1
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Saulin A, Ting CC, Engelmann JB, Hein G. Connected in Bad Times and in Good Times: Empathy Induces Stable Social Closeness. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e1108232024. [PMID: 38684367 PMCID: PMC11154854 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1108-23.2024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2023] [Revised: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 03/21/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Humans need social closeness to prosper. There is evidence that empathy can induce social closeness. However, it remains unclear how empathy-related social closeness is formed and how stable it is as time passes. We applied an acquisition-extinction paradigm combined with computational modeling and fMRI, to investigate the formation and stability of empathy-related social closeness. Female participants observed painful stimulation of another person with high probability (acquisition) and low probability (extinction) and rated their closeness to that person. The results of two independent studies showed increased social closeness in the acquisition block that resisted extinction in the extinction block. Providing insights into underlying mechanisms, reinforcement learning modeling revealed that the formation of social closeness is based on a learning signal (prediction error) generated from observing another's pain, whereas maintaining social closeness is based on a learning signal generated from observing another's pain relief. The results of a reciprocity control study indicate that this feedback recalibration is specific to learning of empathy-related social closeness. On the neural level, the recalibration of the feedback signal was associated with neural responses in anterior insula and adjacent inferior frontal gyrus and the bilateral superior temporal sulcus/temporoparietal junction. Together, these findings show that empathy-related social closeness generated in bad times, that is, empathy with the misfortune of another person, transfers to good times and thus may form one important basis for stable social relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Saulin
- Department of Psychiatry, Center of Mental Health, Psychosomatic and Psychotherapy, Translational Social Neuroscience Unit, University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg 97080, Germany
| | - Chih-Chung Ting
- Department of Psychology, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg 20246, Germany
| | - Jan B Engelmann
- Center for Research in Experimental Economics and Political Decision Making, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1001, The Netherlands
- Amsterdam Brain and Cognition, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1001, The Netherlands
- Behavioral and Experimental Economics, The Tinbergen Institute, Amsterdam 1082, The Netherlands
| | - Grit Hein
- Department of Psychiatry, Center of Mental Health, Psychosomatic and Psychotherapy, Translational Social Neuroscience Unit, University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg 97080, Germany
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2
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Zhang M, Lin X, Zhi Y, Mu Y, Kong Y. The dual facilitatory and inhibitory effects of social pain on physical pain perception. iScience 2024; 27:108951. [PMID: 38323007 PMCID: PMC10844037 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.108951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2023] [Revised: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Pain is a multi-dimensional phenomenon that encompasses both physical pain experienced physiologically and social pain experienced emotionally. The interactions between them are thought to lead to increased pain load. However, the effect of social pain on physical pain perception during interactions remains unclear. Four experiments were conducted merging physical and social pains to examine the behavioral pattern and neural mechanism of the effect of social pain on physical pain perception. Seemingly paradoxical effects of social pain were observed, which both facilitated and inhibited physical pain perception under different attention orientations. Brain imaging revealed that the posterior insula encoded the facilitatory effect, whereas the frontal pole engaged in the inhibitory effect. At a higher level, the thalamus further modulated both processes, playing a switch-like role under different concern statuses of social pain. These results provide direct evidence for the dual-pathway mechanism of the effect of social pain on physical pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiaomin Lin
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yongkang Zhi
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yan Mu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yazhuo Kong
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, FMRIB, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK
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3
