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Lerner Y, Raz G, Bloch M, Krasnoshtein M, Tevet M, Hendler T, Tene O. Empathy-related abnormalities among women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder: clinical and functional magnetic resonance imaging study. BJPsych Open 2024; 10:e138. [PMID: 39101206 DOI: 10.1192/bjo.2024.723] [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] [Indexed: 08/06/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Empathy refers to the cognitive and emotional reactions of an individual to the experiences of another. Women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) report severe social difficulties during the luteal phase of their menstrual cycle. AIMS This clinical and functional magnetic resonance imaging study aimed to explore affective and cognitive empathy in women with PMDD, during the highly symptomatic luteal phase. METHOD Overall, 32 women with PMDD and 20 healthy controls participated in the study. The neuroimaging data were collected using a highly empathy-engaging movie. First, we characterised the synchrony of neural responses within PMDD and healthy groups, using the inter-individual correlation approach. Next, using network cohesion analysis, we compared connectivity within and between brain networks associated with affective and cognitive empathy between groups, and assessed the association of these network patterns with empathic measures. RESULTS A consistent, although complex, picture of empathy abnormalities was found. Patients with PMDD showed decreased neural synchrony in parietal and frontal key nodes of cognitive empathy processing (theory-of-mind network), but higher neural synchrony in the anterior insula and anterior cingulate cortex, a part of the salience network, implicated in affective empathy. Positive correlations between cognitive perspective-taking scores and neural synchrony were found within the theory-of-mind network. Interestingly, during highly emotional moments, the PMDD group showed increased functional connectivity within this network. CONCLUSIONS Similar to major depression, individuals with PMDD show enhanced affective empathy and reduced cognitive empathy. These findings echo clinical observations reported when women with PMDD have a dysregulated emotional response to negative stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yulia Lerner
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel; Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel; and Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Gal Raz
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Israel; and Steve Tisch School of Film and Television, Faculty of the Arts, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Miki Bloch
- Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel; Psychiatric Division, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel; and Brull Ramat Chen Mental Health Center, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Michael Krasnoshtein
- Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel; Psychiatric Division, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel; and Ambulatory Department, Yehuda Abarbanel Mental Health Medical Center, Bat Yam, Israel
| | - Michal Tevet
- Psychiatric Division, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel
| | - Talma Hendler
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel; Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Israel; and School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Oren Tene
- Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel; and Psychiatric Division, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel
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2
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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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3
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Tikka P, Kaipainen M, Salmi J. Narrative simulation of social experiences in naturalistic context - A neurocinematic approach. Neuropsychologia 2023; 188:108654. [PMID: 37507066 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108654] [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: 10/15/2022] [Revised: 07/02/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
Narratives may be regarded as simulations of everyday social situations. They are key to studying the human mind in socio-culturally determined contexts as they allow anchoring to the common ground of embodied and environmentally-engaged cognition. Here we review recent findings from naturalistic neuroscience on neural functions in conditions that mimic lifelike situations. We will focus particularly on neurocinematics, a research field that applies mediated narratives as stimuli for neuroimaging experiments. During the last two decades, this paradigm has contributed to an accumulation of insights about the neural underpinnings of behavior and sense-making in various narratively contextualized situations particularly pertaining to socio-emotional encounters. One of the key questions in neurocinematics is, how do intersubjectively synchronized brain activations relate to subjective experiences? Another question we address is how to bring natural contexts into experimental studies. Seeking to respond to both questions, we suggest neurocinematic studies to examine three manifestations of the same phenomenon side-by-side: subjective experiences of narrative situations, unfolding of narrative stimulus structure, and neural processes that co-constitute the experience. This approach facilitates identifying experientially meaningful activity patterns in the brain and points out what they may mean in relation to shared and communicable contents. Via rich-featured and temporally contextualized narrative stimuli, neurocinematics attempts to contribute to emerging holistic theories of neural dynamics and connectomics explaining typical and atypical interindividual variability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pia Tikka
- Enactive Virtuality Lab, Baltic School of Film, Media and Arts, Tallinn University, Estonia.
| | | | - Juha Salmi
- Translational Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
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4
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Schmälzle R, Huskey R. Integrating media content analysis, reception analysis, and media effects studies. Front Neurosci 2023; 17:1155750. [PMID: 37179563 PMCID: PMC10173883 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1155750] [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: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Every day, the world of media is at our fingertips, whether it is watching movies, listening to the radio, or browsing online media. On average, people spend over 8 h per day consuming messages from the mass media, amounting to a total lifetime dose of more than 20 years in which conceptual content stimulates our brains. Effects from this flood of information range from short-term attention bursts (e.g., by breaking news features or viral 'memes') to life-long memories (e.g., of one's favorite childhood movie), and from micro-level impacts on an individual's memory, attitudes, and behaviors to macro-level effects on nations or generations. The modern study of media's influence on society dates back to the 1940s. This body of mass communication scholarship has largely asked, "what is media's effect on the individual?" Around the time of the cognitive revolution, media psychologists began to ask, "what cognitive processes are involved in media processing?" More recently, neuroimaging researchers started using real-life media as stimuli to examine perception and cognition under more natural conditions. Such research asks: "what can media tell us about brain function?" With some exceptions, these bodies of scholarship often talk past each other. An integration offers new insights into the neurocognitive mechanisms through which media affect single individuals and entire audiences. However, this endeavor faces the same challenges as all interdisciplinary approaches: Researchers with different backgrounds have different levels of expertise, goals, and foci. For instance, neuroimaging researchers label media stimuli as "naturalistic" although they are in many ways rather artificial. Similarly, media experts are typically unfamiliar with the brain. Neither media creators nor neuroscientifically oriented researchers approach media effects from a social scientific perspective, which is the domain of yet another species. In this article, we provide an overview of approaches and traditions to studying media, and we review the emerging literature that aims to connect these streams. We introduce an organizing scheme that connects the causal paths from media content → brain responses → media effects and discuss network control theory as a promising framework to integrate media content, reception, and effects analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ralf Schmälzle
- Department of Communication, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States
- *Correspondence: Ralf Schmälzle,
| | - Richard Huskey
- Department of Communication, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Cognitive Science Program, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
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5
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Grignoli N, Filipponi C, Petrocchi S. Eliciting empathetic drives to prosocial behavior during stressful events. Front Psychol 2022; 13:963544. [PMID: 36337517 PMCID: PMC9632620 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.963544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 09/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
In the current pandemic situation, psychological science is increasingly considered by public health policy. Empathy is mainly recognized as a crucial drive for prosocial behavior. However, this rich body of evidence still lacks visibility and implementation. Effective social programs are needed, and little is known about how to elicit empathetic drives. The paper gives first a clear foundation to the role of empathy during stressful events. It provides then a comprehensive overview of innovative interventions triggering empathic response in the public such as fiction, film, and theater. Moreover, it integrates interactive ways of sharing personal views that could elicit empathetic feelings in different people. Advances deriving from this perspective could be of significant public interest in the current and future health crises and help authorities develop innovative social programs, which should be the focus of further scientific inquiry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicola Grignoli
- Cantonal Socio-Psychiatric Organisation, Public Health Division, Department of Health and Social Care, Repubblica e Cantone Ticino, Mendrisio, Switzerland
- Department of Internal Medicine, Regional Hospital of Bellinzona and Valleys, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Bellinzona and Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
- *Correspondence: Nicola Grignoli, ; Serena Petrocchi,
| | - Chiara Filipponi
- Department of Oncology and Hemato-Oncology, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
- Applied Research Division for Cognitive and Psychological Science, IEO European Institute of Oncology IRCCS, Milan, Italy
| | - Serena Petrocchi
- Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
- Lab of Applied Psychology and Intervention, Università del Salento, Lecce, Italy
- *Correspondence: Nicola Grignoli, ; Serena Petrocchi,
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6
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Shany O, Greental A, Gilam G, Perry D, Bleich-Cohen M, Ovadia M, Cohen A, Raz G. Somatic engagement alters subsequent neurobehavioral correlates of affective mentalizing. Hum Brain Mapp 2021; 42:5846-5861. [PMID: 34651382 PMCID: PMC8596949 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Revised: 07/04/2021] [Accepted: 08/14/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Socio‐emotional encounters involve a resonance of others' affective states, known as affect sharing (AS); and attribution of mental states to others, known as theory‐of‐mind (ToM). Empathy necessitates the integration of both processes, yet their interaction during emotional episodes and subsequent generation of inferences on others' affective states has rarely been tested. To address this, we developed a novel experimental design, wherein we manipulated AS by presenting nonverbal emotionally negative movies twice—each time accompanied by one of two soundtracks that accentuated either somatic cues or externally generated sounds. Movies were followed by questions addressing affective‐ToM (emotional inferences), cognitive‐ToM (inferences on beliefs and knowledge), and non‐ToM aspects. Results revealed a neural differentiation between AS, affective‐ToM, and cognitive‐ToM. AS movies activated regions that have been implicated in emotional (e.g., amygdala) and somatosensory processing, and synchronized brain activity between participants in the latter. Affective‐ToM activated the middle insula, limbic regions, and both ventral and dorsal portions of the medial prefrontal cortex (ventral medial prefrontal cortex [VMPFC] and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex [DMPFC], respectively), whereas cognitive‐ToM activated posteromedial and lateral–prefrontal and temporal cortices. Critically, AS movies specifically altered neural activation in AS and ToM‐related regions during subsequent affective‐ToM inferences, most notably in the DMPFC. Moreover, DMPFC–VMPFC connectivity correlated with affective‐ToM accuracy, when such questions followed AS movies. Our results associate empathic processes with designated neural activations and shed light on how neuro‐behavioral indices of affective ToM are shaped by preceding somatic engagement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ofir Shany
