between social perception and social action. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.10.02.560256. [PMID: 37873074 PMCID: PMC10592872 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.02.560256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
People selectively help others based on perceptions of their merit or need. Here, we develop a neurocomputational account of how these social perceptions translate into social choice. Using a novel fMRI social perception task, we show that both merit and need perceptions recruited the brain's social inference network. A behavioral computational model identified two non-exclusive mechanisms underlying variance in social perceptions: a consistent tendency to perceive others as meritorious/needy (bias) and a propensity to sample and integrate normative evidence distinguishing high from low merit/need in other people (sensitivity). Variance in people's merit (but not need) bias and sensitivity independently predicted distinct aspects of altruism in a social choice task completed months later. An individual's merit bias predicted context-independent variance in people's overall other-regard during altruistic choice, biasing people towards prosocial actions. An individual's merit sensitivity predicted context-sensitive discrimination in generosity towards high and low merit recipients by influencing other-regard and self-regard during altruistic decision-making. This context-sensitive perception-action link was associated with activation in the right temporoparietal junction. Together, these findings point towards stable, biologically based individual differences in perceptual processes related to abstract social concepts like merit, and suggest that these differences may have important behavioral implications for an individual's tendency toward favoritism or discrimination in social settings.
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32
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Gao X, Jolly E, Yu H, Liu H, Zhou X, Chang LJ. The psychological, computational, and neural foundations of indebtedness. Nat Commun 2024; 15:68. [PMID: 38167846 PMCID: PMC10762097 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44286-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Receiving a favor from another person may induce a negative feeling of indebtedness for the beneficiary. In this study, we explore these hidden costs by developing and validating a conceptual model of indebtedness across three studies that combine a large-scale online questionnaire, an interpersonal game, computational modeling, and neuroimaging. Our model captures how individuals perceive the altruistic and strategic intentions of the benefactor. These inferences produce distinct feelings of guilt and obligation that together comprise indebtedness and motivate reciprocity. Perceived altruistic intentions convey care and communal concern and are associated with activity in insula, ventromedial prefrontal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, while inferred strategic intentions convey expectations of future reciprocity and are associated with activation in temporal parietal junction and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex. We further develop a neural utility model of indebtedness using multivariate patterns of brain activity that captures the tradeoff between these feelings and reliably predicts reciprocity behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxue Gao
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China.
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
| | - Eshin Jolly
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA
| | - Hongbo Yu
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106-9660, USA
| | - Huiying Liu
- Mental Health Education Center, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, Henan, China
| | - Xiaolin Zhou
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China.
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
- PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
| | - Luke J Chang
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA.
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Song X, Dong M, Feng K, Li J, Hu X, Liu T. Influence of interpersonal distance on collaborative performance in the joint Simon task-An fNIRS-based hyperscanning study. Neuroimage 2024; 285:120473. [PMID: 38040400 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2023] [Revised: 11/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Collaboration is a critical skill in everyday life. It has been suggested that collaborative performance may be influenced by social factors such as interpersonal distance, which is defined as the perceived psychological distance between individuals. Previous literature has reported that close interpersonal distance may promote the level of self-other integration between interacting members, and in turn, enhance collaborative performance. These studies mainly focused on interdependent collaboration, which requires high levels of shared representations and self-other integration. However, little is known about the effect of interpersonal distance on independent collaboration (e.g., the joint Simon task), in which individuals perform the task independently while the final outcome is determined by the parties. To address this issue, we simultaneously measured the frontal activations of ninety-four pairs of participants using a functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)-based hyperscanning technique while they performed a joint Simon task. Behavioral results showed that the Joint Simon Effect (JSE), defined as the RT difference between incongruent and congruent conditions indicating the level of self-other integration between collaborators, was larger in the friend group than in the stranger group. Consistently, the inter-brain neural synchronization (INS) across the dorsolateral and medial parts of the prefrontal cortex was also stronger in the friend group. In addition, INS in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex negatively predicted JSE only in the friend group. These results suggest that close interpersonal distance may enhance the shared mental representation among collaborators, which in turn influences their collaborative performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaolei Song
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China; Key Laboratory for Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience of Shaanxi Province, Xi'an, China.
