Observational learning of fear in real time procedure

A threat from within: Learning to fear by observing aversive bodily symptoms in others

Although observational fear learning has been implicated in the development of phobic-related fears, studies investigating observational learning of fear of bodily symptoms remain scarce. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether fear in response to bodily symptoms can be acquired simply by observing a fearful reaction to provocation of aversive bodily symptoms in others. Forty healthy participants underwent an observational fear conditioning paradigm consisting of two phases. In the first phase, participants observed a demonstrator reacting to an aversive bodily symptom provocation (unconditioned stimulus or US, i.e., labored breathing) paired with one conditioned stimulus (CS+) but not with the other one (CS-, both CSs were geometric symbols presented on a screen the demonstrator was watching). In the second phase, participants were directly presented with the same conditioned stimuli, but in the absence of the US. Our results revealed enhanced conditioned fear responses in the beginning of the second phase to the CS + as compared to CS-, as indexed by greater skin conductance and subjective fear responses, as well as greater potentiation of startle eyeblink responses to the CS + as compared to the ITI. Taken together, these findings implicate that fear of bodily symptoms can be learned through observation of others, that is, without first-hand experience of bodily threat.

Understanding Others' Distress Through Past Experiences: The Role of Memory Engram Cells in Observational Fear

For individuals to survive and function in society, it is essential that they recognize, interact with, and learn from other conspecifics. Observational fear (OF) is the well-conserved empathic ability of individuals to understand the other's aversive situation. While it is widely known that factors such as prior similar aversive experience and social familiarity with the demonstrator facilitate OF, the neural circuit mechanisms that explicitly regulate experience-dependent OF (Exp OF) were unclear. In this review, we examine the neural circuit mechanisms that regulate OF, with an emphasis on rodent models, and then discuss emerging evidence for the role of fear memory engram cells in the regulation of Exp OF. First, we examine the neural circuit mechanisms that underlie Naive OF, which is when an observer lacks prior experiences relevant to OF. In particular, the anterior cingulate cortex to basolateral amygdala (BLA) neural circuit is essential for Naive OF. Next, we discuss a recent study that developed a behavioral paradigm in mice to examine the neural circuit mechanisms that underlie Exp OF. This study found that fear memory engram cells in the BLA of observers, which form during a prior similar aversive experience with shock, are reactivated by ventral hippocampal neurons in response to shock delivery to the familiar demonstrator to elicit Exp OF. Finally, we discuss the implications of fear memory engram cells in Exp OF and directions of future research that are of both translational and basic interest.

Environmental statistics and experience shape risk-taking across adolescence

Adolescents are often portrayed as reckless risk-takers because of their immature brains. Recent research has cast doubt on this portrayal, identifying the environment as a moderator of risk-taking. However, the key features of environments that drive risk-taking behaviors are often underspecified. We call for greater attention to the environment by drawing on research showing that its statistical structure impacts future risk-taking as people learn from outcomes they experience after taking a risk. This opinion shows that adolescents are unlikely to experience harm from many risks because environmental statistics are skewed and favor safe experiences. Environmental statistics and experience suggest entry points for policy interventions by carefully timing risk warnings and leveraging peers' potential to shape the statistics of rewarding experiences.

Rats respond to aversive emotional arousal of human handlers with the activation of the basolateral and central amygdala

Reading danger signals may save an animal's life, and learning about threats from others allows avoiding first-hand aversive and often fatal experiences. Fear expressed by other individuals, including those belonging to other species, may indicate the presence of a threat in the environment and is an important social cue. Humans and other animals respond to conspecifics' fear with increased activity of the amygdala, the brain structure crucial for detecting threats and mounting an appropriate response to them. It is unclear, however, whether the cross-species transmission of threat information involves similar mechanisms, e.g., whether animals respond to the aversively induced emotional arousal of humans with activation of fear-processing circuits in the brain. Here, we report that when rats interact with a human caregiver who had recently undergone fear conditioning, they show risk assessment behavior and enhanced amygdala activation. The amygdala response involves its two major parts, the basolateral and central, which detect a threat and orchestrate defensive responses. Further, we show that humans who learn about a threat by observing another aversively aroused human, similar to rats, activate the basolateral and centromedial parts of the amygdala. Our results demonstrate that rats detect the emotional arousal of recently aversively stimulated caregivers and suggest that cross-species social transmission of threat information may involve similar neural circuits in the amygdala as the within-species transmission.