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel.,Sagol Brain Institute, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Ayam Greental
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel.,Sagol Brain Institute, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel.,Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Gadi Gilam
- Division of Pain Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative, and Pain Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Daniella Perry
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Maya Bleich-Cohen
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Moran Ovadia
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel.,Steve Tisch School of Film and Television, Tel Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Avihay Cohen
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Gal Raz
- Sagol Brain Institute, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel.,Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel.,Steve Tisch School of Film and Television, Tel Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
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7
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Cohen D, Landau DH, Friedman D, Hasler BS, Levit-Binnun N, Golland Y. Exposure to social suffering in virtual reality boosts compassion and facial synchrony. COMPUTERS IN HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2021.106781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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8
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Dor-Ziderman Y, Cohen D, Levit-Binnun N, Golland Y. Synchrony with distress in affective empathy and compassion. Psychophysiology 2021; 58:e13889. [PMID: 34287922 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2020] [Revised: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Sensitivity to suffering of others is a core factor in social cohesion and evolutionary success. The emergence of such sensitivity may occur via two neuro-functional mechanisms. One is sharing the pain and distress of others, which relies on affective empathy. The other involves a caring concern for others' wellbeing, termed compassion. Both affective empathy and compassion are triggered by cues of pain and distress, exhibited by suffering targets. Yet, the mechanisms underlying distress processing in empathy and compassion are not clear. In the current research, we investigated synchrony with a target's distress, as a putative mechanism for continuous processing of distress cues. Participants viewed a video of a target in distress when given two different instructions: they were asked to continuously rate their distress in the affective empathy condition, or their feelings of care in the compassion condition. We used these dynamic ratings as well as participants' autonomic and facial responses to assess multi-channel synchrony with the target's self-rated distress fluctuations. Dynamic ratings and facial corrugator responses were significantly positively synchronized with the target's distress. For the corrugator responses, synchrony with the target was more pronounced than synchrony with participants' own ratings. Autonomic responses exhibited negative synchrony with the target's distress. Synchrony was higher in the affective empathy than in the compassion condition, across channels. These results point to the key role of subjective and physiological synchrony with the target's distress in empathic sharing of negative experiences. They also highlight the attenuation of embodied resonance with distress in compassionate experiences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yair Dor-Ziderman
- Sagol Center for Brain and Mind, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, Israel.,Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Daniela Cohen
- Sagol Center for Brain and Mind, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Nava Levit-Binnun
- Sagol Center for Brain and Mind, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Yulia Golland
- Sagol Center for Brain and Mind, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, Israel
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9
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Saarimäki H. Naturalistic Stimuli in Affective Neuroimaging: A Review. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:675068. [PMID: 34220474 PMCID: PMC8245682 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.675068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Naturalistic stimuli such as movies, music, and spoken and written stories elicit strong emotions and allow brain imaging of emotions in close-to-real-life conditions. Emotions are multi-component phenomena: relevant stimuli lead to automatic changes in multiple functional components including perception, physiology, behavior, and conscious experiences. Brain activity during naturalistic stimuli reflects all these changes, suggesting that parsing emotion-related processing during such complex stimulation is not a straightforward task. Here, I review affective neuroimaging studies that have employed naturalistic stimuli to study emotional processing, focusing especially on experienced emotions. I argue that to investigate emotions with naturalistic stimuli, we need to define and extract emotion features from both the stimulus and the observer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heini Saarimäki
- Human Information Processing Laboratory, Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
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10
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Vaisvaser S. The Embodied-Enactive-Interactive Brain: Bridging Neuroscience and Creative Arts Therapies. Front Psychol 2021; 12:634079. [PMID: 33995190 PMCID: PMC8121022 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.634079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The recognition and incorporation of evidence-based neuroscientific concepts into creative arts therapeutic knowledge and practice seem valuable and advantageous for the purpose of integration and professional development. Moreover, exhilarating insights from the field of neuroscience coincide with the nature, conceptualization, goals, and methods of Creative Arts Therapies (CATs), enabling comprehensive understandings of the clinical landscape, from a translational perspective. This paper contextualizes and discusses dynamic brain functions that have been suggested to lie at the heart of intra- and inter-personal processes. Touching upon fundamental aspects of the self and self-other interaction, the state-of-the-art neuroscientific-informed views will shed light on mechanisms of the embodied, predictive and relational brain. The conceptual analysis introduces and interweaves the following contemporary perspectives of brain function: firstly, the grounding of mental activity in the lived, bodily experience will be delineated; secondly, the enactive account of internal models, or generative predictive representations, shaped by experience, will be defined and extensively deliberated; and thirdly, the interpersonal simulation and synchronization mechanisms that support empathy and mentalization will be thoroughly considered. Throughout the paper, the cross-talks between the brain and the body, within the brain through functionally connected neural networks and in the context of agent-environment dynamics, will be addressed. These communicative patterns will be elaborated on to unfold psychophysiological linkage, as well as psychopathological shifts, concluding with the neuroplastic change associated with the formulation of CATs. The manuscript suggests an integrative view of the brain-body-mind in contexts relevant to the therapeutic potential of the expressive creative arts and the main avenues by which neuroscience may ground, enlighten and enrich the clinical psychotherapeutic practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharon Vaisvaser
- School of Society and the Arts, Ono Academic College, Kiryat Ono, Israel
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11
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Kim Y, Choi A. EEG-Based Emotion Classification Using Long Short-Term Memory Network with Attention Mechanism. SENSORS 2020; 20:s20236727. [PMID: 33255539 PMCID: PMC7727805 DOI: 10.3390/s20236727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Revised: 11/16/2020] [Accepted: 11/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Recently, studies that analyze emotions based on physiological signals, such as electroencephalogram (EEG), by applying a deep learning algorithm have been actively conducted. However, the study of sequence modeling considering the change of emotional signals over time has not been fully investigated. To consider long-term interaction of emotion, in this study, we propose a long short-term memory network to consider changes in emotion over time and apply an attention mechanism to assign weights to the emotional states appearing at specific moments based on the peak–end rule in psychology. We used 32-channel EEG data from the DEAP database. Two-level (low and high) and three-level (low, middle, and high) classification experiments were performed on the valence and arousal emotion models. The results show accuracies of 90.1% and 87.9% using the two-level classification for the valence and arousal models with four-fold cross validation, respectively. In the case of the three-level classification, these values were obtained as 83.5% and 82.6%, respectively. Additional experiments were conducted using a network combining a convolutional neural network (CNN) submodule with the proposed model. The obtained results showed accuracies of 90.1% and 88.3% in the case of the two-level classification and 86.9% and 84.1% in the case of the three-level classification for the valence and arousal models with four-fold cross validation, respectively. In 10-fold cross validation, there were 91.8% for valence and 91.6% for arousal accuracy, respectively.
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12
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Huetter FK, Moehlendick B, Knop D, Siffert W. Lack of association of common polymorphisms linked to empathic behavior with self-reported trait empathy in healthy volunteers. Horm Behav 2020; 126:104841. [PMID: 32828797 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2020.104841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2019] [Revised: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 08/14/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In a previously specified sample of 421 healthy subjects, we found associations of a common oxytocin receptor (OXTR) polymorphism with self-reported trait empathy. In this study, we used this sample to explore polymorphisms in other genes which have been frequently linked to empathic behavior for associations with self-reported trait empathy: CD38 (CD38), involved in oxytocin secretion, the serotonin transporter (SLC6A4), the Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) and the corticotropin releasing hormone receptor 1 (CRHR1). METHODS We genotyped our sample for the following common polymorphisms: rs3796863 in the CD38 gene, 5-HTTLPR in the SLC6A4 gene, rs4680 in the COMT gene and rs242924 in the CRHR1 gene. Dispositional empathy was tested using Davis' Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). We used a Bonferroni corrected alpha level of p = 0.002 to adjust for multiple comparisons. RESULTS None of the genotypes were associated with any of the IRI scales for the complete sample (n = 421) or for the sub-groups of male (n = 213) and female (n = 190) participants. Our sample of 421 participants achieved 95% power to detect effects greater than r = ±0.18. For smaller effects, however, false negatives could not be rejected with equal confidence as false positives. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that an association between the four polymorphisms with trait empathy measured by the IRI may not be present. We propose that the associations that have been found in other studies can be largely explained by differences in empathy-related constructs and measurements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franz Korbinian Huetter
- Institut für Pharmakogenetik, Universitätsklinikum Essen, Universität Duisburg Essen, D-45122 Essen, Germany.
