A PET investigation of the attribution of intentions with a nonverbal task

The role of executive function and language abilities in explaining theory of mind development in preschool-age children

The development of theory of mind is linked to executive functions and language abilities in preschool-age children. Its relationship with these two cognitive variables has been studied from two research perspectives, providing a clear theoretical view on the links between theory of mind and executive functions on the one hand, and theory of mind and language on the other. However, the link between these three variables together has only recently been studied through a single research question and few data exist. This study therefore aimed to assess to what extent executive functions and language abilities contribute to theory of mind development. A sample of 112 children between 3 and 6-years old completed three language tasks from the ELO (Batterie d'Evaluation du Langage Oral) test: a receptive and an expressive vocabulary task and a syntax understanding task, the Wellman and Liu scale as a theory of mind task and three executive function tasks, namely the grass/snow task to measure inhibition, the DCCS (Dimensional Change Card Sort) to evaluate cognitive flexibility and the WPPSI (Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale Intelligence) to assess working memory. The findings revealed significant correlations between theory of mind and executive function domains, except for cognitive flexibility. Theory of mind and all language variables were also found to be significantly correlated. Multiple regression analyses justified only syntax and general language abilities as possible explanatory factors of the children's theory of mind performance. These findings support the view that language, more specifically syntax, is an important explanatory factor of theory of mind in young children. Theoretical implications of these finding are discussed.

Shaping the physical world to our ends through the left PF technical-cognition area

Our propensity to materiality, which consists in using, making, creating, and passing on technologies, has enabled us to shape the physical world according to our ends. To explain this proclivity, scientists have calibrated their lens to either low-level skills such as motor cognition or high-level skills such as language or social cognition. Yet, little has been said about the intermediate-level cognitive processes that are directly involved in mastering this materiality, that is, technical cognition. We aim to focus on this intermediate level for providing new insights into the neurocognitive bases of human materiality. Here, we show that a technical-reasoning process might be specifically at work in physical problem-solving situations. We found via two distinct neuroimaging studies that the area PF (parietal F) within the left parietal lobe is central for this reasoning process in both tool-use and non-tool-use physical problem-solving and can work along with social-cognitive skills to resolve day-to-day interactions that combine social and physical constraints. Our results demonstrate the existence of a specific cognitive module in the human brain dedicated to materiality, which might be the supporting pillar allowing the accumulation of technical knowledge over generations. Intensifying research on technical cognition could nurture a comprehensive framework that has been missing in fields interested in how early and modern humans have been interacting with the physical world through technology, and how this interaction has shaped our history and culture.

The lateralized cerebellum: insights into motor, cognitive, and affective functioning across ages: a scoping review

Research on the cerebellum and its functional organization has significantly expanded over the last decades, expanding our comprehension of its role far beyond motor control, including critical contributions to cognition and affective processing. Notably, the cerebellar lateralization mirrors contralateral brain lateralization, a complex phenomenon that remains unexplored, especially across different stages of life. The present work aims to bridge this gap by providing a comprehensive scoping review of the lateralization of motor, cognitive, and affective functioning within the cerebellum across the lifespan. A methodical search in electronic databases (i.e., PubMed, Embase, and PsycINFO) was conducted up to October 2024, focusing on neuroimaging studies with healthy participants of all ages performing motor, cognitive, or affective tasks. Our selection process, which involved multiple independent reviewers, identified 128 studies reporting cerebellar asymmetries in individuals from early childhood to older age, with a significant portion of studies regarding young-middle adults (19-45 years old). The majority of the findings confirmed established lateralization patterns in motor and language processing, such as ipsilateral motor control and right-lateralized language functions. However, less attention has been paid to other cognitive functions and affective processing where more heterogeneous and less consistent asymmetries have been observed. To the best of our knowledge, this scoping review is the first to comprehensively investigate the motor, cognitive, and affective functional lateralization of the cerebellum across lifespan, highlighting previously overlooked dimensions of cerebellar contributions.

