Mirror neurons Flashcards
what did Rizzolatti find when studying the electrical activity in a monkey’s motor cortex?
Rizzolatti was studying electrical activity in a monkey’s motor cortex (part of brain controlling movement) - when one of the researchers reached for his lunch in the view of the monkey
motor cortex of the monkey became activated in the same way as it did when the animal reached for food
research found that it was the same brain cells fired when the monkey reached itself or watched someone else reach
researchers called these mirror neurons - the neurons mirror motor activity in another individual
what did Gallese and Goldman suggest about mirror neurons?
mirror neuron research has changed the way we understand other’s intentions - central to social cognition
Gallese and Goldman suggested that mirror neurons respond not just to observed actions - but also intentions behind behaviour
rather than the common-sense view that we interpret people’s actions with reference to our memory, Gallese and Goldman suggest that we simulate others’ actions in our motor system and experience their intentions using mirror neurons
what are mirror neurons important in?
what happens if mirror neurons fire in response to others’ actions/ intentions?
it’s been suggested that mirror neurons are importnant in other social-cognitive functions e.g. theory of mind and ability to take other’s perspective
if mirror neurons fire in response to others’ actions + intentions this may give us a neural mechanism for experiencing and hence understanding other’s perspectives and emotional states
just as we can simulate intention by making judgements based on our own reflected motor responses - same information may allow us to interpret what others are thinking/ feeling
what did Ramachandran suggest about mirror neurons and evolution?
Ramachandran suggested that mirror neurons are so important that they have effectively shaped human evolution
the uniquely complex social interactions we have as humans require a brain system that facilitates an understanding of intention, emotion and perspective.
without these cog abilities, we could not live in large groups with the complex social roles and rules that characterise human culture
Ramachandran suggests that mirror neurons are absolutely key to understand the way humans have developed as a social species.
source of info concerning mirror neurons and perspective taking is from study of mirror neurons in autistic children
some features of autism are associated with all the social-cognitive abilities linked to mirror neurons
if autistic children can be shown to have dysfunctional mirror neuron system then this may go a long way to explain autism
Ramachandran and Oberman proposed ‘broken mirror’ theory of autism
that developing deficits that include dysfunction in the mirror neuron system prevent a developing child imitating and understanding social behaviour in others - autistic children typically mimic adult behaviour less than others
later- problems with the mirror neuron system lead to challenges in social communication as children do not fully develop the usual abilities to read intention and emotion in others