Social network sites as learning environments and their implications for mental health

Social network sites (SNSs) have become ubiquitous around the globe and interwoven with all aspects of life. In this article, I will argue that the communicative infrastructure of SNSs, i.e., all SNS-elements that allow users to communicate, is a key element for understanding their impact as it creates environments in which users, their behaviors, and social interactions are embedded. These digital environments facilitate and encourage fundamental mechanisms of implicit learning from feedback as well as observation in an unprecedented way. I will discuss how these technology-based learning environments impact the mental health of their users, e.g., by linking negative online feedback to depression and following influencers to disturbed eating. The article ends with a conclusion that emphasizes the advantages of understanding SNSs as environments in order to reflect the complexity, relevance, and ubiquitousness of the phenomenon.

Learning about threat from friends and strangers is equally effective: An fMRI study on observational fear conditioning

Humans often benefit from social cues when learning about the world. For instance, learning about threats from others can save the individual from dangerous first-hand experiences. Familiarity is believed to increase the effectiveness of social learning, but it is not clear whether it plays a role in learning about threats. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we undertook a naturalistic approach and investigated whether there was a difference between observational fear learning from friends and strangers. Participants (observers) witnessed either their friends or strangers (demonstrators) receiving aversive (shock) stimuli paired with colored squares (observational learning stage). Subsequently, participants watched the same squares, but without receiving any shocks (direct-expression stage). We observed a similar pattern of brain activity in both groups of observers. Regions related to threat responses (amygdala, anterior insula, anterior cingulate cortex) and social perception (fusiform gyrus, posterior superior temporal sulcus) were activated during the observational phase, possibly reflecting the emotional contagion process. The anterior insula and anterior cingulate cortex were also activated during the subsequent stage, indicating the expression of learned threat. Because there were no differences between participants observing friends and strangers, we argue that social threat learning is independent of the level of familiarity with the demonstrator.

Learning via instructions about observations: exploring similarities and differences with learning via actual observations

Our behaviour toward stimuli can be influenced by observing how another person (a model) interacts with those stimuli. We investigated whether mere instructions about a model's interactions with stimuli (i.e. instructions about observations) are sufficient to alter evaluative and fear responses and whether these changes are similar in magnitude to those resulting from actually observing the interactions. In Experiments 1 (n = 268) and 2 (n = 260), participants either observed or read about a model reacting positively or negatively to stimuli. Evaluations of those stimuli were then assessed via ratings and a personalized implicit association test. In Experiments 3 (n = 60) and 4 (n = 190), we assessed participants' fear toward stimuli after observing or reading about a model displaying distress in the presence of those stimuli. While the results consistently indicated that instructions about observations induced behavioural changes, they were mixed with regard to whether instructions were as powerful in changing behaviour as observations. We discuss whether learning via observations and via instructions may be mediated by similar or different processes, how they might differ in their suitability for conveying certain types of information, and how their relative effectiveness may depend on the information to be transmitted.

Watch and Learn: Vicarious Threat Learning across Human Development

Vicarious threat learning is an important pathway in learning about safety and danger in the environment and is therefore critical for survival. It involves learning by observing another person's (the demonstrator) fearful responses to threat and begins as early as infancy. The review discusses the literature on vicarious threat learning and infers how this learning pathway may evolve over human development. We begin by discussing the methods currently being used to study observational threat learning in the laboratory. Next, we focus on the social factors influencing vicarious threat learning; this is followed by a review of vicarious threat learning among children and adolescents. Finally, we examine the neural mechanisms underpinning vicarious threat learning across human development. To conclude, we encourage future research directions that will help elucidate how vicarious threat learning emerges and how it relates to the development of normative fear and pathological anxiety.