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Camacho MC, Nielsen AN, Balser D, Furtado E, Steinberger DC, Fruchtman L, Culver JP, Sylvester CM, Barch DM. Large-scale encoding of emotion concepts becomes increasingly similar between individuals from childhood to adolescence. Nat Neurosci 2023; 26:1256-1266. [PMID: 37291338 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01358-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2022] [Accepted: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Humans require a shared conceptualization of others' emotions for adaptive social functioning. A concept is a mental blueprint that gives our brains parameters for predicting what will happen next. Emotion concepts undergo refinement with development, but it is not known whether their neural representations change in parallel. Here, in a sample of 5-15-year-old children (n = 823), we show that the brain represents different emotion concepts distinctly throughout the cortex, cerebellum and caudate. Patterns of activation to each emotion changed little across development. Using a model-free approach, we show that activation patterns were more similar between older children than between younger children. Moreover, scenes that required inferring negative emotional states elicited higher default mode network activation similarity in older children than younger children. These results suggest that representations of emotion concepts are relatively stable by mid to late childhood and synchronize between individuals during adolescence.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Catalina Camacho
- Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
| | - Ashley N Nielsen
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Dori Balser
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Emily Furtado
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - David C Steinberger
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Leah Fruchtman
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Joseph P Culver
- Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Physics, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Chad M Sylvester
- Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Deanna M Barch
- Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
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Abstractness emerges progressively over the second year of life. Sci Rep 2022; 12:20940. [PMID: 36463307 PMCID: PMC9719541 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-25426-5] [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: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
words, terms not referring to here and now, are acquired slowly in infancy. They are difficult to acquire as they are more detached from sensory modalities than concrete words. Recent theories propose that, because of their complexity, other people are pivotal for abstract concepts' acquisition and use. Eight children (4 girls) and their mothers were observed longitudinally and extensively from 12 to 24 months of age. Video recordings of mother-infant free play with toys were done every two weeks in a laboratory setting with families in the USA. Children progressively use a range of words referring to abstract concepts, with a major shift from 12 to 15 months and again from 22 to 24 months, but the qualitative data testify an incremental growth of abstract concepts. We identified a progression in the acquisition of words denoting abstract concepts in relation to the overall productive vocabulary, suggesting that having more abstract terms in one's vocabulary promotes faster language acquisition.
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Foulds K. Co-Viewing Mass Media to Support Children and Parents' Emotional ABCs: An Evaluation of Ahlan Simsim. EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION JOURNAL 2022; 51:1-10. [PMID: 36268053 PMCID: PMC9569174 DOI: 10.1007/s10643-022-01408-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/02/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
That mass media supports children's learning at scale across a variety of educational outcomes is widely acknowledged, effects which are further enhanced when content is co-viewed with a parent or primary caregiver. Ahlan Simsim, a children's educational television show produced in the Middle East, is focused on supporting children's socio-emotional needs. For young children, there is ample evidence in developmental literature that socio-emotional skills are associated with improved school performance, increased pro-social behavior and well-being, and a decline in anxiety and behavioral problems. Using findings from an encouragement design performance evaluation on Season 1 of Ahlan Simsim conducted with families in Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates (N = 473), this study provides evidence that families who regularly co-viewed Ahlan Simsim reported improved emotional vocabulary and increased emotion regulation among both children and parents, expanding the understanding of the benefits of co-viewing to also include parents' improved socio-emotional skills. Findings also show that learning extended beyond viewing individual episodes, as parents reported that watching Ahlan Simsim sparked conversations at home about new emotional vocabulary, expressing feelings, and practicing coping techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kim Foulds
- Sesame Workshop, 1900 Broadway, New York, 10030 USA
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