| | - Birte Moehlendick
- Institut für Pharmakogenetik, Universitätsklinikum Essen, Universität Duisburg Essen, D-45122 Essen, Germany
| | - Dietmar Knop
- Institut für Transfusionsmedizin, Universitätsklinikum Essen, Universität Duisburg Essen, D-45122 Essen, Germany
| | - Winfried Siffert
- Institut für Pharmakogenetik, Universitätsklinikum Essen, Universität Duisburg Essen, D-45122 Essen, Germany
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13
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Jacob Y, Shany O, Goldin PR, Gross JJ, Hendler T. Reappraisal of Interpersonal Criticism in Social Anxiety Disorder: A Brain Network Hierarchy Perspective. Cereb Cortex 2020; 29:3154-3167. [PMID: 30124815 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhy181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2018] [Revised: 06/15/2018] [Accepted: 07/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Emotion regulation is thought to involve communication between and within large-scale brain networks that underlie emotion reactivity and cognitive control. Aberrant network interaction might therefore be a key neural feature of mental disorders that involve emotion dysregulation. Here we tested whether connectivity hierarchies within and between emotion reactivity and cognitive reappraisal networks distinguishes social anxiety disorder (SAD) patients (n = 70) from healthy controls (HC) (n = 25). To investigate network organization, we implemented a graph-theory method called Dependency Network Analysis. Participants underwent fMRI while watching or reappraising video clips involving interpersonal verbal criticism. During reappraisal, the reappraisal network exerted less influence on the reactivity network in SAD participants. Specifically, the influence of the right inferior frontal gyrus on both reappraisal and reactivity networks was significantly reduced in SAD compared with HC, and correlated negatively with negative emotion ratings among SAD participants. Surprisingly, the amygdala exhibited reduced influence on the reappraisal network in SAD relative to HC. Yet, during the watch condition, the left amygdala's influence on the reactivity network increased with greater social anxiety symptoms among SAD participants. These findings refine our understanding of network organization that contributes to efficient reappraisal or to disturbances in applying this strategy in SAD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Y Jacob
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Tel Aviv Center for Brain Functions, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Translational and Molecular Imaging Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - O Shany
- Tel Aviv Center for Brain Functions, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,The School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - P R Goldin
- University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, USA
| | - J J Gross
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - T Hendler
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Tel Aviv Center for Brain Functions, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,The School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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14
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Revuelta P, Ortiz T, Lucía MJ, Ruiz B, Sánchez-Pena JM. Limitations of Standard Accessible Captioning of Sounds and Music for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People: An EEG Study. Front Integr Neurosci 2020; 14:1. [PMID: 32132904 PMCID: PMC7040021 DOI: 10.3389/fnint.2020.00001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2019] [Accepted: 01/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Captioning is the process of transcribing speech and acoustical information into text to help deaf and hard of hearing people accessing to the auditory track of audiovisual media. In addition to the verbal transcription, it includes information such as sound effects, speaker identification, or music tagging. However, it just takes into account a limited spectrum of the whole acoustic information available in the soundtrack, and hence, an important amount of emotional information is lost when attending just to the normative compliant captions. In this article, it is shown, by means of behavioral and EEG measurements, how emotional information related to sounds and music used by the creator in the audiovisual work is perceived differently by normal hearing group and hearing disabled group when applying standard captioning. Audio and captions activate similar processing areas, respectively, in each group, although not with the same intensity. Moreover, captions require higher activation of voluntary attentional circuits, as well as language-related areas. Captions transcribing musical information increase attentional activity, instead of emotional processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Revuelta
- Department of Computer Science, Oviedo University, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Tomás Ortiz
- Department of Psychiatric, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - María J Lucía
- Spanish Center for Captioning and Audiodescription, Carlos III University of Madrid, Leganés, Spain.,Department of Computer Science, Carlos III University of Madrid, Leganés, Spain
| | - Belén Ruiz
- Spanish Center for Captioning and Audiodescription, Carlos III University of Madrid, Leganés, Spain
| | - José Manuel Sánchez-Pena
- Spanish Center for Captioning and Audiodescription, Carlos III University of Madrid, Leganés, Spain
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15
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Christov-Moore L, Reggente N, Douglas PK, Feusner JD, Iacoboni M. Predicting Empathy From Resting State Brain Connectivity: A Multivariate Approach. Front Integr Neurosci 2020; 14:3. [PMID: 32116582 PMCID: PMC7033456 DOI: 10.3389/fnint.2020.00003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2019] [Accepted: 01/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent task fMRI studies suggest that individual differences in trait empathy and empathic concern are mediated by patterns of connectivity between self-other resonance and top-down control networks that are stable across task demands. An untested implication of this hypothesis is that these stable patterns of connectivity should be visible even in the absence of empathy tasks. Using machine learning, we demonstrate that patterns of resting state fMRI connectivity (i.e. the degree of synchronous BOLD activity across multiple cortical areas in the absence of explicit task demands) of resonance and control networks predict trait empathic concern (n = 58). Empathic concern was also predicted by connectivity patterns within the somatomotor network. These findings further support the role of resonance-control network interactions and of somatomotor function in our vicariously driven concern for others. Furthermore, a practical implication of these results is that it is possible to assess empathic predispositions in individuals without needing to perform conventional empathy assessments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo Christov-Moore
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Institute for Simulation and Training, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, United States
- Brain and Creativity Institute, School of International Relations, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Nicco Reggente
- The Tiny Blue Dot Foundation, Santa Monica, CA, United States
| | - Pamela K. Douglas
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Institute for Simulation and Training, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, United States
| | - Jamie D. Feusner
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Marco Iacoboni
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
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16
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Thirioux B, Harika-Germaneau G, Langbour N, Jaafari N. The Relation Between Empathy and Insight in Psychiatric Disorders: Phenomenological, Etiological, and Neuro-Functional Mechanisms. Front Psychiatry 2020; 10:966. [PMID: 32116810 PMCID: PMC7020772 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2019] [Accepted: 12/06/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Lack of insight, i.e., unawareness of one's mental illness, is frequently encountered in psychiatric conditions. Insight is the capacity to recognize (psychical insight) and accept one's mental illness (emotional insight). Insight growth necessitates developing an objective perspective on one's subjective pathological experiences. Therefore, insight has been posited to require undamaged self-reflexion and cognitive perspective-taking capacities. These enable patients to look objectively at themselves from the imagined perspective of someone else. Preserved theory-of-mind performances have been reported to positively impact insight in psychosis. However, some patients with schizophrenia or obsessive-compulsive disorders, although recognizing their mental disease, are still not convinced of this and do not accept it. Hence, perspective-taking explains psychical insight (recognition) but not emotional insight (acceptance). Here, we propose a new conceptual model. We hypothesize that insight growth relies upon the association of intact self-reflexion and empathic capacities. Empathy (feeling into someone else) integrates heterocentered visuo-spatial perspective (feeling into), embodiment, affective (feeling into) and cognitive processes, leading to internally experience the other's thought. We posit that this subjective experience enables to better understand the other's thought about oneself and to affectively adhere to this. We propose that the process of objectification, resulting from empathic heterocentered, embodiment, and cognitive processes, generates an objective viewpoint on oneself. It enables to recognize one's mental illness and positively impacts psychical insight. The process of subjectification, resulting from empathic affective processes, enables to accept one's illness and positively impacts emotional insight. That is, affectively experiencing the thought of another person about oneself reinforces the adhesion of the emotional system to the objective recognition of the disease. Applying our model to different psychiatric disorders, we predict that the negative effect of impaired self-reflexion and empathic capacities on insight is a transnosographic state and that endophenotypical differences modulate this common state, determining a psychiatric disease as specific.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bérangère Thirioux
- Unité de Recherche Clinique Intersectorielle en Psychiatrie à vocation régionale Pierre Deniker, Centre Hospitalier Henri Laborit, Poitiers, France
| | - Ghina Harika-Germaneau
- Unité de Recherche Clinique Intersectorielle en Psychiatrie à vocation régionale Pierre Deniker, Centre Hospitalier Henri Laborit, Poitiers, France
| | - Nicolas Langbour
- Unité de Recherche Clinique Intersectorielle en Psychiatrie à vocation régionale Pierre Deniker, Centre Hospitalier Henri Laborit, Poitiers, France
| | - Nematollah Jaafari
- Unité de Recherche Clinique Intersectorielle en Psychiatrie à vocation régionale Pierre Deniker, Centre Hospitalier Henri Laborit, Poitiers, France
- Université de Poitiers, CHU de Poitiers, INSERM U 1084, Experimental and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory, Groupement de Recherche CNRS 3557, Poitiers, France
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17
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Abstract
In recent decades, human sociocultural changes have increased the numbers of fathers that are involved in direct caregiving in Western societies. This trend has led to a resurgence of interest in understanding the mechanisms and effects of paternal care. Across the animal kingdom, paternal caregiving has been found to be a highly malleable phenomenon, presenting with great variability among and within species. The emergence of paternal behaviour in a male animal has been shown to be accompanied by substantial neural plasticity and to be shaped by previous and current caregiving experiences, maternal and infant stimuli and ecological conditions. Recent research has allowed us to gain a better understanding of the neural basis of mammalian paternal care, the genomic and circuit-level mechanisms underlying paternal behaviour and the ways in which the subcortical structures that support maternal caregiving have evolved into a global network of parental care. In addition, the behavioural, neural and molecular consequences of paternal caregiving for offspring are becoming increasingly apparent. Future cross-species research on the effects of absence of the father and the transmission of paternal influences across generations may allow research on the neuroscience of fatherhood to impact society at large in a number of important ways.
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18
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Abstract
Humans use emotions to decipher complex cascades of internal events. However, which mechanisms link descriptions of affective states to brain activity is unclear, with evidence supporting either local or distributed processing. A biologically favorable alternative is provided by the notion of gradient, which postulates the isomorphism between functional representations of stimulus features and cortical distance. Here, we use fMRI activity evoked by an emotionally charged movie and continuous ratings of the perceived emotion intensity to reveal the topographic organization of affective states. Results show that three orthogonal and spatially overlapping gradients encode the polarity, complexity and intensity of emotional experiences in right temporo-parietal territories. The spatial arrangement of these gradients allows the brain to map a variety of affective states within a single patch of cortex. As this organization resembles how sensory regions represent psychophysical properties (e.g., retinotopy), we propose emotionotopy as a principle of emotion coding. People can experience a wide variety of emotions, and how the brain represents these varying affective states is a matter of debate. Here the authors show that coding mechanisms of emotions in right temporo-parietal cortex resemble those of low-level stimulus features in primary sensory regions.
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19
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Fourie MM, Stein DJ, Solms M, Gobodo-Madikizela P, Decety J. Effects of early adversity and social discrimination on empathy for complex mental states: An fMRI investigation. Sci Rep 2019; 9:12959. [PMID: 31506497 PMCID: PMC6737126 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-49298-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2019] [Accepted: 08/22/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
There is extensive evidence of an association between early adversity and enduring neural changes that impact socioemotional processing throughout life. Yet little is known about the effects of on-going social discrimination on socioemotional functioning. Here we examined how cumulative experiences of social discrimination impact brain response during empathic responding—a crucial issue in South Africa, given its historical apartheid context and continuing legacies. White and Black South Africans completed measures of social adversity (early adversity and social discrimination), and underwent fMRI while viewing video clips depicting victims and perpetrators of apartheid crimes. Increased neural response was detected in brain regions associated with cognitive rather than affective empathy, and greater social adversity was associated with reduced reported compassion across participants. Notably, social discrimination (due to income level, weight, gender) in White participants was associated with increased amygdala reactivity, whereas social discrimination (due to race) in Black participants mediated the negative associations of temporoparietal junction and inferior frontal gyrus activation with compassion during emotionally provocative conditions. These findings suggest that (i) social discrimination has comparable associations at the neural level as other psychosocial stressors, and that (ii) the mechanisms underlying empathic responding vary as a function of the type of social discrimination experienced.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melike M Fourie
- Studies in Historical Trauma and Transformation, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa.