| | - Meimei Dong
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China; Key Laboratory for Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience of Shaanxi Province, Xi'an, China
| | - Kun Feng
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China; Key Laboratory for Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience of Shaanxi Province, Xi'an, China
| | - Jiaqi Li
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China; Key Laboratory for Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience of Shaanxi Province, Xi'an, China
| | - Xiaofei Hu
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China; Key Laboratory for Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience of Shaanxi Province, Xi'an, China
| | - Tao Liu
- School of Management, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China; Department of Psychology, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China; School of Education, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
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Liu Q, Cui H, Huang B, Huang Y, Sun H, Ru X, Zhang M, Chen W. Inter-brain neural mechanism and influencing factors underlying different cooperative behaviors: a hyperscanning study. Brain Struct Funct 2024; 229:75-95. [PMID: 37899406 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-023-02700-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 10/31/2023]
Abstract
Cooperative behavior is a vital social interaction which plays a vital role in improving human survival and reproduction. However, few empirical studies have examined the differences between cooperative behaviors and the underlying neural substrates. In the present study, the brain activity of familiar dyads of the same sex was measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy during three cooperative tasks (cooperative button-press, tangram, and Jenga tasks). We also measured the dyads' empathic abilities and personality traits to investigate the relationships between individual characteristics and neural markers. The results showed that first, there were significant differences in intra-brain activation and inter-brain synchronization among different cooperative tasks in three dimensions: social cognition, behavioral response, and cognitive processing. Second, male participants require stronger intra-brain activation to achieve the same inter-brain synchronization level as women in cooperative tasks. Third, when performing cooperative tasks involving high cognitive demands, Big Five Neuroticism may be an important predictor of neural activation in female participants. Inter-brain synchronization plays an important role in the frontal and temporoparietal junctions during interpersonal cooperation. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that mutual prediction theory is crucial for understanding the neural mechanisms of cooperative behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingming Liu
- Center for Brain, Mind and Education, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China
- Department of Psychology, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China
| | - Huimin Cui
- Department of Psychology, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China
| | - Bincan Huang
- Department of Primary Education, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China
| | - Yingying Huang
- Department of Primary Education, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China
| | - Huimeng Sun
- Department of Primary Education, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China
| | - Xinyi Ru
- Department of Primary Education, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China
| | - Mingming Zhang
- Department of Psychology, College of Education, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Wei Chen
- Center for Brain, Mind and Education, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China.
- Department of Psychology, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China.
- Interdisciplinary Center for Philosophy and Cognitive Sciences, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China.
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Ding K, Xu M, Huang T, Song Y, Kong F, Zhen Z. Sex dimorphic cortical brain volumes associated with antisocial behavior in young adults. PSYCHORADIOLOGY 2023; 3:kkad031. [PMID: 38666132 PMCID: PMC10917369 DOI: 10.1093/psyrad/kkad031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 12/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/16/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Background Although sex differences in antisocial behavior are well-documented, the extent to which neuroanatomical differences are related to sex differences in antisocial behavior is unclear. The inconsistent results from different clinical populations exhibiting antisocial behaviors are mainly due to the heterogeneity in etiologies, comorbidity inequality, and small sample size, especially in females. Objective The study aimed to find sexual dimorphic brain regions associated with individual differences in antisocial behavior while avoiding the issues of heterogeneity and sample size. Methods We collected structural neuroimaging data from 281 college students (131 males, 150 females) and analyzed the data using voxel-based morphometry. Results The gray matter volume in three brain regions correlates with self-reported antisocial behavior in males and females differently: the posterior superior temporal sulcus, middle temporal gyrus, and precuneus. The findings have controlled for the total cortical gray matter volume, age, IQ, and socioeconomic status. Additionally, we found a common neural substrate of antisocial behavior in both males and females, extending from the anterior temporal lobe to the insula. Conclusion This is the first neuroanatomical evidence from a large non-clinical sample of young adults. The study suggests that differences in males and females in reading social cues, understanding intentions and emotions, and responding to conflicts may contribute to the modulation of brain morphometry concerning antisocial behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ke Ding
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Miao Xu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Taicheng Huang
- Department of Psychology and Tsinghua Laboratory of Brain and Intelligence, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Yiying Song
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Feng Kong
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710119, China
| | - Zonglei Zhen
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
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Zhou X, Stehr DA, Pyles J, Grossman ED. Configuration of the action observation network depends on the goals of the observer. Neuropsychologia 2023; 191:108704. [PMID: 37858919 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2023] [Revised: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Observing the actions of others engages a core action observation network (AON) that includes the bilateral inferior frontal cortex (IFC), posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) and inferior parietal lobule (IPL) (Caspers et al., 2010). Each region in the AON has functional properties that are heterogeneous and include representing the perceptual properties of action, predicting action outcomes and making inferences as to the goals of the actor. Critically, recent evidence shows that neural representations within the pSTS are sharpened when attending to the kinematics of the actor, such that the top-down guided attention reshapes underlying neural representations. In this study we evaluate how attention alters network connectivity within the AON as a system. Cues directed participant's attention to the goal, kinematics, or identity depicted in short action animations while brain responses were measured by fMRI. We identified those parcels within the AON with functional connectivity modulated by task. Results show that connectivity between the right pSTS and right IFC, and bilateral extended STS (STS+) were modulated during action observation such that connections were strengthened when the participant was attending to the action than goal. This finding is contrasted by the univariate results, which no univariate modulations in these brain regions except for right IFC. Using the functional networks defined by Yeo et al. (2011), we identified the parcels that are modulated by the attention to consist mainly of the fronto-parietal control network and default mode networks. These results are consistent with models of top-down feedback from executive system in the IFC to pSTS and implicates a right lateralized dual pathway model for action observation when focused on whole-body kinematics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaojue Zhou
- University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.