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Orui J, Shiraiwa K, Tazaki F, Inoue T, Ueda M, Ueno K, Naito Y, Ishii R. Social Buffering Effects during Craft Activities in Parallel Group Session Revealed by EEG Analysis and Parasympathetic Activity. Neuropsychobiology 2023; 82:287-299. [PMID: 37562371 PMCID: PMC10614439 DOI: 10.1159/000531005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION The therapeutic structure of occupational therapy (OT) includes groups. Although the presence of others is expected to be relaxing due to the social buffering effect and the tend and befriend theory, it has not been sufficiently validated in accordance with the therapeutic structure of OT. The aim of this study was to investigate the electrophysiological evidence for the effectiveness of parallel groups and states of concentration on craft activities used in OT. METHODS Thirty healthy young adults were used as controls to measure EEG and autonomic activity during craft activities in three conditions: alone, parallel, and nonparallel. EEG was analyzed using exact low-resolution electromagnetic tomography, and autonomic activity was analyzed using Lorenz plot analysis. RESULTS Parasympathetic activity was significantly higher in the parallel condition than in the alone condition. A significant negative correlation was found between current source density and parasympathetic activity in the region centered on the right insular cortex in the α1 band, and functional connectivity in regions including the anterior cingulate cortex and insular cortex was associated with autonomic activity. CONCLUSION Craft activities that occurred during frontal midline theta rhythm also increased parasympathetic activity. The results suggest that the parallel groups used in OT and the intensive state of craft activities induce a social buffering effect that increases parasympathetic activity despite the absence of physical contact or social support. This provides evidence for the effectiveness of the therapeutic structure of occupational activities and groups in OT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junya Orui
- Department of Rehabilitation, Osaka Kawasaki Rehabilitation University, Osaka, Japan
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Rehabilitation Science, Osaka, Japan
| | - Keigo Shiraiwa
- Department of Rehabilitation, Osaka Kawasaki Rehabilitation University, Osaka, Japan
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Rehabilitation Science, Osaka, Japan
| | - Fumie Tazaki
- Department of Rehabilitation, Osaka Kawasaki Rehabilitation University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Takao Inoue
- Department of Rehabilitation, Osaka Kawasaki Rehabilitation University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Masaya Ueda
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Rehabilitation Science, Osaka, Japan
| | - Keita Ueno
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Rehabilitation Science, Osaka, Japan
| | - Yasuo Naito
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Rehabilitation Science, Osaka, Japan
| | - Ryouhei Ishii
- Department of Rehabilitation, Osaka Kawasaki Rehabilitation University, Osaka, Japan
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Rehabilitation Science, Osaka, Japan
- Department of Psychiatry, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan
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4
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Tang H, Li L, Zheng L, Guo X, Qian H. Social distance of bystanders affects people's embarrassment via changing fear of negative evaluation and feelings of attachment security. BMC Psychol 2023; 11:161. [PMID: 37198713 PMCID: PMC10193680 DOI: 10.1186/s40359-023-01201-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Embarrassment is a self-conscious emotion with important social functions, but it is not well understood. The perception of bystanders is considered a precondition for embarrassment, which makes it unique from other self-conscious emotions. Studies have shown that socially close bystanders can reduce individuals' embarrassment. However, whether and how the embarrassment of individuals varies with the changes in social distance between them and their bystanders remained unclear, which indicates the key characteristics of embarrassment. METHODS The current research consists of two studies. Study 1 tested whether participants' embarrassment systematically varied with social distance by setting up three levels of social distance: close friends (i.e., short), casual friends (i.e., medium), and strangers (i.e., long), based on 159 participants. With two full mediation models, study 2 investigated whether and how the fear of negative evaluation and state attachment security mediated the influence of social distance on embarrassment based on 155 participants. CONCLUSIONS The current findings revealed that the social distance between bystanders and protagonists systematically influenced the embarrassment of protagonists and this effect occurred via two parallel pathways, i.e., by increasing the fear of negative evaluation and by reducing state attachment security. The findings not only showed the unique role of bystander characteristics on embarrassment, but also two cognitive processes behind this unique self-conscious emotion: fearing negative evaluation and seeking attachment for security.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongjuan Tang
- School of Education, XiZang MinZu University, Xianyang, Shaanxi, 712082, China
- School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China
| | - Lin Li
- School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China
| | - Li Zheng
- Fudan Institute on Ageing, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433, China
- MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433, China
| | - Xiuyan Guo
- Fudan Institute on Ageing, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433, China
- MOE Laboratory for National Development and Intelligent Governance, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433, China
| | - Haoyue Qian
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.
- CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.