| | - Dan J Stein
- Department of Psychiatry and MRC Unit on Risk & Resilience in Mental Disorders, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Mark Solms
- Department of Psychology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela
- Studies in Historical Trauma and Transformation, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa
| | - Jean Decety
- Department of Psychology and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
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20
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Nir T, Or-Borichev A, Izraitel E, Hendler T, Lerner Y, Matot I. Transient subcortical functional connectivity upon emergence from propofol sedation in human male volunteers: evidence for active emergence. Br J Anaesth 2019; 123:298-308. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bja.2019.05.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2018] [Revised: 05/13/2019] [Accepted: 05/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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21
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Stietz J, Jauk E, Krach S, Kanske P. Dissociating Empathy From Perspective-Taking: Evidence From Intra- and Inter-Individual Differences Research. Front Psychiatry 2019; 10:126. [PMID: 30930803 PMCID: PMC6428036 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2018] [Accepted: 02/20/2019] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Humans have the capacity to share others' emotions, be they positive or negative. Elicited by the observed or imagined emotion of another person, an observer develops a similar emotional state herself. This capacity, empathy, is one of the pillars of social understanding and interaction as it creates a representation of another's inner, mental state. Empathy needs to be dissociated from other social emotions and, crucially, also from cognitive mechanisms of understanding others, the ability to take others' perspective. Here, we describe the conceptual distinctions of these constructs and review behavioral and neural evidence that dissociates them. The main focus of the present review lies on the intraindividual changes in empathy and perspective-taking across the lifespan and on interindividual differences on subclinical and clinical levels. The data show that empathy and perspective-taking recruit distinct neural circuits and can be discerned already during early and throughout adult development. Both capacities also vary substantially between situations and people. Differences can be systematically related to situational characteristics as well as personality traits and mental disorders. The clear distinction of affect sharing from other social emotions like compassion and from cognitive perspective-taking, argues for a clear-cut terminology to describe these constructs. In our view, this speaks against using empathy as an umbrella term encompassing all affective and cognitive routes to understanding others. Unifying the way we speak about these phenomena will help to further research on their underlying mechanisms, psychopathological alterations, and plasticity in training and therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Stietz
- Faculty of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Behavioral Neuroscience, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Emanuel Jauk
- Faculty of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Behavioral Neuroscience, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Sören Krach
- Social Neuroscience Lab, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Philipp Kanske
- Faculty of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Behavioral Neuroscience, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
- Research Group Social Stress and Family Health, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
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22
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Dong D, Jiang Y, Gao Y, Ming Q, Wang X, Yao S. Atypical Frontotemporal Connectivity of Cognitive Empathy in Male Adolescents With Conduct Disorder. Front Psychol 2019; 9:2778. [PMID: 30687205 PMCID: PMC6338247 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2018] [Accepted: 12/27/2018] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: It has been suggested that adolescents with conduct disorder (CD) may have a deficit in the affective and cognitive domains empathy, but studies exploring networks within the key brain regions of affective and cognitive empathy in adolescents with CD are lacking. Methods: Functional connectivity (FC) analyses among key brain regions of the affective and cognitive empathy with resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) were conducted in 30 adolescent boys with CD and 33 demographically matched healthy controls (HCs). Results: Atypical FC within the key brain regions of affective empathy was not observed in CD adolescents. However, we found that CD adolescents showed decreased frontotemporal connectivity within the key brain regions of cognitive empathy in relation to HCs, that is, the FCs between right temporoparietal junction and ventromedial prefrontal cortex as well as dorsomedial prefrontal cortex. Conclusion: These findings may provide insight into neural mechanism underlying a cognitive empathy deficiency of CD adolescents from the perspective of FC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daifeng Dong
- Medical Psychological Center, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China.,Medical Psychological Institute of Central South University, Changsha, China.,China National Clinical Research Center on Mental Disorders (Xiangya), Changsha, China
| | - Yali Jiang
- Medical Psychological Center, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China.,Medical Psychological Institute of Central South University, Changsha, China.,China National Clinical Research Center on Mental Disorders (Xiangya), Changsha, China
| | - Yidian Gao
- Medical Psychological Center, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China.,Medical Psychological Institute of Central South University, Changsha, China.,China National Clinical Research Center on Mental Disorders (Xiangya), Changsha, China
| | - Qingsen Ming
- Department of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Xiang Wang
- Medical Psychological Center, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China.,Medical Psychological Institute of Central South University, Changsha, China.,China National Clinical Research Center on Mental Disorders (Xiangya), Changsha, China
| | - Shuqiao Yao
- Medical Psychological Center, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China.,Medical Psychological Institute of Central South University, Changsha, China.,China National Clinical Research Center on Mental Disorders (Xiangya), Changsha, China
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23
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Sex-specific association of a common GNAS polymorphism with self-reported cognitive empathy in healthy volunteers. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0206114. [PMID: 30365517 PMCID: PMC6203261 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0206114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2017] [Accepted: 10/08/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Background In a recent study, we found associations of a common oxytocin receptor (OXTR) polymorphism with inter-individual differences in empathy, especially with emotional empathy in women. Many other studies found specific associations of oxytocin, arginine-vasopressin, serotonin and dopamine receptor gene polymorphisms with various aspects of trait empathy. As all these receptors belong to the guanine-binding protein (G protein) coupled receptor family, it is a reasonable assumption, that alterations in genes encoding G protein subunits also influence the signal transduction in empathy related circuits. However, to the best of our knowledge, these genomic variations have not yet been studied in genetic research on empathy. Methods Here, we analysed associations of a common polymorphism of the GNAS gene (C393T) in a previously characterized sample of 421 healthy blood donors (231 M, 190 F; age 18–74). The GNAS gene encodes the G protein adenylyl cyclase stimulator (Gαs) G protein subunit, which activates cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)-dependent pathways by stimulating the adenylyl cyclase. Cognitive and emotional aspects of dispositional empathy were tested using Davis’ Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Results In the complete sample, associations of C393T genotype with IRI empathy scores, including cognitive empathy (p = 0.055) and perspective taking (p = 0.057) scores did not reach a level of significance. None of the IRI scores was near to being significantly associated with C393T genotype for men alone. In females, however, genotype was significantly associated with cognitive empathy (r = -.204, p = 0.005) and perspective taking (r = -.209, p = 0.004), accounting for 4.2% and 4.4% of variability. The association of genotype with perspective taking remained significant after adjustment for multiple comparisons (p = 0.045). The 393C-allele, which had been identified as a risk factor in several medical conditions such as hypertension, obesity and diabetes, was associated with higher cognitive empathy compared to the T allele in our sample. Conclusions The results suggest a significant association of GNAS C393T genotypes with the cognitive empathic capacity of perspective taking. This association could only be found in female participants.
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24
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Hasson U, Egidi G, Marelli M, Willems RM. Grounding the neurobiology of language in first principles: The necessity of non-language-centric explanations for language comprehension. Cognition 2018; 180:135-157. [PMID: 30053570 PMCID: PMC6145924 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2018.06.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2017] [Revised: 06/05/2018] [Accepted: 06/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Recent decades have ushered in tremendous progress in understanding the neural basis of language. Most of our current knowledge on language and the brain, however, is derived from lab-based experiments that are far removed from everyday language use, and that are inspired by questions originating in linguistic and psycholinguistic contexts. In this paper we argue that in order to make progress, the field needs to shift its focus to understanding the neurobiology of naturalistic language comprehension. We present here a new conceptual framework for understanding the neurobiological organization of language comprehension. This framework is non-language-centered in the computational/neurobiological constructs it identifies, and focuses strongly on context. Our core arguments address three general issues: (i) the difficulty in extending language-centric explanations to discourse; (ii) the necessity of taking context as a serious topic of study, modeling it formally and acknowledging the limitations on external validity when studying language comprehension outside context; and (iii) the tenuous status of the language network as an explanatory construct. We argue that adopting this framework means that neurobiological studies of language will be less focused on identifying correlations between brain activity patterns and mechanisms postulated by psycholinguistic theories. Instead, they will be less self-referential and increasingly more inclined towards integration of language with other cognitive systems, ultimately doing more justice to the neurobiological organization of language and how it supports language as it is used in everyday life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Uri Hasson
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, The University of Trento, Trento, Italy; Center for Practical Wisdom, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States.
| | - Giovanna Egidi
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, The University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - Marco Marelli
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy; NeuroMI - Milan Center for Neuroscience, Milano, Italy
| | - Roel M Willems
- Centre for Language Studies & Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
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25
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Abstract
Film theorists and practitioners suggest that motion can be manipulated in movie scenes to elicit emotional responses in viewers. However, our understanding of the role of motion in emotion perception remains limited. On the one hand, movies continuously depict local motion- movements of objects and humans, which are crucial for generating emotional responses. Movie scenes also frequently portray global motion, mainly induced by large camera movements, global motion being yet another source of information used by the brain during natural vision. Here we used functional MRI to elucidate the contributions of local and global motion to emotion perception during movie viewing. Subjects observed long (1 min) movie segments depicting emotional or neutral content. Brain activity in areas that showed preferential responses to emotional content was strongly linked over time with frame-wide variations in global motion, and to a lesser extent with local motion information. Similarly, stronger responses to emotional content were recorded within regions of interest whose activity was attuned to global and local motion over time. Since global motion fields are experienced during self-motion, we suggest that camera movements may induce illusory self-motion cues in viewers that interact with the movie’s narrative and with other emotional cues in generating affective responses.
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26
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Paracampo R, Pirruccio M, Costa M, Borgomaneri S, Avenanti A. Visual, sensorimotor and cognitive routes to understanding others' enjoyment: An individual differences rTMS approach to empathic accuracy. Neuropsychologia 2018; 116:86-98. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.01.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2017] [Revised: 01/15/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2018] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
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27
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Abraham E, Raz G, Zagoory-Sharon O, Feldman R. Empathy networks in the parental brain and their long-term effects on children's stress reactivity and behavior adaptation. Neuropsychologia 2018; 116:75-85. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2017] [Revised: 04/05/2017] [Accepted: 04/08/2017] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
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28
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Paracampo R, Tidoni E, Borgomaneri S, di Pellegrino G, Avenanti A. Sensorimotor Network Crucial for Inferring Amusement from Smiles. Cereb Cortex 2018; 27:5116-5129. [PMID: 27660050 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhw294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2016] [Accepted: 08/26/2016] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding whether another's smile reflects authentic amusement is a key challenge in social life, yet, the neural bases of this ability have been largely unexplored. Here, we combined transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) with a novel empathic accuracy (EA) task to test whether sensorimotor and mentalizing networks are critical for understanding another's amusement. Participants were presented with dynamic displays of smiles and explicitly requested to infer whether the smiling individual was feeling authentic amusement or not. TMS over sensorimotor regions representing the face (i.e., in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and ventral primary somatosensory cortex (SI)), disrupted the ability to infer amusement authenticity from observed smiles. The same stimulation did not affect performance on a nonsocial task requiring participants to track the smiling expression but not to infer amusement. Neither TMS over prefrontal and temporo-parietal areas supporting mentalizing, nor peripheral control stimulations, affected performance on either task. Thus, motor and somatosensory circuits for controlling and sensing facial movements are causally essential for inferring amusement from another's smile. These findings highlight the functional relevance of IFG and SI to amusement understanding and suggest that EA abilities may be grounded in sensorimotor networks for moving and feeling the body.