Domain-specific representation of social inference by neurons in the human amygdala and hippocampus

Inferring the intentions and emotions of others from behavior is crucial for social cognition. While neuroimaging studies have identified brain regions involved in social inference, it remains unknown whether performing social inference is an abstract computation that generalizes across different stimulus categories or is specific to certain stimulus domain. We recorded single-neuron activity from the medial temporal lobe (MTL) and the medial frontal cortex (MFC) in neurosurgical patients performing different types of inferences from images of faces, hands, and natural scenes. Our findings indicate distinct neuron populations in both regions encoding inference type for social (faces, hands) and nonsocial (scenes) stimuli, while stimulus category was itself represented in a task-general manner. Uniquely in the MTL, social inference type was represented by separate subsets of neurons for faces and hands, suggesting a domain-specific representation. These results reveal evidence for specialized social inference processes in the MTL, in which inference representations were entangled with stimulus type as expected from a domain-specific process.

Social and emotional learning in the cerebellum

The posterior cerebellum has a critical role in human social and emotional learning. Three systems and related neural networks support this cerebellar function: a biological action observation system as part of an extended sensorimotor integration network, a mentalizing system for understanding a person's mental and emotional state subserved by a mentalizing network, and a limbic network supporting core emotional (dis)pleasure and arousal processes. In this Review, I describe how these systems and networks support social and emotional learning via functional reciprocal connections initiating and terminating in the posterior cerebellum and cerebral neocortex. It is hypothesized that a major function of the posterior cerebellum is to identify and encode temporal sequences of events, which might help to fine-tune and automatize social and emotional learning. I discuss research using neuroimaging and non-invasive stimulation that provides converging evidence for this hypothesized function of cerebellar sequencing, but also other potential functional accounts of the posterior cerebellum's role in these social and emotional processes.

Revisiting the musical reminiscence bump: insights from neurocognitive and social brain development in adolescence

Music listening is enjoyed across the lifespan and around the world. This has spurred many theories on the evolutionary purpose of music. The Music for Social Bonding hypothesis posits that the human capacity to make music evolved for the purpose of creating and preserving relationships between one another. Considering different time periods of music use across the lifespan, adolescence is especially a period of social reorientation away from family towards peers, characterized by new social bonds and increased prosocial behavior. This shift is accompanied by notable structural and functional changes in brain networks supporting reward processing and prosocial behavior. Reviewing the extant literature on developmental cognitive neuroscience and adolescent music use, we propose that neurocognitive changes in the reward system make adolescence an ideal developmental time window for investigating interactions between prosocial behavior and reward processing, as adolescence constitutes a time of relative increase in music reward valuation. Testing this hypothesis may clarify our understanding of developmental trajectories in music reward valuation, and offer insights into why music from adults' adolescence holds a great deal of personal significance.

Synergy of the mirror neuron system and the mentalizing system in a single brain and between brains during joint actions

Cooperative action involves the simulation of actions and their co-representation by two or more people. This requires the involvement of two complex brain systems: the mirror neuron system (MNS) and the mentalizing system (MENT), both of critical importance for successful social interaction. However, their internal organization and the potential synergy of both systems during joint actions (JA) are yet to be determined. The aim of this study was to examine the role and interaction of these two fundamental systems-MENT and MNS-during continuous interaction. To this hand, we conducted a multiple-brain connectivity analysis in the source domain during a motor cooperation task using high-density EEG dual-recordings providing relevant insights into the roles of MNS and MENT at the intra- and interbrain levels. In particular, the intra-brain analysis demonstrated the essential function of both systems during JA, as well as the crucial role played by single brain regions of both neural mechanisms during cooperative activities. Specifically, our intra-brain analysis revealed that both neural mechanisms are essential during Joint Action (JA), showing a solid connection between MNS and MENT and a central role of the single brain regions of both mechanisms during cooperative actions. Additionally, our inter-brain study revealed increased inter-subject connections involving the motor system, MENT and MNS. Thus, our findings show a mutual influence between two interacting agents, based on synchronization of MNS and MENT systems. Our results actually encourage more research into the still-largely unknown realm of inter-brain dynamics and contribute to expand the body of knowledge in social neuroscience.

Abnormalities in spontaneous brain activity and functional connectivity are associated with cognitive impairments in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus

BACKGROUND

It remains unclear whether alterations in brain function occur in the early stage of pediatric type 1 diabetes mellitus(T1DM). We aimed to examine changes in spontaneous brain activity and functional connectivity (FC) in children with T1DM using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI), and to pinpoint potential links between neural changes and cognitive performance.