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5
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Bartolo A, Ballotta D, Nocetti L, Baraldi P, Nichelli PF, Benuzzi F. Uncover the Offensive Side of Disparagement Humor: An fMRI Study. Front Psychol 2021; 12:750597. [PMID: 34880811 PMCID: PMC8645564 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.750597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 10/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Disparagement humor is a kind of humor that denigrates, belittles an individual or a social group. In the aim to unveil the offensive side of these kinds of jokes, we have run an event-related fMRI study asking 30 healthy volunteers to judge the level of fun of a series of verbal stimuli that ended with a sentence that was socially inappropriate but funny (disparagement joke -DJ), socially inappropriate but not funny (SI) or neutral (N). Behavioral results showed disparagement jokes are perceived as funny and at the same time offensive. However, the level of offense in DJ is lower than that registered in SI stimuli. Functional data showed that DJ activated the insula, the SMA, the precuneus, the ACC, the dorsal striatum (the caudate nucleus), and the thalamus. These activations suggest that in DJ a feeling of mirth (and/or a desire to laugh) derived from the joke (e.g., SMA and precuneus) and the perception of the jokes’ social inappropriateness (e.g., ACC and insula) coexist. Furthermore, DJ and SI share a common network related to mentalizing and to the processing of negative feelings, namely the medial prefrontal cortex, the putamen and the right thalamus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela Bartolo
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 9193 - SCALab - Sciences Cognitives et Sciences Affectives, Lille, France.,Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), Paris, France
| | - Daniela Ballotta
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Metaboliche e Neuroscienze, Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Luca Nocetti
- Fisica Medica, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria di Modena, Modena, Italy
| | - Patrizia Baraldi
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Metaboliche e Neuroscienze, Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Paolo Frigio Nichelli
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Metaboliche e Neuroscienze, Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Francesca Benuzzi
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Metaboliche e Neuroscienze, Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
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6
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Peetz J, Wohl MJA, Wilson AE, Dawson A. A chip off the (im)moral block? Lay beliefs about genetic heritability predicts whether family members’ actions affect self‐judgments. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ejsp.2768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Johanna Peetz
- Psychology Department Carleton University 1125 Colonel By Drive Ottawa ON K1S5B6 Canada
| | - Michael J. A. Wohl
- Psychology Department Carleton University 1125 Colonel By Drive Ottawa ON Canada
| | - Anne E. Wilson
- Psychology Department Wilfrid Laurier University 75 University Ave W Waterloo ON Canada
| | - Andrew Dawson
- Psychology Department Wilfrid Laurier University 75 University Ave W Waterloo ON Canada
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7
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Skversky-Blocq Y, Haaker J, Shechner T. Watch and Learn: Vicarious Threat Learning across Human Development. Brain Sci 2021; 11:brainsci11101345. [PMID: 34679409 PMCID: PMC8533719 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11101345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Revised: 10/04/2021] [Accepted: 10/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Vicarious threat learning is an important pathway in learning about safety and danger in the environment and is therefore critical for survival. It involves learning by observing another person's (the demonstrator) fearful responses to threat and begins as early as infancy. The review discusses the literature on vicarious threat learning and infers how this learning pathway may evolve over human development. We begin by discussing the methods currently being used to study observational threat learning in the laboratory. Next, we focus on the social factors influencing vicarious threat learning; this is followed by a review of vicarious threat learning among children and adolescents. Finally, we examine the neural mechanisms underpinning vicarious threat learning across human development. To conclude, we encourage future research directions that will help elucidate how vicarious threat learning emerges and how it relates to the development of normative fear and pathological anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yael Skversky-Blocq
- School of Psychological Sciences and the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel;
| | - Jan Haaker
- Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20251 Hamburg, Germany;
| | - Tomer Shechner
- School of Psychological Sciences and the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel;
- Correspondence:
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8
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Eslinger PJ, Anders S, Ballarini T, Boutros S, Krach S, Mayer AV, Moll J, Newton TL, Schroeter ML, de Oliveira-Souza R, Raber J, Sullivan GB, Swain JE, Lowe L, Zahn R. The neuroscience of social feelings: mechanisms of adaptive social functioning. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 128:592-620. [PMID: 34089764 PMCID: PMC8388127 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.05.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2020] [Revised: 01/31/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Social feelings have conceptual and empirical connections with affect and emotion. In this review, we discuss how they relate to cognition, emotion, behavior and well-being. We examine the functional neuroanatomy and neurobiology of social feelings and their role in adaptive social functioning. Existing neuroscience literature is reviewed to identify concepts, methods and challenges that might be addressed by social feelings research. Specific topic areas highlight the influence and modulation of social feelings on interpersonal affiliation, parent-child attachments, moral sentiments, interpersonal stressors, and emotional communication. Brain regions involved in social feelings were confirmed by meta-analysis using the Neurosynth platform for large-scale, automated synthesis of functional magnetic resonance imaging data. Words that relate specifically to social feelings were identfied as potential research variables. Topical inquiries into social media behaviors, loneliness, trauma, and social sensitivity, especially with recent physical distancing for guarding public and personal health, underscored the increasing importance of social feelings for affective and second person neuroscience research with implications for brain development, physical and mental health, and lifelong adaptive functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul J Eslinger
- Departments of Neurology, Neural & Behavioral Sciences, Pediatrics, and Radiology, Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA.