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Affiliation(s)
- Riccardo Paracampo
- Department of Psychology, Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna, 47521 Cesena, Italy
| | - Emmanuele Tidoni
- Fondazione Santa Lucia, IRCCS, 00179 Rome, Italy.,Department of Psychology, "Sapienza" University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Sara Borgomaneri
- Department of Psychology, Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna, 47521 Cesena, Italy.,Fondazione Santa Lucia, IRCCS, 00179 Rome, Italy
| | - Giuseppe di Pellegrino
- Department of Psychology, Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna, 47521 Cesena, Italy
| | - Alessio Avenanti
- Department of Psychology, Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna, 47521 Cesena, Italy.,Fondazione Santa Lucia, IRCCS, 00179 Rome, Italy
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29
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Social affective context reveals altered network dynamics in schizophrenia patients. Transl Psychiatry 2018; 8:29. [PMID: 29382814 PMCID: PMC5802465 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-017-0055-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2016] [Accepted: 09/27/2017] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Impairments in social cognition and interactions are core psychopathologies in schizophrenia, often manifesting as an inability to appropriately relate to the intentions and feelings of others. Neuroimaging has helped to demarcate the dynamics of two distinct functional connectivity circuits underlying the social-affective processes related to mentalization (known as Theory of Mind, ToM) and somatic-affiliation (known as Embodied Simulation, ES). While evidence points to abnormal activation patterns within these networks among those suffering from schizophrenia, it is yet unclear however, if these patients exhibit this abnormal functional connectivity in the context of social-affective experiences. The current fMRI study, investigated functional connectivity dynamics within ToM and ES networks as subjects experienced evolving cinematic portrayals of fear. During scanning, schizophrenia patients and healthy controls passively watched a cinematic scene in which a mother and her son face various threatening events. Participants then provided a continuous and retrospective report of their fear intensity during a second viewing outside the scanner. Using network cohesion index (NCI) analysis, we examined modulations of ES-related and ToM-related functional connectivity dynamics and their relation to symptom severity and the continuous emotional ratings of the induced cinematic fear. Compared to patients, healthy controls showed higher ES-NCI and marginally lower ToM-NCI during emotional peaks. Cross-correlation analysis revealed an intriguing dynamic between NCI and the inter-group difference of reported fear. Schizophrenia patients rated their fear as lower relative to healthy controls, shortly after exhibiting lower ES connectivity. This increased difference in rating was also followed by higher ToM connectivity among schizophrenia patients. The clinical relevance of these findings is further highlighted by the following two results: (a) ToM-NCI was found to have a strong correlation with the severity of general symptoms during one of the two main emotional peaks (Spearman R = 0.77); and (b) k-mean clustering demonstrated that the networks' NCI dynamic during the social-affective context reliably differentiated between patients and controls. Together, these findings point to a possible neural marker for abnormal social-affective processing in schizophrenia, manifested as the disturbed balance between two functional networks involved in social-affective affiliation. This in turn suggests that exaggerated mentalization over somatic-affiliative processing, in response to another's' distress may underlie social-affective deficits in schizophrenia.
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30
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Pehrs C, Zaki J, Schlochtermeier LH, Jacobs AM, Kuchinke L, Koelsch S. The Temporal Pole Top-Down Modulates the Ventral Visual Stream During Social Cognition. Cereb Cortex 2018; 27:777-792. [PMID: 26604273 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhv226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
The temporal pole (TP) has been associated with diverse functions of social cognition and emotion processing. Although the underlying mechanism remains elusive, one possibility is that TP acts as domain-general hub integrating socioemotional information. To test this, 26 participants were presented with 60 empathy-evoking film clips during fMRI scanning. The film clips were preceded by a linguistic sad or neutral context and half of the clips were accompanied by sad music. In line with its hypothesized role, TP was involved in the processing of sad context and furthermore tracked participants' empathic concern. To examine the neuromodulatory impact of TP, we applied nonlinear dynamic causal modeling to a multisensory integration network from previous work consisting of superior temporal gyrus (STG), fusiform gyrus (FG), and amygdala, which was extended by an additional node in the TP. Bayesian model comparison revealed a gating of STG and TP on fusiform-amygdalar coupling and an increase of TP to FG connectivity during the integration of contextual information. Moreover, these backward projections were strengthened by emotional music. The findings indicate that during social cognition, TP integrates information from different modalities and top-down modulates lower-level perceptual areas in the ventral visual stream as a function of integration demands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corinna Pehrs
- Cluster of Excellence "Languages of Emotion", 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Dahlem Institute for Neuroimaging of Emotion, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Jamil Zaki
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Lorna H Schlochtermeier
- Cluster of Excellence "Languages of Emotion", 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Dahlem Institute for Neuroimaging of Emotion, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Arthur M Jacobs
- Cluster of Excellence "Languages of Emotion", 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Dahlem Institute for Neuroimaging of Emotion, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Lars Kuchinke
- Cluster of Excellence "Languages of Emotion", 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Dahlem Institute for Neuroimaging of Emotion, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Department of Psychology, Experimental Psychology and Methods, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Stefan Koelsch
- Department of Biological and Medical Psychology, University of Bergen, 5009 Bergen, Norway
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31
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Abstract
Thirty years ago, the neuropsychology of emotion started to emerge as a mainstream topic. Careful examination of individual patients showed that emotion, like memory, language, and so on, could be differentially affected by brain disorders, especially in the right hemisphere. Since then, there has been accelerating interest in uncovering the neural architecture of emotion, and the major steps in this process of discovery over the past 3 decades are detailed in this review. In the 1990s, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans provided precise delineation of lesions in the amygdala, medial prefrontal cortex, insula and somatosensory cortex as underpinning emotion disorders. At the same time, functional MRI revealed activation that was bilateral and also lateralized according to task demands. In the 2000s, converging evidence suggested at least two routes to emotional responses: subcortical, automatic and autonomic responses and slower, cortical responses mediating cognitive processing. The discovery of mirror neurons in the 1990s reinvigorated older views that simulation was the means to recognize emotions and empathize with others. More recently, psychophysiological research, revisiting older Russian paradigms, has contributed new insights into how autonomic and other physiological indices contribute to decision making (the somatic marker theory), emotional simulation, and social cognition. Finally, this review considers the extent to which these seismic changes in understanding emotional processes in clinical disorders have been reflected in neuropsychological practice. (JINS, 2017, 23, 719-731).
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32
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Résibois M, Verduyn P, Delaveau P, Rotgé JY, Kuppens P, Van Mechelen I, Fossati P. The neural basis of emotions varies over time: different regions go with onset- and offset-bound processes underlying emotion intensity. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2017; 12:1261-1271. [PMID: 28402478 PMCID: PMC5597870 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsx051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2016] [Revised: 02/02/2017] [Accepted: 04/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
According to theories of emotion dynamics, emotions unfold across two phases in which different types of processes come to the fore: emotion onset and emotion offset. Differences in onset-bound processes are reflected by the degree of explosiveness or steepness of the response at onset, and differences in offset-bound processes by the degree of accumulation or intensification of the subsequent response. Whether onset- and offset-bound processes have distinctive neural correlates and, hence, whether the neural basis of emotions varies over time, still remains unknown. In the present fMRI study, we address this question using a recently developed paradigm that allows to disentangle explosiveness and accumulation. Thirty-one participants were exposed to neutral and negative social feedback, and asked to reflect on its contents. Emotional intensity while reading and thinking about the feedback was measured with an intensity profile tracking approach. Using non-negative matrix factorization, the resulting profile data were decomposed in explosiveness and accumulation components, which were subsequently entered as continuous regressors of the BOLD response. It was found that the neural basis of emotion intensity shifts as emotions unfold over time with emotion explosiveness and accumulation having distinctive neural correlates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxime Résibois
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Philippe Verduyn
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Pauline Delaveau
- Inserm U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle, ICM-A-IHU, Social and Affective Neuroscience (SAN) Laboratory & Prisme Platform, Paris, France
| | - Jean-Yves Rotgé
- Inserm U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle, ICM-A-IHU, Social and Affective Neuroscience (SAN) Laboratory & Prisme Platform, Paris, France
- AP-HP, Department of Psychiatry, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris, France
| | - Peter Kuppens
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Iven Van Mechelen
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Philippe Fossati
- Inserm U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle, ICM-A-IHU, Social and Affective Neuroscience (SAN) Laboratory & Prisme Platform, Paris, France
- AP-HP, Department of Psychiatry, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris, France
- Centre de NeuroImagerie de Recherche – CENIR, Institut du Cerveau et la Moelle (ICM), Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Inserm, CNRS – Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Boulevard de l’hôpital, Paris, France
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33
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Kim J, Kang MS, Cho YS, Lee SH. Prolonged Interruption of Cognitive Control of Conflict Processing Over Human Faces by Task-Irrelevant Emotion Expression. Front Psychol 2017; 8:1024. [PMID: 28676780 PMCID: PMC5476788 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2017] [Accepted: 06/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
As documented by Darwin 150 years ago, emotion expressed in human faces readily draws our attention and promotes sympathetic emotional reactions. How do such reactions to the expression of emotion affect our goal-directed actions? Despite the substantial advance made in the neural mechanisms of both cognitive control and emotional processing, it is not yet known well how these two systems interact. Here, we studied how emotion expressed in human faces influences cognitive control of conflict processing, spatial selective attention and inhibitory control in particular, using the Eriksen flanker paradigm. In this task, participants viewed displays of a central target face flanked by peripheral faces and were asked to judge the gender of the target face; task-irrelevant emotion expressions were embedded in the target face, the flanking faces, or both. We also monitored how emotion expression affects gender judgment performance while varying the relative timing between the target and flanker faces. As previously reported, we found robust gender congruency effects, namely slower responses to the target faces whose gender was incongruent with that of the flanker faces, when the flankers preceded the target by 0.1 s. When the flankers further advanced the target by 0.3 s, however, the congruency effect vanished in most of the viewing conditions, except for when emotion was expressed only in the flanking faces or when congruent emotion was expressed in the target and flanking faces. These results suggest that emotional saliency can prolong a substantial degree of conflict by diverting bottom-up attention away from the target, and that inhibitory control on task-irrelevant information from flanking stimuli is deterred by the emotional congruency between target and flanking stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinyoung Kim
- Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Lab, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Seoul National UniversitySeoul, South Korea
| | - Min-Suk Kang
- Department of Psychology, Sungkyunkwan UniversitySeoul, South Korea.,Center for Neuroscience Imaging Research, Institute for Basic ScienceSuwon, South Korea
| | - Yang Seok Cho
- Department of Psychology, Korea UniversitySeoul, South Korea
| | - Sang-Hun Lee
- Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Lab, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Seoul National UniversitySeoul, South Korea
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34
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Ashar YK, Andrews-Hanna JR, Dimidjian S, Wager TD. Empathic Care and Distress: Predictive Brain Markers and Dissociable Brain Systems. Neuron 2017; 94:1263-1273.e4. [PMID: 28602689 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2017.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 94] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2016] [Revised: 03/25/2017] [Accepted: 05/05/2017] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Encountering another's suffering can elicit both empathic distress and empathic care-the warm desire to affiliate. It remains unclear whether these two feelings can be accurately and differentially predicted from neural activity and to what extent their neural substrates can be distinguished. We developed fMRI markers predicting moment-by-moment intensity levels of care and distress intensity while participants (n = 66) listened to true biographies describing human suffering. Both markers' predictions correlated strongly with self-report in out-of-sample participants (r = 0.59 and r = 0.63, p < 0.00001), and both markers predicted later trial-by-trial charitable donation amounts (p < 0.05). Empathic care was preferentially associated with nucleus accumbens and medial orbitofrontal cortex activity, whereas distress was preferentially associated with premotor and somatosensory cortical activity. In tests of marker specificity with an independent behavioral sample (n = 200), the empathic care marker was associated with a mixed-valence feeling state, whereas the empathic distress marker was specific to negative emotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoni K Ashar
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA.