| | | | - John Pyles
- University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
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Haihambo N, Ma Q, Baetens K, Bylemans T, Heleven E, Baeken C, Deroost N, Van Overwalle F. Two is company: The posterior cerebellum and sequencing for pairs versus individuals during social preference prediction. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2023; 23:1482-1499. [PMID: 37821755 PMCID: PMC10684703 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-023-01127-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
Previous studies have identified that the posterior cerebellum, which plays a role in processing temporal sequences in social events, is consistently and robustly activated when we predict future action sequences based on personality traits (Haihambo Haihambo et al. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience 17(2), 241-251, 2022) and intentions (Haihambo et al. Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience 23(2), 323-339, 2023). In the current study, we investigated whether these cerebellar areas are selectively activated when we predict the sequences of (inter)actions based on protagonists' preferences. For the first time, we also compared predictions based on person-to-person interactions or single person activities. Participants were instructed to predict actions of one single or two interactive protagonists by selecting them and putting them in the correct chronological order after being informed about one of the protagonists' preferences. These conditions were contrasted against nonsocial (involving objects) and nonsequencing (prediction without generating a sequence) control conditions. Results showed that the posterior cerebellar Crus 1, Crus 2, and lobule IX, alongside the temporoparietal junction and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex were more robustly activated when predicting sequences of behavior of two interactive protagonists, compared to one single protagonist and nonsocial objects. Sequence predictions based on one single protagonist recruited lobule IX activation in the cerebellum and more ventral areas of the medial prefrontal cortex compared to a nonsocial object. These cerebellar activations were not found when making predictions without sequences. Together, these findings suggest that cerebellar mentalizing areas are involved in social mentalizing processes which require temporal sequencing, especially when they involve social interactions, rather than behaviors of single persons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naem Haihambo
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium.
| | - Qianying Ma
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Kris Baetens
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Tom Bylemans
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Elien Heleven
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Chris Baeken
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital UZBrussel, Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, Netherlands
| | - Natacha Deroost
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Frank Van Overwalle
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium
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Yoon L, Keenan KE, Hipwell AE, Forbes EE, Guyer AE. Hooked on a thought: Associations between rumination and neural responses to social rejection in adolescent girls. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2023; 64:101320. [PMID: 37922608 PMCID: PMC10641579 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2023.101320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2023] [Revised: 10/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Rumination is a significant risk factor for psychopathology in adolescent girls and is associated with heightened and prolonged physiological arousal following social rejection. However, no study has examined how rumination relates to neural responses to social rejection in adolescent girls; thus, the current study aimed to address this gap. Adolescent girls (N = 116; ages 16.95-19.09) self-reported on their rumination tendency and completed a social evaluation fMRI task where they received fictitious feedback (acceptance, rejection) from peers they liked or disliked. Rejection-related neural activity and subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC) connectivity were regressed on rumination, controlling for rejection sensitivity and depressive symptoms. Rumination was associated with distinctive neural responses following rejection from liked peers including increased neural activity in the precuneus, inferior parietal gyrus, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and supplementary motor area (SMA) and reduced sgACC connectivity with multiple regions including medial prefrontal cortex, precuneus and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Greater precuneus and SMA activity mediated the effect of rumination on slower response time to report emotional state after receiving rejection from liked peers. These findings provide clues for distinctive cognitive processes (e.g., mentalizing, conflict processing, memory encoding) following the receipt of rejection in girls with high levels of rumination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leehyun Yoon
- Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95618, USA
| | - Kate E Keenan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Alison E Hipwell
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Erika E Forbes
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Amanda E Guyer
- Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95618, USA; Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
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Reddan M, Ong D, Wager T, Mattek S, Kahhale I, Zaki J. Neural signatures of emotional inference and experience align during social consensus. RESEARCH SQUARE 2023:rs.3.rs-3487248. [PMID: 38014230 PMCID: PMC10680919 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3487248/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Humans seamlessly transform dynamic social signals into inferences about the internal states of the people around them. To understand the neural processes that sustain this transformation, we collected fMRI data from participants (N = 100) while they rated the emotional intensity of people (targets) describing significant life events. Targets rated themselves on the same scale to indicate the intended "ground truth" emotional intensity of their videos. Next, we developed two multivariate models of observer brain activity- the first predicted the "ground truth" (r = 0.50, p < 0.0001) and the second predicted observer inferences (r = 0.53, p < 0.0001). When individuals make more accurate inferences, there is greater moment-by-moment concordance between these two models, suggesting that an observer's brain activity contains latent representations of other people's emotional states. Using naturalistic socioemotional stimuli and machine learning, we developed reliable brain signatures that predict what an observer thinks about a target, what the target thinks about themselves, and the correspondence between them. These signatures can be applied in clinical data to better our understanding of socioemotional dysfunction.