| | - Silke Anders
- Social and Affective Neuroscience, Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Tommaso Ballarini
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Sydney Boutros
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Sören Krach
- Social Neuroscience Lab, Translational Psychiatry Unit, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Annalina V Mayer
- Social Neuroscience Lab, Translational Psychiatry Unit, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Jorge Moll
- Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Tamara L Newton
- University of Louisville, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Louisville, KY, USA
| | - Matthias L Schroeter
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Clinic for Cognitive Neurology, University Hospital Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Ricardo de Oliveira-Souza
- Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), BR Hospital Universitario, Universidade do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Jacob Raber
- Departments of Behavioral Neuroscience, Neurology, and Radiation Medicine, Division of Neuroscience, ONPRC, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Gavin B Sullivan
- International Psychoanalytic University, Berlin, Germany, Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations, Coventry University, UK
| | - James E Swain
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, Psychology and Obstetrics and Gynecology, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | | | - Roland Zahn
- Centre for Affective Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, UK
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Zhang H, Gu R, Yang M, Zhang M, Han F, Li H, Luo W. Context-based interpersonal relationship modulates social comparison between outcomes: an event-related potential study. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 16:439-452. [PMID: 33527110 PMCID: PMC7990070 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2020] [Revised: 11/04/2020] [Accepted: 01/27/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Social comparison is a common behavior that largely determines people's experience of decision outcome. Previous research has showed that interpersonal relationship plays a pivotal role in social comparison. In the current study, we investigated whether the manipulation of context-based relationship would affect participants' comparison of self-outcome and other-outcome. Participants first finished a trust game with likeable (dislikeable) partner and then they were involved in a gambling task and observed the outcomes for themselves and for partners. According to self-reports, participants were more satisfied with likeable partner's gains than losses only when they received gains, but they were always more satisfied with dislikeable player's losses compared to gains. Event-related potentials including the feedback-related negativity (FRN), P3 and late positive component (LPC) were sensitive to context-based relationship. Specifically, the prediction error signal (indexed by the FRN) was largest when participants received losses but dislikeable player received gains. Meanwhile, the P3 indicates that participants had stronger motivation to outperform dislikeable player. Finally, the LPC was larger when participants received the same outcomes with dislikeable players. In general, our results support the key point of the self-evaluation maintenance model that personal closeness modulates subjective sensitivity when drawing a comparison of one's outcomes with other's outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huoyin Zhang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Affective and Social Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518061, China.,Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Province, Dalian 116029, China
| | - Ruolei Gu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Ming Yang
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Province, Dalian 116029, China
| | - Mingming Zhang
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Province, Dalian 116029, China
| | - Fengxu Han
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Province, Dalian 116029, China
| | - Hong Li
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Affective and Social Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518061, China.,Center for Language and Brain, Shenzhen Institute of Neuroscience, Shenzhen 518061, China.,Institute for Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu 610068, China
| | - Wenbo Luo
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Province, Dalian 116029, China
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10
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Choi EJ, Taylor MJ, Vandewouw MM, Hong SB, Kim CD, Yi SH. Attachment security and striatal functional connectivity in typically developing children. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2021; 48:100914. [PMID: 33517105 PMCID: PMC7847968 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.100914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Revised: 12/22/2020] [Accepted: 01/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Attachment security is formed through interactions with a main caregiver during the first three years of life and reflects inter-individual differences in mental representations for the relationship. The striatum is known to be a key structure to initiate attachment behaviours and maintain attachment relationships as well as to modulate reward-related processing as part of the approach module in current neurobiological models of human attachment. Although findings have suggested critical roles of the striatum in inter-individual differences in attachment, most studies were based on a wide variety of tasks and very few have investigated these associations in intrinsic brain connectivity in typically developing children. In the present study, using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging, we examined the striatal functional connectivity according to children’s attachment security in 68 nine-year-olds (Secure attachment = 39, Insecure attachment = 29, mean age/SD = 9.62/0.69). Children with secure attachment demonstrated increased functional connectivity in the tempro-limbic region, compared to children with insecure attachment. In addition, the child-reported attachment security scores were negatively associated with the caudate-prefrontal connectivity, but positively with the putamen-visual area connectivity. These data demonstrate that inter-individual differences in attachment can be captured in striatal functional connectivity organization in the typical brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eun Jung Choi
- Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Toronto, Canada; Neuroscience & Mental Health Program, Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute, Toronto, Canada.