| | | | - Sona Dimidjian
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
| | - Tor D Wager
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA; Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA.
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35
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Lei Y, Dou H, Liu Q, Zhang W, Zhang Z, Li H. Automatic Processing of Emotional Words in the Absence of Awareness: The Critical Role of P2. Front Psychol 2017; 8:592. [PMID: 28473785 PMCID: PMC5397533 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2016] [Accepted: 03/30/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
It has been long debated to what extent emotional words can be processed in the absence of awareness. Behavioral studies have shown that the meaning of emotional words can be accessed even without any awareness. However, functional magnetic resonance imaging studies have revealed that emotional words that are unconsciously presented do not activate the brain regions involved in semantic or emotional processing. To clarify this point, we used continuous flash suppression (CFS) and event-related potential (ERP) techniques to distinguish between semantic and emotional processing. In CFS, we successively flashed some Mondrian-style images into one participant's eye steadily, which suppressed the images projected to the other eye. Negative, neutral, and scrambled words were presented to 16 healthy participants for 500 ms. Whenever the participants saw the stimuli—in both visible and invisible conditions—they pressed specific keyboard buttons. Behavioral data revealed that there was no difference in reaction time to negative words and to neutral words in the invisible condition, although negative words were processed faster than neutral words in the visible condition. The ERP results showed that negative words elicited a larger P2 amplitude in the invisible condition than in the visible condition. The P2 component was enhanced for the neutral words compared with the scrambled words in the visible condition; however, the scrambled words elicited larger P2 amplitudes than the neutral words in the invisible condition. These results suggest that the emotional processing of words is more sensitive than semantic processing in the conscious condition. Semantic processing was found to be attenuated in the absence of awareness. Our findings indicate that P2 plays an important role in the unconscious processing of emotional words, which highlights the fact that emotional processing may be automatic and prioritized compared with semantic processing in the absence of awareness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi Lei
- College of Psychology and Sociology, Shenzhen UniversityShenzhen, China
| | - Haoran Dou
- College of Psychology and Sociology, Shenzhen UniversityShenzhen, China.,Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal UniversityDalian, China
| | - Qingming Liu
- School of Psychology, Nanjing Normal UniversityNanjing, China
| | - Wenhai Zhang
- Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal UniversityDalian, China.,College of Education Science, Chengdu UniversityChengdu, China
| | - Zhonglu Zhang
- Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal UniversityDalian, China
| | - Hong Li
- College of Psychology and Sociology, Shenzhen UniversityShenzhen, China.,Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal UniversityDalian, China.,College of Education Science, Chengdu UniversityChengdu, China
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36
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Functional connectivity dynamics during film viewing reveal common networks for different emotional experiences. COGNITIVE AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2017; 16:709-23. [PMID: 27142636 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-016-0425-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Recent theoretical and empirical work has highlighted the role of domain-general, large-scale brain networks in generating emotional experiences. These networks are hypothesized to process aspects of emotional experiences that are not unique to a specific emotional category (e.g., "sadness," "happiness"), but rather that generalize across categories. In this article, we examined the dynamic interactions (i.e., changing cohesiveness) between specific domain-general networks across time while participants experienced various instances of sadness, fear, and anger. We used a novel method for probing the network connectivity dynamics between two salience networks and three amygdala-based networks. We hypothesized, and found, that the functional connectivity between these networks covaried with the intensity of different emotional experiences. Stronger connectivity between the dorsal salience network and the medial amygdala network was associated with more intense ratings of emotional experience across six different instances of the three emotion categories examined. Also, stronger connectivity between the dorsal salience network and the ventrolateral amygdala network was associated with more intense ratings of emotional experience across five out of the six different instances. Our findings demonstrate that a variety of emotional experiences are associated with dynamic interactions of domain-general neural systems.
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37
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Dong D, Ming Q, Wang X, Yu W, Jiang Y, Wu Q, Gao Y, Yao S. Temporoparietal Junction Hypoactivity during Pain-Related Empathy Processing in Adolescents with Conduct Disorder. Front Psychol 2017; 7:2085. [PMID: 28123377 PMCID: PMC5225733 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.02085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2016] [Accepted: 12/29/2016] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Lack of empathy has been proposed to account for the characteristic behavioral problems exhibited by adolescents with conduct disorder (CD). Hence, the aim of this study was to determine whether adolescents with CD exhibit atypical affective and cognitive neural empathic responses during pain-related empathy processing. Methods: A total of 30 adolescents with a CD diagnosis and 36 without CD symptoms were recruited from out-patient clinics and local middle schools in the same region, respectively. All 66 participants were subjected to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while viewing video clips depicting a face with a neutral expression receiving non-painful stimulation (Q-tip touch) or a face with a painful expression receiving painful stimulation (needle penetration) applied to the left or right cheek. Results: The regions associated with affective and cognitive empathy were activated in the HC group during pain-related empathy processing. Compared to HCs, adolescents with CD showed significantly reduced activation in the bilateral temporoparietal junction (TPJ). Conclusions: Adolescents with CD exhibited dampened hemodynamic responses during pain-related empathy processing in the bilateral TPJ, a region associated with cognitive empathy. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that adolescents with CD may have a cognitive empathy deficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daifeng Dong
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
| | - Qingsen Ming
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
| | - Xiang Wang
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
| | - Weixia Yu
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
| | - Yali Jiang
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
| | - Qiong Wu
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
| | - Yidian Gao
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
| | - Shuqiao Yao
- Medical Psychological Institute, Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University Changsha, China
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38
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Knight MJ, Baune BT. Psychosocial Dysfunction in Major Depressive Disorder-Rationale, Design, and Characteristics of the Cognitive and Emotional Recovery Training Program for Depression (CERT-D). Front Psychiatry 2017; 8:280. [PMID: 29312014 PMCID: PMC5732931 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2017] [Accepted: 11/29/2017] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Psychosocial dysfunction is associated with poor longitudinal course of depression and is not sufficiently addressed by existing pharmaceutical or psychological treatments. The aim of the current study is to evaluate the efficacy of a novel intervention designed to improve psychosocial function in depressed individuals. Impaired cognition, emotion processing, and social cognition appear to underlie (i.e., cause) psychosocial dysfunction in depression. The current treatment will target functioning in these domains (i.e., cognition, emotion, social cognition) with repeated training tasks, following the rationale that therapeutic benefits will arise in psychosocial functioning. It is expected that personalizing treatment by participants' baseline functioning will enhance clinical efficacy, by comparison with standard treatment in which baseline functioning is not considered. METHODS The study is a randomized, controlled treatment (RCT), in which the efficacy of a personalized and standard intervention will be compared. Sixteen treatment sessions will be administered over an 8-week period. These treatments are designed to improve cognition, emotion processing and social cognition. Assessments of psychosocial functioning, as well as a number of secondary outcomes, will occur at baseline, 4 weeks (mid-RCT), 8 weeks (end of RCT), and in the observational period at baseline (week 9) and 3 and 6 months post-RCT. Recruitment will commence in July 2017, including subjects diagnosed with major depressive disorder according to DSM-IV-TR criteria. DISCUSSION This research will provide new insight into the roles of cognition, emotion processing, and social cognition in psychosocial dysfunction in depression. In addition, the relative clinical efficacy of personalized versus standard treatment approaches will be assessed. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION This study has been approved by the human research ethics committees of the Royal Adelaide Hospital and the University of Adelaide (ethics code: R20170611). The study has been registered with the Australia and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry Registration number: ACTRN12617000899347, web link: http://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?ACTRN=12617000899347p. The results of the current study will be published in academic journals following completion of recruitment in 2019. Data will be owned and retained by the University of Adelaide, with access restricted to the research team responsible for the study.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Bernhard T Baune
- Discipline of Psychiatry, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
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Schlochtermeier LH, Pehrs C, Bakels JH, Jacobs AM, Kappelhoff H, Kuchinke L. Context matters: Anterior and posterior cortical midline responses to sad movie scenes. Brain Res 2016; 1661:24-36. [PMID: 27993532 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2016.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2015] [Revised: 11/30/2016] [Accepted: 12/12/2016] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Narrative movies can create powerful emotional responses. While recent research has advanced the understanding of neural networks involved in immersive movie viewing, their modulation within a movie's dynamic context remains inconclusive. In this study, 24 healthy participants passively watched sad scene climaxes taken from 24 romantic comedies, while brain activity was measured using functional magnetic resonance (fMRI). To study effects of context, the sad scene climaxes were presented with either coherent scene context, replaced non-coherent context or without context. In a second viewing, the same clips were rated continuously for sadness. The ratings varied over time with peaks of experienced sadness within the assumed climax intervals. Activations in anterior and posterior cortical midline regions increased if presented with both coherent and replaced context, while activation in the temporal gyri decreased. This difference was more pronounced for the coherent context condition. Psycho-Physiological interactions (PPI) analyses showed a context-dependent coupling of midline regions with occipital visual and sub-cortical reward regions. Our results demonstrate the pivotal role of midline structures and their interaction with perceptual and reward areas in processing contextually embedded socio-emotional information in movies.