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Tan SHJ, Wong JN, Teo WP. Is neuroimaging ready for the classroom? A systematic review of hyperscanning studies in learning. Neuroimage 2023; 281:120367. [PMID: 37689175 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Whether education research can be informed by findings from neuroscience studies has been hotly debated since Bruer's (1997) famous claim that neuroscience and education are "a bridge too far". However, this claim came before recent advancements in portable electroencephalography (EEG) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) technologies, and second-person neuroscience techniques that brought about significant headway in understanding instructor-learner interactions in the classroom. To explore whether neuroscience and education are still two very separate fields, we systematically review 15 hyperscanning studies that were conducted in real-world classrooms or that implemented a teaching-learning task to investigate instructor-learner dynamics. Findings from this investigation illustrate that inter-brain synchrony between instructor and learner is an additional and valuable dimension to understand the complex web of instructor- and learner-related variables that influence learning. Importantly, these findings demonstrate the possibility of conducting real-world classroom studies with portable neuroimaging techniques and highlight the potential of such studies in providing translatable real-world implications. Once thought of as incompatible, a successful coupling between neuroscience and education is now within sight.
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Affiliation(s)
- S H Jessica Tan
- Science of Learning in Education Centre, Office of Education Research, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
| | - Jin Nen Wong
- Science of Learning in Education Centre, Office of Education Research, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
| | - Wei-Peng Teo
- Science of Learning in Education Centre, Office of Education Research, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore; Physical Education and Sport Science Academic Group, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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Meneguzzo P, Dal Brun D, Collantoni E, Meregalli V, Todisco P, Favaro A, Tenconi E. Linguistic embodiment in typical and atypical anorexia nervosa: Evidence from an image-word matching task. EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW 2023; 31:837-849. [PMID: 37415396 DOI: 10.1002/erv.3008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Revised: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 06/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The integration of sensory, motor, and cognitive systems is embodied cognition, according to which mind and body are not separate and distinct, and our body (and our brain, as part of the body) contributes to determining our mental and cognitive processes. In spite of limited data available, Anorexia nervosa (AN) appears as a condition in which embodied cognition is altered, in particular, if we consider bodily sensations and visuospatial information processing. We aimed to evaluate the ability to correctly identify body parts and actions in both full (AN) and atypical AN (AAN), looking at the role of the underweight status. METHOD A group of 143 females (AN = 45, AAN = 43, unaffected women = 55) was enrolled. All participants performed a linguistic embodied task to evaluate the association between a picture-showing a bodily action-and a written verb. Additionally, a subsample of 24 AN participants performed a retest after stable weight recovery. RESULTS Both AN and AAN demonstrated an abnormal ability to evaluate the picture-written verb associations, especially if the involved bodily effectors were the same in both stimuli (i.e., pictorial and verbal) and needed a longer response time. CONCLUSIONS Specific embodied cognition linked to body schema seems to be impaired in persons with AN. The longitudinal analysis showed a difference between AN and AAN only in the underweight condition, suggesting the presence of an abnormal linguistic embodiment. More attention should be devoted to embodiment during AN treatment to improve bodily cognition, which might, in turn, diminish body misperception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo Meneguzzo
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - David Dal Brun
- Department of Linguistic and Literary Studies, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Enrico Collantoni
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Valentina Meregalli
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Patrizia Todisco
- Eating Disorders Unit, Casa di Cura "Villa Margherita, Vicenza, Italy
| | - Angela Favaro
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Elena Tenconi
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
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Park B, Smith VR. Blame and Praise cross-culturally: An fMRI investigation into causal attribution and moral judgment. Biol Psychol 2023; 184:108713. [PMID: 37839520 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Revised: 10/11/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023]
Abstract
People from independent cultures are more likely to causally explain others' behaviors by their disposition [vs. situation] compared to those from interdependent cultures. However, few studies have directly examined how these differences in attribution shape individuals' moral judgment, nor the underlying neural mechanisms of this process. Aiming to address these questions, in the scanner, participants rated the blameworthiness or praiseworthiness of protagonists who did either a negative or positive behavior, respectively. These behaviors were pretested and found to be perceived as dispositionally or situationally caused to different extents on average. Regardless of their self-construal, participants showed enhanced dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) activity in response to the behaviors that were evaluated as more situationally caused on average. Importantly, relatively independent participants reduced their blame for the behaviors that they showed greater dmPFC activity to. Relatively interdependent participants reduced blame for the behaviors that they themselves inferred more situational causes for, but dmPFC activity did not explain their blame. These findings suggest that while dmPFC might support relatively independent participants' effortful consideration of situational contributors to a behavior to make moral judgments, relatively interdependent participants might engage in this process automatically and relied less on dmPFC recruitment.