| | - Margot J Taylor
- Neuroscience & Mental Health Program, Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute, Toronto, Canada; Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada; Departments of Psychology and Medical Imaging, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Marlee M Vandewouw
- Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Toronto, Canada; Neuroscience & Mental Health Program, Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute, Toronto, Canada; Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Soon-Beom Hong
- Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea; Department of Psychiatry and Institute of Human Behavioral Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Chang-Dai Kim
- Department of Education, College of Education, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Soon-Hyung Yi
- Department of Child and Family Studies, College of Human Ecology, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea.
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11
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Abstract
Vicarious embarrassment as a social pain emotion has been studied from cognitive and neuroimaging perspectives. However, the dynamic time course of vicarious embarrassment remains unclear. We conducted an event-related potential (ERP) study to investigate the temporal dynamics of vicarious embarrassment and examine the role of perspective-taking in an emotional judgment task. The ERP results showed that vicarious embarrassment evoked more negative MFN (250-310 ms) and N400 (400-520 ms) components than the neutral condition over the frontal region. The time-frequency analysis results showed that, in the 200-1,600 ms time window, greater alpha power was elicited when participants imagined themselves rather than others in an awkward situation; in the 500-1,900 ms time window, for both groups, vicarious embarrassment involved greater theta oscillations than the neutral condition over the frontal region. These results extend previous findings that vicarious emotion involves mentalizing processes, and demonstrate that people first detect and evaluate the target's misconduct and negative outcomes and then experience the vicarious embarrassment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yunfei Cao
- School of Teacher Education, Chengdu University , Chengdu, China
| | - Qing Wei
- School of Teacher Education, Chengdu University , Chengdu, China
| | - Shiquan Gui
- School of Teacher Education, Chengdu University , Chengdu, China
| | - Fuhong Li
- Advanced Research Institute, Chengdu University , Chengdu, China.,School of Psychology, Jiangxi Normal University , Nanchang, China
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12
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Ma X, Zhao W, Luo R, Zhou F, Geng Y, Xu L, Gao Z, Zheng X, Becker B, Kendrick KM. Sex- and context-dependent effects of oxytocin on social sharing. Neuroimage 2018; 183:62-72. [PMID: 30086408 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2018.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2018] [Revised: 06/15/2018] [Accepted: 08/03/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
We interact socially and form bonds with others because such experiences are rewarding. However, an insecure attachment style or social anxiety can reduce these rewarding effects. The neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) may facilitate social interactions either by increasing their rewarding experience or by attenuating anxiety, although effects can be sex- and attachment-style dependent. In this study, 128 pairs of same-sex friends completed a social sharing paradigm in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, between-subject design with one friend inside an MRI scanner and the other in a remote behavioral testing room. In this way we could examine whether intranasal-OXT differentially modulated the emotional impact of social sharing and associated neural processing. Additionally, we investigated if OXT effects were modulated by sex and attachment style. Results showed that in women, but not men, OXT increased ratings for sharing stimuli with their friend but not with a stranger, particularly in the friend in the scanner. Corresponding neuroimaging results showed that OXT decreased both amygdala and insula activity as well as their functional connectivity in women when they shared with friends but had the opposite effect in men. On the other hand, OXT did not enhance responses in brain reward circuitry. In the PLC treated group amygdala responses in women when they shared pictures with their friend were positively associated with attachment anxiety and OXT uncoupled this. Our findings demonstrate that OXT facilitates the impact of sharing positive experiences with others in women, but not men, and that this is associated with differential effects on the amygdala and insula and their functional connections. Furthermore, OXT particularly reduced increased amygdala responses during sharing in individuals with higher attachment anxiety. Thus, OXT effects in this context may be due more to reduced anxiety when sharing with a friend than to enhanced social reward.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaole Ma
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Weihua Zhao
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Ruixue Luo
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Feng Zhou
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Yayuan Geng
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Lei Xu
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Zhao Gao
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Xiaoxiao Zheng
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China
| | - Benjamin Becker
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China.
| | - Keith M Kendrick
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611731, China.
