13- Social Cognition

Question 1

what is social cognition ?

Answer 1

• how the brain supports our ability to know ourselves , to know other people, and to make decisions about our social world
• how brain function supports the cognitive processes underlying social behavior
• emphasizes that situations or contexts determine how we think or act

Question 2

describe the positive symptoms of schizophrenia

Answer 2

too much release of dopamine

• abnormal behavior
• hallucinations

Question 3

schizophrenia has been associated with reduced activity in what area of the brain?

Answer 3

Pre-frontal lobe (cortex)

Question 4

describe the hallmark behaviors in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Answer 4

-show little interest in other individuals or social interaction, focusing instead on internal thoughts or inanimate objects

• prefer routines
• repetitive behavior
• hypersensitive
• don’t use eye gaze as a meaningful cue for social interaction

Question 5

is ASD associated with deficits in theory of mind

Answer 5

yes

-disregard for the mental states of others

Question 6

describe the brain abnormalities in ASD

Answer 6

• small heads at birth, rapid growth until age 1, then slows down
• reduced volume in frontal lobes, superior temporal sulcus, amygdala, cerebellum, hippocampus
• changes in white matter connectivity
• hyperconnectivity in the frontal lobes

Question 7

what is the default network ….what cognitive functions is it thought to serve…how is it affected in ASD

Answer 7

• areas of the brain that are active at “rest” when not actively engaged in a task
• self-referential processing (self-reflective thought)
• in autistic individuals shows no change in activation between “rest” and doing a task (seems like they are not turning off the default mode network when doing tasks, hence making it more difficult)

Question 8

what is theory of mind

Answer 8

-ability to infer the mental states of others

Question 9

Sally-Anne False-Belief task

Answer 9

• sally places her marble in the basket
• sally exits
• anne transfers Sally’s marble a drawer
• sally reenters
• where does Sally look for the marble?
• kids below 3: drawer (fail)
• kids 4 to 5: basket (pass)

Question 10

what area of the brain is associated with theory of mind in terms of understanding the mental states of others

Answer 10

-rTPJ (right temporoparietal junction)

Question 11

what area of the brain is involved in non-verbal cues and mental states

Answer 11

superior temporal sulcus

Question 12

what is the self-reference effect

Answer 12

• enhanced memory for information processed in relation to the self
• more knowledge about the self which leads to more elaborate coding
• activity in MPFC

Question 13

what behavioral deficits are seen in patients with orbitofrontal damage by lesion or by degenerative disease?

Answer 13

• patients likely to introduce impolite conversation topics in a structured conversation with a stranger
• Once they see themselves acting inappropriately (on video) they feel embarrassed, but while engaging socially they are unaware that they are violating social norms
• Unaware that their behavior violated social rules

Question 14

what role is the orbitofrontal cortex thought to play in cognition

Answer 14

-helps identify which social rules are appropriate for a given situation so that they may flexibly change their behavior

Question 15

what is neuroeconomics

Answer 15

integrative field studying how pool make value-based decisions

Question 16

trolley and footbridge problem ….is brain activation the same or different when the moral dilemma involves a personal or an impersonal situation

Answer 16

• Impersonal (pulling the lever) : rLPFC, parietal, working memory
• personal (pushing someone): MPFC, PCC, amygdala

Question 17

area of the brain involved in evaluating negative consequences of social decision making *

Answer 17

-ventromedial PFC