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Wang G, Zeng M, Li J, Liu Y, Wei D, Long Z, Chen H, Zang X, Yang J. Neural Representation of Collective Self-esteem in Resting-state Functional Connectivity and its Validation in Task-dependent Modality. Neuroscience 2023; 530:66-78. [PMID: 37619767 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.08.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2023] [Revised: 08/01/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Collective self-esteem (CSE) is an important personality variable, defined as self-worth derived from membership in social groups. A study explored the neural basis of CSE using a task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) paradigm; however, task-independent neural basis of CSE remains to be explored, and whether the CSE neural basis of resting-state fMRI is consistent with that of task-based fMRI is unclear. METHODS We built support vector regression (SVR) models to predict CSE scores using topological metrics measured in the resting-state functional connectivity network (RSFC) as features. Then, to test the reliability of the SVR analysis, the activation pattern of the identified brain regions from SVR analysis was used as features to distinguish collective self-worth from other conditions by multivariate pattern classification in task-based fMRI dataset. RESULTS SVR analysis results showed that leverage centrality successfully decoded the individual differences in CSE. The ventromedial prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, posterior cingulate gyrus, precuneus, orbitofrontal cortex, posterior insula, postcentral gyrus, inferior parietal lobule, temporoparietal junction, and inferior frontal gyrus, which are involved in self-referential processing, affective processing, and social cognition networks, participated in this prediction. Multivariate pattern classification analysis found that the activation pattern of the identified regions from the SVR analysis successfully distinguished collective self-worth from relational self-worth, personal self-worth and semantic control. CONCLUSION Our findings revealed CSE neural basis in the whole-brain RSFC network, and established the concordance between leverage centrality and the activation pattern (evoked during collective self-worth task) of the identified regions in terms of representing CSE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangtong Wang
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Mei Zeng
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Jiwen Li
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Yadong Liu
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Dongtao Wei
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Zhiliang Long
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Haopeng Chen
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Xinlei Zang
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Juan Yang
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
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Kalénine S, Decroix J. The pain hidden in your hands: Facial expression of pain reduces the influence of goal-related information in action recognition. Neuropsychologia 2023; 189:108658. [PMID: 37574186 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Revised: 07/09/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
The involvement of the sensorimotor system in the perception of painful actions has been repeatedly demonstrated. Yet the cognitive processes corresponding to sensorimotor activations have not been identified. In particular, the respective role of higher-level and lower-level action representations such as goals and grips in the recognition of painful actions is not clear. Previous research has shown that in a neutral context, higher-level action representations (goals) are prioritized over lower-level action representations (grips) and guide action recognition. The present study evaluates to what extent the general priority given to goal-related information in the processing of visual actions can be modulated by a context of pain. We used the action violation paradigm developed by van Elk et al. (2008). In the present action tasks, participants had to judge whether the grip or the goal of object-directed actions displayed in photographs was correct or not. The actress in the photograph could show either a neutral facial expression or a facial expression of pain. In the control task, they had to judge whether the actress expressed pain. In the action tasks, goals influenced grip judgements more than grips influenced goal judgements overall, corroborating the priority given to goal-related information previously reported. Critically, the impact of irrelevant goal-related information on the identification of incorrect grips disappeared in the pain context. Moreover, judgements in the control task were similarly influenced by grip and goal-related information. Results suggest that a context of pain reduces the reliance on higher-level action for action judgments. Findings provide novel directions regarding the cognitive and brain mechanisms involved in action processing in painful situations and support pluralist views of action understanding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Solène Kalénine
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 9193 - SCALab - Sciences Cognitives et Sciences Affectives, F-59000, Lille, France.