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13
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Paulus FM, Müller-Pinzler L, Stolz DS, Mayer AV, Rademacher L, Krach S. Laugh or cringe? Common and distinct processes of reward-based schadenfreude and empathy-based fremdscham. Neuropsychologia 2018; 116:52-60. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.05.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2016] [Revised: 05/30/2017] [Accepted: 05/31/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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14
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Laurita AC, Hazan C, Spreng RN. Dissociable patterns of brain activity for mentalizing about known others: a role for attachment. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2018; 12:1072-1082. [PMID: 28407150 PMCID: PMC5490684 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsx040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2016] [Accepted: 03/15/2017] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The human brain tracks dynamic changes within the social environment, forming and updating representations of individuals in our social milieu. This mechanism of social navigation builds an increasingly complex map of persons with whom we are familiar and form attachments to guide adaptive social behaviors. We examined the neural representation of known others along a continuum of attachment using fMRI. Heterosexual adults (N = 29, 16 females), in romantic relationships for more than 2 years, made trait judgments for a romantic partner, parent, close friend, familiar acquaintance and self-during scanning. Multivariate analysis, partial least squares, was used to identify whole-brain patterns of brain activation associated with trait judgments of known others across a continuum of attachment. Across conditions, trait judgments engaged the default network and lateral prefrontal cortex. Judgments about oneself and a partner were associated with a common activation pattern encompassing anterior and middle cingulate, posterior superior temporal sulcus, as well as anterior insula. Parent and close friend judgments engaged medial and anterior temporal lobe regions. These results provide novel evidence that mentalizing about known familiar others results in differential brain activity. We provide initial evidence that the representation of adult attachment is a distinguishing feature of these differences.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - R Nathan Spreng
- Department of Human Development.,Laboratory of Brain and Cognition, Human Neuroscience Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
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15
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Abstract
AbstractHumans are highly social animals who critically need to remember information from social episodes in order to successfully navigate future social interactions. We propose that such episodic memories about social encounters are processed during sleep, following the learning experience, with sleep abstracting and consolidating social gist knowledge (e.g., beliefs, first impressions, or stereotypes) about others that supports relationships and interpersonal communication.
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16
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Clark MS, Armentano LA, Boothby EJ, Hirsch JL. Communal relational context (or lack thereof) shapes emotional lives. Curr Opin Psychol 2017; 17:176-183. [DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2017.07.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2017] [Revised: 07/15/2017] [Accepted: 07/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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17
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Oeldorf-Hirsch A, Birnholtz J, Hancock JT. Your post is embarrassing me: Face threats, identity, and the audience on Facebook. COMPUTERS IN HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2017.03.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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18
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Laneri D, Krach S, Paulus FM, Kanske P, Schuster V, Sommer J, Müller-Pinzler L. Mindfulness meditation regulates anterior insula activity during empathy for social pain. Hum Brain Mapp 2017; 38:4034-4046. [PMID: 28504364 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2016] [Revised: 04/25/2017] [Accepted: 04/28/2017] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Mindfulness has been shown to reduce stress, promote health, and well-being, as well as to increase compassionate behavior toward others. It reduces distress to one's own painful experiences, going along with altered neural responses, by enhancing self-regulatory processes and decreasing emotional reactivity. In order to investigate if mindfulness similarly reduces distress and neural activations associated with empathy for others' socially painful experiences, which might in the following more strongly motivate prosocial behavior, the present study compared trait, and state effects of long-term mindfulness meditation (LTM) practice. To do so we acquired behavioral data and neural activity measures using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during an empathy for social pain task while manipulating the meditation state between two groups of LTM practitioners that were matched with a control group. The results show increased activations of the anterior insula (AI) and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) as well as the medial prefrontal cortex and temporal pole when sharing others' social suffering, both in LTM practitioners and controls. However, in LTM practitioners, who practiced mindfulness meditation just prior to observing others' social pain, left AI activation was lower and the strength of AI activation following the mindfulness meditation was negatively associated with trait compassion in LTM practitioners. The findings suggest that current mindfulness meditation could provide an adaptive mechanism in coping with distress due to the empathic sharing of others' suffering, thereby possibly enabling compassionate behavior. Hum Brain Mapp 38:4034-4046, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Laneri
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Philipps-University Marburg, Rudolf-Bultmann Strasse 8, Marburg, 35039, Germany
| | - Sören Krach
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, Lübeck, 23538, Germany
| | - Frieder M Paulus
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, Lübeck, 23538, Germany
| | - Philipp Kanske
- Department of Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstr. 1a, Leipzig, 04103, Germany
| | - Verena Schuster
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Philipps-University Marburg, Rudolf-Bultmann Strasse 8, Marburg, 35039, Germany
