Week 11 - Social neuroscience 2

Question 1

What is NEUROIMAGING

Answer 1

We can use neuroimaging techniques to probe how:
1. The structure of the brain relates to particular task performance or traits (MRI)
2. The function of the brain during particular tasks (fMRI, EEG)

Question 2

What are the different types of brain imaging?

Answer 2

• Structural scans
• Functional scans (indirect measure of neural activity)
• Electroncephalography (EEG)
• Event Related Potentials (ERP) - Direct measure of neural activity

Question 3

What is empathy

Answer 3

• ’’ Feeling what others feel ‘’
• Concerns matching between the mental states (feelings, emotions) of an agent and a target
• An agent is empathetic to the extent that their response matches or resembles that of the target

Heyes, 2018

Question 4

Why is empathy important?

Answer 4

Empathy —-> Pro-social behaviour
- May influence our likelihood to help others
- There may be trait like measures BUT each person may be more or less likely to show empathy depending on situational factors.

Question 5

What have brain imaging studies told us?

Answer 5

There are dissociable neural systems involved in different aspects of empathy.

SYSTEM 1 - AUTOMATIC EXPERIENCE SHARING
* simiilar neural systems are activated when we both experience some state ourselves or perceive the same state in others (e.g. pain)

SYSTEM 2 - MENTALIZING
- Neural systems involved in explicict consideration of other’s mental states

Question 6

How does neuroscience study empathy?

Answer 6

• 16 couples were recruited for experiment
• Females lay in the MRI scanner
• Partners were in the ssame room
• Both had electronics attached to hand to deliver painful stimulation
• The female lying in the MRI scanner could see their partner’s hand when they got as shock

RESULTS:
Brain scans showed that brain areas were active both for self pain and for pain to partner;

Question 7

Are there differences in empathy related to structural differences in specific brain regions?

Answer 7

YES.
- More gry matter in ANTERIOR INSULA is related to greated empathy scores.

Question 8

What are facial expressions

Answer 8

• Signals of high biological value
• Transmit signals about expresser’s emotion, intentions, and environment (mental states)
• Accurate decoding plays a key role in successful social interaction
• Recognition impaired in countless psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders

Question 9

how do we recognize a facial expression of emotion?

Answer 9

1. different visual inputs
2. Stimulation process
3. Decision on which emotion is present

Question 10

What happens when the somatosensory cortex is damaged?

Answer 10

leads to problems recognizing facial expressions

Question 11

What do fMRI studies show where participants observe/display the basic expression of emotion?

Answer 11

• Same brain areas active when observing/displaying facial expressions
• Motor, somatosensory, and insula areas show overlap

but stimulation might not be necessary for efficient facial recognition

Individuals with congenital (from birth) facial paralysis can still recognise facial expressions relatively well.