| | - Jérémy Decroix
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 9193 - SCALab - Sciences Cognitives et Sciences Affectives, F-59000, Lille, France
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45
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Denny BT, Jungles ML, Goodson PN, Dicker EE, Chavez J, Jones JS, Lopez RB. Unpacking reappraisal: a systematic review of fMRI studies of distancing and reinterpretation. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2023; 18:nsad050. [PMID: 37757486 PMCID: PMC10561539 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsad050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Revised: 06/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent decades, a substantial volume of work has examined the neural mechanisms of cognitive reappraisal. Distancing and reinterpretation are two frequently used tactics through which reappraisal can be implemented. Theoretical frameworks and prior evidence have suggested that the specific tactic through which one employs reappraisal entails differential neural and psychological mechanisms. Thus, we were motivated to assess the neural mechanisms of this distinction by examining the overlap and differentiation exhibited by the neural correlates of distancing (specifically via objective appraisal) and reinterpretation. We analyzed 32 published functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies in healthy adults using multilevel kernel density analysis. Results showed that distancing relative to reinterpretation uniquely recruited right bilateral dorsolateral PFC (DLPFC) and left posterior parietal cortex, previously associated with mentalizing, selective attention and working memory. Reinterpretation relative to distancing uniquely recruited left bilateral ventrolateral PFC (VLPFC), previously associated with response selection and inhibition. Further, distancing relative to reinterpretation was associated with greater prevalence of bilateral amygdala attenuation during reappraisal. Finally, a behavioral meta-analysis showed efficacy for both reappraisal tactics. These results are consistent with prior theoretical models for the functional neural architecture of reappraisal via distancing and reinterpretation and suggest potential future applications in region-of-interest specification and neural network analysis in studies focusing on specific reappraisal tactics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryan T Denny
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Mallory L Jungles
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Pauline N Goodson
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Eva E Dicker
- Department of Psychology, Seattle University, Seattle, WA 98122, USA
| | - Julia Chavez
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Jenna S Jones
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Richard B Lopez
- Department of Psychological & Cognitive Sciences, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA 01609, USA
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Xie J, Li L, Lu Y, Zhuang J, Wu Y, Li P, Zheng L. Learning from in-group and out-group models induces separative effects on human mate copying. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2023; 18:nsad051. [PMID: 37757743 PMCID: PMC10547020 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsad051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2023] [Revised: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Mate copying is a social learning process in which individuals gather public information about potential mates by observing models' choices. Previous studies have reported that individual attributes of female models affect mate copying, yet little is known about whether and how the group attributes of models influence mate copying. In the current behavioral and functional magnetic resonance imaging studies, female participants were asked to rate their willingness to choose the depicted males as potential romantic partners before and after observing in-group or out-group female models accepting, rejecting or being undecided (baseline) about the males. Results showed that participants changed their ratings to align with the models' acceptance or rejection choices. Compared to rejection copying, the effect of acceptance copying was stronger and regulated by in- and out-group models, manifesting a discounting copying effect when learning from out-group models. At the neural level, for acceptance copying, stronger temporoparietal junction (TPJ) activity and connectivity between TPJ and anterior medial prefrontal cortex (amPFC) were observed when female models belonged to out-group members; meanwhile, the functional connection of TPJ and amPFC positively predicted the rating changes when learning from out-group models. The results indicated that participants might need more resources to infer out-group members' intentions to overcome the in-group bias during acceptance copying.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiajia Xie
- Department of Psychology, Normal College, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China
| | - Lin Li
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China
| | - Yang Lu
- Fudan Institute on Ageing, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
- MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Jinying Zhuang
- School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China
| | - Yuyan Wu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance, School of Physics and Electronic Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China
| | - Peng Li
- School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China
| | - Li Zheng
- Fudan Institute on Ageing, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
- MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
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Tkalcec A, Bierlein M, Seeger-Schneider G, Walitza S, Jenny B, Menks WM, Felhbaum LV, Borbas R, Cole DM, Raschle N, Herbrecht E, Stadler C, Cubillo A. Empathy deficits, callous-unemotional traits and structural underpinnings in autism spectrum disorder and conduct disorder youth. Autism Res 2023; 16:1946-1962. [PMID: 37548142 DOI: 10.1002/aur.2993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/08/2023]
Abstract