| | - Jens Sommer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Philipps-University Marburg, Rudolf-Bultmann Strasse 8, Marburg, 35039, Germany
| | - Laura Müller-Pinzler
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, Lübeck, 23538, Germany
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19
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Müller-Pinzler L, Krach S, Krämer UM, Paulus FM. The Social Neuroscience of Interpersonal Emotions. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2017; 30:241-256. [PMID: 26946503 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2016_437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
In our daily lives, we constantly engage in reciprocal interactions with other individuals and represent ourselves in the context of our surrounding social world. Within social interactions, humans often experience interpersonal emotions such as embarrassment, shame, guilt, or pride. How interpersonal emotions are processed on the neural systems level is of major interest for social neuroscience research. While the configuration of laboratory settings in general is constraining for emotion research, recent neuroimaging investigations came up with new approaches to implement socially interactive and immersive scenarios for the real-life investigation of interpersonal emotions. These studies could show that among other brain regions the so-called mentalizing network, which is typically involved when we represent and make sense of others' states of mind, is associated with interpersonal emotions. The anterior insula/anterior cingulate cortex network at the same time processes one's own bodily arousal during such interpersonal emotional experiences. Current research aimed to explore how we make sense of others' emotional states during social interactions and investigates the modulating factors of our emotional experiences during social interactions. Understanding how interpersonal emotions are processed on the neural systems level may yield significant implications for neuropsychiatric disorders that affect social behavior such as social anxiety disorders or autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Müller-Pinzler
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538, Lübeck, Germany.
| | - Sören Krach
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Ulrike M Krämer
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Frieder M Paulus
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538, Lübeck, Germany
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20
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Baumgartner T, Saulin A, Hein G, Knoch D. Structural Differences in Insular Cortex Reflect Vicarious Injustice Sensitivity. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0167538. [PMID: 27930678 PMCID: PMC5145156 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0167538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2016] [Accepted: 11/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Sensitivity to injustice inflicted on others is a strong motivator of human social behavior. There are, however, enormous individual differences in vicarious injustice sensitivity. Some people are strongly affected when witnessing injustice, while others barely notice it, but the factors behind this heterogeneity are poorly understood. Here we examine the neuroanatomical basis of these differences using voxel-based morphometry and Freesurfer image analysis suite. Whole brain corrected analyses show that a person's propensity to be vicariously affected by injustice to others is reflected by the gray matter volume and thickness of the bilateral mid insular cortex. The larger a person's gray matter volume and thickness of the mid insula, the higher that person's sensitivity to injustice experienced by others. These findings show that the individual neuroanatomy of the mid insular cortex captures a person's predisposition to be vicariously affected by injustice, and thus adds a novel aspect to previous functional work that has linked this region to the processing of transient vicarious states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Baumgartner
- Department of Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- * E-mail: (TB); (DK)
| | - Anne Saulin
- Department of Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Grit Hein
- Department of Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Daria Knoch
- Department of Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- * E-mail: (TB); (DK)
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21
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Braams BR, Crone EA. Longitudinal Changes in Social Brain Development: Processing Outcomes for Friend and Self. Child Dev 2016; 88:1952-1965. [DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Eveline A. Crone
- Leiden University
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition (LIBC)
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22
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Baez S, García AM, Ibanez A. The Social Context Network Model in Psychiatric and Neurological Diseases. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2016; 30:379-396. [PMID: 27130326 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2016_443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The role of contextual modulations has been extensively studied in basic sensory and cognitive processes. However, little is known about their impact on social cognition, let alone their disruption in disorders compromising such a domain. In this chapter, we flesh out the social context network model (SCNM), a neuroscientific proposal devised to address the issue. In SCNM terms, social context effects rely on a fronto-temporo-insular network in charge of (a) updating context cues to make predictions, (b) consolidating context-target associative learning, and (c) coordinating internal and external milieus. First, we characterize various social cognition domains as context-dependent phenomena. Then, we review behavioral and neural evidence of social context impairments in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), highlighting their relation with key SCNM hubs. Next, we show that other psychiatric and neurological conditions involve context-processing impairments following damage to the brain regions included in the model. Finally, we call for an ecological approach to social cognition assessment, moving beyond widespread abstract and decontextualized methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Baez
- Laboratory of Experimental Psychology and Neuroscience (LPEN), Institute of Translational and Cognitive Neuroscience (INCyT), INECO Foundation, Favaloro University, Pacheco de Melo 1860, 1126, Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,UDP-INECO Foundation Core on Neuroscience (UIFCoN), Diego Portales University, Santiago, Chile. .,Grupo de Investigación Cerebro Y Cognición Social, Bogotá, Colombia.