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Affiliation(s)
- L H Schlochtermeier
- Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
| | - C Pehrs
- Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany; Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - J-H Bakels
- Department of Humanities, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - A M Jacobs
- Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany; Dahlem Institute for Neuroimaging of Emotion, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany
| | - H Kappelhoff
- Department of Humanities, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - L Kuchinke
- Methods und Evaluation, International Psychoanalytic University Berlin, Germany
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40
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Common modulation of limbic network activation underlies musical emotions as they unfold. Neuroimage 2016; 141:517-529. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2015] [Revised: 07/01/2016] [Accepted: 07/02/2016] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
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41
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Gilam G, Hendler T. With love, from me to you: Embedding social interactions in affective neuroscience. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 68:590-601. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.06.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2015] [Revised: 06/17/2016] [Accepted: 06/20/2016] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
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42
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Crespi C, Cerami C, Dodich A, Canessa N, Iannaccone S, Corbo M, Lunetta C, Falini A, Cappa SF. Microstructural Correlates of Emotional Attribution Impairment in Non-Demented Patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0161034. [PMID: 27513746 PMCID: PMC4981464 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0161034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2016] [Accepted: 07/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Impairments in the ability to recognize and attribute emotional states to others have been described in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients and linked to the dysfunction of key nodes of the emotional empathy network. Microstructural correlates of such disorders are still unexplored. We investigated the white-matter substrates of emotional attribution deficits in a sample of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients without cognitive decline. Thirteen individuals with either probable or definite amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and 14 healthy controls were enrolled in a Diffusion Tensor Imaging study and administered the Story-based Empathy Task, assessing the ability to attribute mental states to others (i.e., Intention and Emotion attribution conditions). As already reported, a significant global reduction of empathic skills, mainly driven by a failure in Emotion Attribution condition, was found in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients compared to healthy subjects. The severity of this deficit was significantly correlated with fractional anisotropy along the forceps minor, genu of corpus callosum, right uncinate and inferior fronto-occipital fasciculi. The involvement of frontal commissural fiber tracts and right ventral associative fronto-limbic pathways is the microstructural hallmark of the impairment of high-order processing of socio-emotional stimuli in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. These results support the notion of the neurofunctional and neuroanatomical continuum between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Crespi
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
- * E-mail:
| | - Chiara Cerami
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Turro, Milano, Italy
| | - Alessandra Dodich
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
| | - Nicola Canessa
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
- NeTS Center, Scuola Universitaria Superiore IUSS, Pavia, Italy
| | - Sandro Iannaccone
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Turro, Milano, Italy
| | - Massimo Corbo
- Department of Neurorehabilitation Sciences, Casa Cura Policlinico, Milano, Italy
| | - Christian Lunetta
- NEuroMuscolar Omnicentre, Fondazione Serena Onlus, Niguarda Ca’ Granda Hospital, Milano, Italy
| | - Andrea Falini
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
- CERMAC – Neuroradiology, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
| | - Stefano F. Cappa
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy
- NeTS Center, Scuola Universitaria Superiore IUSS, Pavia, Italy
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43
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Raz G, Shpigelman L, Jacob Y, Gonen T, Benjamini Y, Hendler T. Psychophysiological whole-brain network clustering based on connectivity dynamics analysis in naturalistic conditions. Hum Brain Mapp 2016; 37:4654-4672. [PMID: 27477592 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2016] [Revised: 07/02/2016] [Accepted: 07/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
We introduce a novel method for delineating context-dependent functional brain networks whose connectivity dynamics are synchronized with the occurrence of a specific psychophysiological process of interest. In this method of context-related network dynamics analysis (CRNDA), a continuous psychophysiological index serves as a reference for clustering the whole-brain into functional networks. We applied CRNDA to fMRI data recorded during the viewing of a sadness-inducing film clip. The method reliably demarcated networks in which temporal patterns of connectivity related to the time series of reported emotional intensity. Our work successfully replicated the link between network connectivity and emotion rating in an independent sample group for seven of the networks. The demarcated networks have clear common functional denominators. Three of these networks overlap with distinct empathy-related networks, previously identified in distinct sets of studies. The other networks are related to sensorimotor processing, language, attention, and working memory. The results indicate that CRNDA, a data-driven method for network clustering that is sensitive to transient connectivity patterns, can productively and reliably demarcate networks that follow psychologically meaningful processes. Hum Brain Mapp 37:4654-4672, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gal Raz
- Tel Aviv Center For Brain Functions, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,The Steve Tisch School of Film and Television, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,IBM Research, Haifa, Israel
| | | | - Yael Jacob
- Tel Aviv Center For Brain Functions, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Tal Gonen
- Tel Aviv Center For Brain Functions, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Yoav Benjamini
- Department of Statistics and Operations Research, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Talma Hendler
- Tel Aviv Center For Brain Functions, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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44
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Abraham E, Hendler T, Zagoory-Sharon O, Feldman R. Network integrity of the parental brain in infancy supports the development of children's social competencies. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2016; 11:1707-1718. [PMID: 27369068 PMCID: PMC5091682 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsw090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2016] [Accepted: 06/20/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The cross-generational transmission of mammalian sociality, initiated by the parent’s postpartum brain plasticity and species-typical behavior that buttress offspring’s socialization, has not been studied in humans. In this longitudinal study, we measured brain response of 45 primary-caregiving parents to their infant’s stimuli, observed parent–infant interactions, and assayed parental oxytocin (OT). Intra- and inter-network connectivity were computed in three main networks of the human parental brain: core limbic, embodied simulation and mentalizing. During preschool, two key child social competencies were observed: emotion regulation and socialization. Parent’s network integrity in infancy predicted preschoolers’ social outcomes, with subcortical and cortical network integrity foreshadowing simple evolutionary-based regulatory tactics vs complex self-regulatory strategies and advanced socialization. Parent–infant synchrony mediated the links between connectivity of the parent’s embodied simulation network and preschoolers' ability to use cognitive/executive emotion regulation strategies, highlighting the inherently dyadic nature of this network and its long-term effects on tuning young to social life. Parent’s inter-network core limbic-embodied simulation connectivity predicted children’s OT as moderated by parental OT. Findings challenge solipsistic neuroscience perspectives by demonstrating how the parent–offspring interface enables the brain of one human to profoundly impact long-term adaptation of another.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eyal Abraham
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Talma Hendler
- Functional Brain Center, Wohl Institute of Advanced Imaging, Tel-Aviv SouraskyMedical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.,School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Orna Zagoory-Sharon
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel .,Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
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45
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Rohr CS, Villringer A, Solms‐Baruth C, van der Meer E, Margulies DS, Okon‐Singer H. The neural networks of subjectively evaluated emotional conflicts. Hum Brain Mapp 2016; 37:2234-46. [PMID: 26991156 PMCID: PMC6867502 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2015] [Revised: 02/19/2016] [Accepted: 02/22/2016] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous work on the neural underpinnings of emotional conflict processing has largely focused on designs that instruct participants to ignore a distracter which conflicts with a target. In contrast, this study investigated the noninstructed experience and evaluation of an emotional conflict, where positive or negative cues can be subjectively prioritized. To this end, healthy participants freely watched short film scenes that evoked emotional conflicts while their BOLD responses were measured. Participants' individual ratings of conflict and valence perception during the film scenes were collected immediately afterwards, and the individual ratings were regressed against the BOLD data. Our analyses revealed that (a) amygdala and medial prefrontal cortex were significantly involved in prioritizing positive or negative cues, but not in subjective evaluations of conflict per se, and (b) superior temporal sulcus (STS) and inferior parietal lobule (IPL), which have been implicated in social cognition and emotion control, were involved in both prioritizing positive or negative cues and subjectively evaluating conflict, and may thus constitute "hubs" or "switches" in emotional conflict processing. Psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analyses further revealed stronger functional connectivity between IPL and ventral prefrontal-medial parietal areas in prioritizing negative cues, and stronger connectivity between STS and dorsal-rostral prefrontal-medial parietal areas in prioritizing positive cues. In sum, our results suggest that IPL and STS are important in the subjective evaluation of complex conflicts and influence valence prioritization via prefrontal and parietal control centers. Hum Brain Mapp 37:2234-2246, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christiane S. Rohr
- Department of NeurologyMax Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesLeipzigGermany
- Mind‐Brain InstituteBerlin School of Mind and BrainCharité and Humboldt University of BerlinBerlinGermany
- Department of PsychologyHumboldt University of BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Arno Villringer
- Department of NeurologyMax Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesLeipzigGermany
- Mind‐Brain InstituteBerlin School of Mind and BrainCharité and Humboldt University of BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Carolina Solms‐Baruth
- Department of NeurologyMax Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesLeipzigGermany
- Mind‐Brain InstituteBerlin School of Mind and BrainCharité and Humboldt University of BerlinBerlinGermany
| | | | - Daniel S. Margulies
- Department of NeurologyMax Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesLeipzigGermany
- Mind‐Brain InstituteBerlin School of Mind and BrainCharité and Humboldt University of BerlinBerlinGermany
- Max Planck Research Group for Neuroanatomy and ConnectivityMax Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesLeipzigGermany
| | - Hadas Okon‐Singer
- Department of NeurologyMax Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesLeipzigGermany
- Mind‐Brain InstituteBerlin School of Mind and BrainCharité and Humboldt University of BerlinBerlinGermany
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of HaifaHaifaIsrael
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46