Distinct empathy deficits are often described in patients with conduct disorder (CD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) yet their neural underpinnings and the influence of comorbid Callous-Unemotional (CU) traits are unclear. This study compares the cognitive (CE) and affective empathy (AE) abilities of youth with CD and ASD, their potential neuroanatomical correlates, and the influence of CU traits on empathy. Adolescents and parents/caregivers completed empathy questionnaires (N = 148 adolescents, mean age = 15.16 years) and T1 weighted images were obtained from a subsample (N = 130). Group differences in empathy and the influence of CU traits were investigated using Bayesian analyses and Voxel-Based Morphometry with Threshold-Free Cluster Enhancement focusing on regions involved in AE (insula, amygdala, inferior frontal gyrus and cingulate cortex) and CE processes (ventromedial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction, superior temporal gyrus, and precuneus). The ASD group showed lower parent-reported AE and CE scores and lower self-reported CE scores while the CD group showed lower parent-reported CE scores than controls. When accounting for the influence of CU traits no AE deficits in ASD and CE deficits in CD were found, but CE deficits in ASD remained. Across all participants, CU traits were negatively associated with gray matter volumes in anterior cingulate which extends into the mid cingulate, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, and precuneus. Thus, although co-occurring CU traits have been linked to global empathy deficits in reports and underlying brain structures, its influence on empathy aspects might be disorder-specific. Investigating the subdimensions of empathy may therefore help to identify disorder-specific empathy deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonia Tkalcec
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, University Psychiatric Clinic, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Maria Bierlein
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, University Psychiatric Clinic, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Gudrun Seeger-Schneider
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, Psychiatric University Clinic, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Susanne Walitza
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, Psychiatric University Clinic, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Bettina Jenny
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, Psychiatric University Clinic, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Willeke M Menks
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Psychology of Language Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Lynn V Felhbaum
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Reka Borbas
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - David M Cole
- Translational Psychiatry, University Psychiatric Clinic, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Nora Raschle
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Evelyn Herbrecht
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, University Psychiatric Clinic, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Christina Stadler
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, University Psychiatric Clinic, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Ana Cubillo
- Child and Youth Psychiatry, University Psychiatric Clinic, Basel, Switzerland
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48
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Koele IJ, van Hoorn J, de Bruijn ERA, Güroğlu B. Neural processing of observed performance-based errors and rewards in the context of friends and unfamiliar peers across adolescence. Neuropsychologia 2023; 188:108619. [PMID: 37315891 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2022] [Revised: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 06/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Adolescence is characterized by changes in performance monitoring, whereby action outcomes are monitored to subsequently adapt behavior and optimize performance. Observation of performance-based outcomes (i.e., errors and rewards) received by others forms the basis of observational learning. Adolescence is also a period of increasing importance of peers, especially friends, and observing peers forms a crucial aspect of learning in the social context of the classroom. However, to our knowledge, no developmental fMRI studies have examined the neural mechanisms underlying observed performance monitoring of errors and rewards in the context of peers. The current fMRI study investigated the neural correlates of observing performance-based errors and rewards of peers in adolescents aged 9-16 years (N = 80). In the scanner, participants observed either their best friend or an unfamiliar peer play a shooting game resulting in performance-dependent rewards (based on hits) or losses (based on misses, i. e, errors), where outcomes affected both the player and the observing participant. Findings showed higher activation in the bilateral striatum and bilateral anterior insula when adolescents observed peers (i.e., best friend and unfamiliar peer) receive performance-based rewards compared to losses. This might reflect the heightened salience of observed reward processing in the peer context in adolescence. Our results further revealed lower activation in the left temporoparietal junction (TPJ) while adolescents observed the performance-based outcomes (rewards and losses) for their best friend than for an unfamiliar peer. Considering that observation of others' performance-based errors and rewards forms the basis of observational learning, this study provides a crucial first step in understanding and potentially improving adolescent observational learning in the peer context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iris J Koele
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Leiden University, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition (LIBC), Leiden University, the Netherlands
| | - Jorien van Hoorn
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Leiden University, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition (LIBC), Leiden University, the Netherlands
| | - Ellen R A de Bruijn
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition (LIBC), Leiden University, the Netherlands; Department of Clinical Psychology, Leiden University, the Netherlands
| | - Berna Güroğlu
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Leiden University, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition (LIBC), Leiden University, the Netherlands.