| | - Adolfo M García
- Laboratory of Experimental Psychology and Neuroscience (LPEN), Institute of Translational and Cognitive Neuroscience (INCyT), INECO Foundation, Favaloro University, Pacheco de Melo 1860, 1126, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,UDP-INECO Foundation Core on Neuroscience (UIFCoN), Diego Portales University, Santiago, Chile.,Faculty of Elementary and Special Education (FEEyE), National University of Cuyo (UNCuyo), Mendoza, Argentina
| | - Agustín Ibanez
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,Institute of Translational and Cognitive Neuroscience (INCyT), INECO Foundation, Favaloro University, Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,Universidad Autónoma Del Caribe, Barranquilla, Colombia. .,Laboratory of Neuroscience, Adolfo Ibáñez University, Santiago, Chile. .,Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence in Cognition and Its Disorders, Sydney, Australia.
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23
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Müller-Pinzler L, Gazzola V, Keysers C, Sommer J, Jansen A, Frässle S, Einhäuser W, Paulus FM, Krach S. Neural pathways of embarrassment and their modulation by social anxiety. Neuroimage 2015; 119:252-261. [PMID: 26093329 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.06.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2015] [Revised: 05/22/2015] [Accepted: 06/11/2015] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
While being in the center of attention and exposed to other's evaluations humans are prone to experience embarrassment. To characterize the neural underpinnings of such aversive moments, we induced genuine experiences of embarrassment during person-group interactions in a functional neuroimaging study. Using a mock-up scenario with three confederates, we examined how the presence of an audience affected physiological and neural responses and the reported emotional experiences of failures and achievements. The results indicated that publicity induced activations in mentalizing areas and failures led to activations in arousal processing systems. Mentalizing activity as well as attention towards the audience were increased in socially anxious participants. The converging integration of information from mentalizing areas and arousal processing systems within the ventral anterior insula and amygdala forms the neural pathways of embarrassment. Targeting these neural markers of embarrassment in the (para-)limbic system provides new perspectives for developing treatment strategies for social anxiety disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Müller-Pinzler
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab | SNL, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, D-23538 Lübeck, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Rudolf-Bultmann-Straße 8, D-35033 Marburg, Germany
| | - V Gazzola
- Department of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Groningen, 9713 AW Groningen, The Netherlands
- Social Brain Laboratory, The Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy for the Arts and Sciences, 1105 BA Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - C Keysers
- Social Brain Laboratory, The Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy for the Arts and Sciences, 1105 BA Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - J Sommer
- Department of Child- and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Schützenstr. 49, D-35033 Marburg, Germany
| | - A Jansen
- Department of Child- and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Schützenstr. 49, D-35033 Marburg, Germany
| | - S Frässle
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Rudolf-Bultmann-Straße 8, D-35033 Marburg, Germany
- Department of Child- and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Schützenstr. 49, D-35033 Marburg, Germany
| | - W Einhäuser
- Institut für Physik, Physics of Cognitive Processes, TU Chemnitz, Reichenhainer Str. 70, 09107 Chemnitz, Germany
| | - F M Paulus
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab | SNL, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, D-23538 Lübeck, Germany
| | - S Krach
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Social Neuroscience Lab | SNL, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, D-23538 Lübeck, Germany
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