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Thirioux B, Birault F, Jaafari N. Empathy Is a Protective Factor of Burnout in Physicians: New Neuro-Phenomenological Hypotheses Regarding Empathy and Sympathy in Care Relationship. Front Psychol 2016; 7:763. [PMID: 27303328 PMCID: PMC4880744 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2016] [Accepted: 05/06/2016] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Burnout is a multidimensional work-related syndrome that is characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization-or cynicism-and diminution of personal accomplishment. Burnout particularly affects physicians. In medicine as well as other professions, burnout occurrence depends on personal, developmental-psychodynamic, professional, and environmental factors. Recently, it has been proposed to specifically define burnout in physicians as "pathology of care relationship." That is, burnout would arise, among the above-mentioned factors, from the specificity of the care relationship as it develops between the physician and the patient. Accordingly, experimental studies and theoretical approaches have suggested that burnout and empathy, which is one of the most important skills in physicians, are closely linked. However, the nature of the relation between burnout and empathy remains not yet understood, as reflected in the variety of theoretical and contradictory hypotheses attempting to causally relate these two phenomena. Firstly, we here question the epistemological problem concerning the modality of the burnout-empathy link. Secondly, we hypothesize that considering the multidimensional features of both burnout and empathy, on one hand, and on the other hand, the distinction between empathy and sympathy enables to overcome these contradictions and, consequently, gives a better understanding of the relationship between burnout and empathy in physicians. Thirdly, we propose that clarifying the link between burnout, empathy and sympathy would enable developing specific training in medical students and continuous professional formation in senior physicians and would potentially contribute to the prevention of burnout in medical care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bérangère Thirioux
- Unité de Recherche Clinique Intersectorielle en Psychiatrie à Vocation Régionale Pierre Deniker, Centre Hospitalier Henri LaboritPoitiers, France
| | - François Birault
- Faculté de Médecine et de Pharmacie, Département de Médecine Générale, Université de PoitiersPoitiers, France
| | - Nematollah Jaafari
- Unité de Recherche Clinique Intersectorielle en Psychiatrie à Vocation Régionale Pierre Deniker, Centre Hospitalier Henri LaboritPoitiers, France
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale CIC-P 1402 du Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire de Poitiers, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U 1084, Experimental and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory, Groupement de Recherche Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique 3557, Université de PoitiersPoitiers, France
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47
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Caldwell BM, Harenski CL, Harenski KA, Fede SJ, Steele VR, Koenigs MR, Kiehl KA. Abnormal frontostriatal activity in recently abstinent cocaine users during implicit moral processing. Front Hum Neurosci 2015; 9:565. [PMID: 26528169 PMCID: PMC4608360 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2015] [Accepted: 09/28/2015] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Investigations into the neurobiology of moral cognition are often done by examining clinical populations characterized by diminished moral emotions and a proclivity toward immoral behavior. Psychopathy is the most common disorder studied for this purpose. Although cocaine abuse is highly co-morbid with psychopathy and cocaine-dependent individuals exhibit many of the same abnormalities in socio-affective processing as psychopaths, this population has received relatively little attention in moral psychology. To address this issue, the authors used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to record hemodynamic activity in 306 incarcerated male adults, stratified into regular cocaine users (n = 87) and a matched sample of non-cocaine users (n = 87), while viewing pictures that did or did not depict immoral actions and determining whether each depicted scenario occurred indoors or outdoors. Consistent with expectations, cocaine users showed abnormal neural activity in several frontostriatial regions during implicit moral picture processing compared to their non-cocaine using peers. This included reduced moral/non-moral picture discrimination in the vACC, vmPFC, lOFC, and left vSTR. Additionally, psychopathy was negatively correlated with activity in an overlapping region of the ACC and right lateralized vSTR. These results suggest that regular cocaine abuse may be associated with affective deficits which can impact relatively high-level processes like moral cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brendan M. Caldwell
- The Mind Research Network and Lovelace Biomedical and Environmental Research InstituteAlbuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Carla L. Harenski
- The Mind Research Network and Lovelace Biomedical and Environmental Research InstituteAlbuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Keith A. Harenski
- The Mind Research Network and Lovelace Biomedical and Environmental Research InstituteAlbuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Samantha J. Fede
- The Mind Research Network and Lovelace Biomedical and Environmental Research InstituteAlbuquerque, NM, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of New MexicoAlbuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Vaughn R. Steele
- Intramural Research Program, Neuroimaging Research Branch, National Institute of Drug Abuse, National Institutes of HealthBaltimore, MD, USA
| | - Michael R. Koenigs
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-MadisonMadison, WI, USA
| | - Kent A. Kiehl
- The Mind Research Network and Lovelace Biomedical and Environmental Research InstituteAlbuquerque, NM, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of New MexicoAlbuquerque, NM, USA
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48
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Adler N, Dvash J, Shamay-Tsoory SG. Empathic Embarrassment Accuracy in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Autism Res 2015; 8:241-9. [PMID: 25732043 DOI: 10.1002/aur.1439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2014] [Accepted: 11/17/2014] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Empathic accuracy refers to the ability of perceivers to accurately share the emotions of protagonists. Using a novel task assessing embarrassment, the current study sought to compare levels of empathic embarrassment accuracy among individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) with those of matched controls. To assess empathic embarrassment accuracy, we compared the level of embarrassment experienced by protagonists to the embarrassment felt by participants while watching the protagonists. The results show that while the embarrassment ratings of participants and protagonists were highly matched among controls, individuals with ASD failed to exhibit this matching effect. Furthermore, individuals with ASD rated their embarrassment higher than controls when viewing themselves and protagonists on film, but not while performing the task itself. These findings suggest that individuals with ASD tend to have higher ratings of empathic embarrassment, perhaps due to difficulties in emotion regulation that may account for their impaired empathic accuracy and aberrant social behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noga Adler
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.,Cognitive Neurology Unit, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel
| | - Jonathan Dvash
- School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
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49
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Okon-Singer H, Hendler T, Pessoa L, Shackman AJ. The neurobiology of emotion-cognition interactions: fundamental questions and strategies for future research. Front Hum Neurosci 2015; 9:58. [PMID: 25774129 PMCID: PMC4344113 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 172] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2014] [Accepted: 01/21/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent years have witnessed the emergence of powerful new tools for assaying the brain and a remarkable acceleration of research focused on the interplay of emotion and cognition. This work has begun to yield new insights into fundamental questions about the nature of the mind and important clues about the origins of mental illness. In particular, this research demonstrates that stress, anxiety, and other kinds of emotion can profoundly influence key elements of cognition, including selective attention, working memory, and cognitive control. Often, this influence persists beyond the duration of transient emotional challenges, partially reflecting the slower molecular dynamics of catecholamine and hormonal neurochemistry. In turn, circuits involved in attention, executive control, and working memory contribute to the regulation of emotion. The distinction between the 'emotional' and the 'cognitive' brain is fuzzy and context-dependent. Indeed, there is compelling evidence that brain territories and psychological processes commonly associated with cognition, such as the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and working memory, play a central role in emotion. Furthermore, putatively emotional and cognitive regions influence one another via a complex web of connections in ways that jointly contribute to adaptive and maladaptive behavior. This work demonstrates that emotion and cognition are deeply interwoven in the fabric of the brain, suggesting that widely held beliefs about the key constituents of 'the emotional brain' and 'the cognitive brain' are fundamentally flawed. We conclude by outlining several strategies for enhancing future research. Developing a deeper understanding of the emotional-cognitive brain is important, not just for understanding the mind but also for elucidating the root causes of its disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Talma Hendler
- Functional Brain Center, Wohl Institute of Advanced Imaging, and School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel AvivIsrael
| | - Luiz Pessoa
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Cognitive Science Program, and Maryland Neuroimaging Center, University of Maryland, College Park, College Park, MDUSA
| | - Alexander J. Shackman
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Cognitive Science Program, and Maryland Neuroimaging Center, University of Maryland, College Park, College Park, MDUSA
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50
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McLaren DG, Sperling RA, Atri A. Flexible modulation of network connectivity related to cognition in Alzheimer's disease. Neuroimage 2014; 100:544-57. [PMID: 24852459 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2014.05.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2014] [Revised: 05/06/2014] [Accepted: 05/07/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Functional neuroimaging tools, such as fMRI methods, may elucidate the neural correlates of clinical, behavioral, and cognitive performance. Most functional imaging studies focus on regional task-related activity or resting state connectivity rather than how changes in functional connectivity across conditions and tasks are related to cognitive and behavioral performance. To investigate the promise of characterizing context-dependent connectivity-behavior relationships, this study applies the method of generalized psychophysiological interactions (gPPI) to assess the patterns of associative-memory-related fMRI hippocampal functional connectivity in Alzheimer's disease (AD) associated with performance on memory and other cognitively demanding neuropsychological tests and clinical measures. Twenty-four subjects with mild AD dementia (ages 54-82, nine females) participated in a face-name paired-associate encoding memory study. Generalized PPI analysis was used to estimate the connectivity between the hippocampus and the whole brain during encoding. The difference in hippocampal-whole brain connectivity between encoding novel and encoding repeated face-name pairs was used in multiple-regression analyses as an independent predictor for 10 behavioral, neuropsychological and clinical tests. The analysis revealed connectivity-behavior relationships that were distributed, dynamically overlapping, and task-specific within and across intrinsic networks; hippocampal-whole brain connectivity-behavior relationships were not isolated to single networks, but spanned multiple brain networks. Importantly, these spatially distributed performance patterns were unique for each measure. In general, out-of-network behavioral associations with encoding novel greater than repeated face-name pairs hippocampal-connectivity were observed in the default-mode network, while correlations with encoding repeated greater than novel face-name pairs hippocampal-connectivity were observed in the executive control network (p<0.05, cluster corrected). Psychophysiological interactions revealed significantly more extensive and robust associations between paired-associate encoding task-dependent hippocampal-whole brain connectivity and performance on memory and behavioral/clinical measures than previously revealed by standard activity-behavior analysis. Compared to resting state and task-activation methods, gPPI analyses may be more sensitive to reveal additional complementary information regarding subtle within- and between-network relations. The patterns of robust correlations between hippocampal-whole brain connectivity and behavioral measures identified here suggest that there are 'coordinated states' in the brain; that the dynamic range of these states is related to behavior and cognition; and that these states can be observed and quantified, even in individuals with mild AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donald G McLaren
- Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, WACC 715, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 149 Thirteenth Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, ENRM VA Medical Center, 200 Springs Road, Bedford, MA 01730, USA; Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
| | - Reisa A Sperling
- Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, WACC 715, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 149 Thirteenth Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 221 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
| | - Alireza Atri
- Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, WACC 715, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 149 Thirteenth Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, ENRM VA Medical Center, 200 Springs Road, Bedford, MA 01730, USA; Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
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