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49
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Boux IP, Pulvermüller F. Does the right temporo-parietal junction play a role in processing indirect speech acts? A transcranial magnetic stimulation study. Neuropsychologia 2023; 188:108588. [PMID: 37244393 PMCID: PMC10498423 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2022] [Revised: 05/12/2023] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
In communication, much information is conveyed not explicitly but rather covertly, based on shared assumptions and common knowledge. For instance, when asked "Did you bring your cat to the vet?" a person could reply "It got hurt jumping down the table", thereby implicating that, indeed, the cat was brought to the vet. The assumption that getting hurt jumping down a table motivates a vet visit is tacitly attributed to the speaker by the listener, which implies Theory of Mind (ToM) processes. In the present study, we apply repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation to the right temporo-parietal junction (rTPJ), a key brain region underlying ToM, with the aim to disrupt ToM processes necessary for language understanding. We then assess effects on the comprehension of indirect speech acts and their matched direct controls. In one set of conditions, the direct and indirect stimuli where not matched for speech act type, whereas, in the other, these were matched, therefore providing an unconfounded test case for in/directness. When indirect speech acts and direct controls were matched for speech act type (both statements), the indirect ones took longer to process both following sham and verum TMS. However, when the indirect and direct speech acts were not matched for communicative function (accept/decline offer vs. descriptive statement respectively), then a delay was detected for the indirect ones following sham TMS but, crucially, not following verum TMS. Additionally, TMS affected behavior in a ToM task. We therefore do not find evidence that the rTPJ is causally involved in comprehending of indirectness per se, but conclude that it could be involved instead in the processing of specific social communicative activity of rejecting of accepting offers, or to a combination of differing in/directness and communicative function. Our findings are consistent with the view that ToM processing in rTPJ is more important and/or more pronounced for offer acceptance/rejection than for descriptive answers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabella P Boux
- Brain Language Laboratory, Department of Philosophy and Humanities, WE4, Freie Universität Berlin, Habelschwerdter Allee 45, 14195, Berlin, Germany; Einstein Center for Neurosciences, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany; Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Luisenstraße 56, 10117, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Friedemann Pulvermüller
- Brain Language Laboratory, Department of Philosophy and Humanities, WE4, Freie Universität Berlin, Habelschwerdter Allee 45, 14195, Berlin, Germany; Einstein Center for Neurosciences, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany; Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Luisenstraße 56, 10117, Berlin, Germany; Cluster of Excellence 'Matters of Activity. Image Space Material', Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Unter Den Linden 6, 10099, Berlin, Germany
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50
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Cristiano A, Finisguerra A, Urgesi C, Avenanti A, Tidoni E. Functional role of the theory of mind network in integrating mentalistic prior information with action kinematics during action observation. Cortex 2023; 166:107-120. [PMID: 37354870 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2023.05.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 02/27/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/26/2023]
Abstract
Inferring intentions from verbal and nonverbal human behaviour is critical for everyday social life. Here, we combined Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) with a behavioural priming paradigm to test whether key nodes of the Theory of Mind network (ToMn) contribute to understanding others' intentions by integrating prior knowledge about an agent with the observed action kinematics. We used a modified version of the Faked-Action Discrimination Task (FAD), a forced-choice paradigm in which participants watch videos of actors lifting a cube and judge whether the actors are trying to deceive them concerning the weight of the cube. Videos could be preceded or not by verbal description (prior) about the agent's truthful or deceitful intent. We applied single pulse TMS over three key nodes of the ToMn, namely dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC), right posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) and right temporo-parietal junction (rTPJ). Sham-TMS served as a control (baseline) condition. Following sham or rTPJ stimulation, we observed no consistent influence of priors on FAD performance. In contrast, following dmPFC stimulation, and to a lesser extent pSTS stimulation, truthful and deceitful actions were perceived as more deceptive only when the prior suggested a dishonest intention. These findings highlight a functional role of dmPFC and pSTS in coupling prior knowledge about deceptive intents with observed action kinematics in order to judge faked actions. Our study provides causal evidence that fronto-temporal nodes of the ToMn are functionally relevant to mental state inference during action observation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Azzurra Cristiano
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome and CLN(2)S@Sapienza, Italian Institute of Technology, Rome, Italy; IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy.
| | | | - Cosimo Urgesi
- Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, Neuropsychiatry and Neurorehabilitation Unit, Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy; Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Languages and Literatures, Communication, Education and Society, University of Udine, Udine, Italy
| | - Alessio Avenanti
- Department of Psychology, Centro Studi e Ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Cesena, Italy; Centro de Investigación en Neuropsicología y Neurociencias Cognitivas, Universidad Católica Del Maule, Talca, Chile.
| | - Emmanuele Tidoni
- Human Technology Laboratory, School of Psychology and Social Work, University of Hull, Hull, UK; School of Psychology, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.
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