METHODS

In this study, 22 T1DM children and 21 age-, sex-matched healthy controls underwent rs-fMRI. The amplitude of low frequency fluctuations (ALFF) and seed-based FC analysis were performed to examine changes in intrinsic brain activity and functional networks in T1DM children. Partial correlation analyses were utilized to explore the correlations between ALFF values and clinical parameters.

RESULTS

The ALFF values were significantly lower in the lingual gyrus (LG) and higher in the left medial superior frontal gyrus (MSFG) in T1DM children compared to controls. Subsequent FC analysis indicated that the LG had decreased FC with bilateral inferior occipital gyrus, and the left MSFG had decreased FC with right precentral gyrus, right inferior parietal gyrus and right postcentral gyrus in children with T1DM. The ALFF values of LG were positively correlated with full-scale intelligence quotient and age at disease onset in T1DM children, while the ALFF values of left MSFG were positively correlated with working memory scores.

CONCLUSION

Our findings revealed abnormal spontaneous activity and FC in brain regions related to visual, memory, default mode network, and sensorimotor network in the early stage of T1DM children, which may aid in further understanding the mechanisms underlying T1DM-associated cognitive dysfunction.

Synchrony within, synchrony without: establishing the link between interpersonal behavioural and brain-to-brain synchrony during role-play

Interpersonal synchrony is a crucial construct in understanding social interactions, which has been used in clinical studies to measure the quality of the therapeutic alliance. However, there is a lack of studies investigating the correlation between synchrony expressed on different levels: behavioural and neurophysiological. Furthermore, there are no studies that examine how the implementation of psychodramatic role-playing techniques, when individuals adopt the persona of a different character, may influence intrinsic biobehavioural synchrony between two parties. The present study, therefore, aims to uncover the relationship between behavioural and brain-to-brain synchrony across different role-playing techniques and elucidate the impact of these synchronies on participants' levels of anxiety and empathy. By using functional near-infrared imaging and behavioural coding in a dyadic role-playing paradigm (n = 41 dyads), the study found correlations between behavioural and brain-to-brain synchrony during naturalistic conversations, but not during role-play, implying a qualitative change in interpersonal synchrony when implementing role-playing techniques. Additionally, the study noted significant contributions of both behavioural and brain-to-brain synchrony as well as peripheral factors such as dyadic sex make-up and role immersion in predicting dyadic anxiety and empathy changes. Findings call for future studies to consider role-playing scenarios as a qualitatively different form of social interaction.

Theory of mind in epilepsy

Epilepsy is characterized by recurrent, chronic, and unprovoked seizures. Epilepsy has a significant negative impact on a patient's quality of life even if seizures are well controlled. In addition to the distress caused by seizures, patients with epilepsy (PwE) may suffer from cognitive impairment with serious social consequences such as poor interpersonal relationships, loss of employment, and reduced social networks. Pathological changes and functional connectivity abnormalities observed in PwE can disrupt the neural network responsible for the theory of mind. Theory of mind is the ability to attribute mental states to other people (intentions, beliefs, and emotions). It is a complex aspect of social cognition and includes cognitive and affective constructs. In recent years, numerous studies have assessed the relationship between social cognition, including the theory of mind, in PwE, and suggested impairment in this domain. Interventions targeting the theory of mind can be potentially helpful in improving the quality of life of PwE.

Cerebellar Neurostimulation for Boosting Social and Affective Functions: Implications for the Rehabilitation of Hereditary Ataxia Patients

Beyond motor deficits, spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) patients also suffer cognitive decline and show socio-affective difficulties, negatively impacting on their social functioning. The possibility to modulate cerebello-cerebral networks involved in social cognition through cerebellar neurostimulation has opened up potential therapeutic applications for ameliorating social and affective difficulties. The present review offers an overview of the research on cerebellar neurostimulation for the modulation of socio-affective functions in both healthy individuals and different clinical populations, published in the time period 2000-2022. A total of 25 records reporting either transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) or transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) studies were found. The investigated clinical populations comprised different pathological conditions, including but not limited to SCA syndromes. The reviewed evidence supports that cerebellar neurostimulation is effective in improving social abilities in healthy individuals and reducing social and affective symptoms in different neurological and psychiatric populations associated with cerebellar damage or with impairments in functions that involve the cerebellum. These findings encourage to further explore the rehabilitative effects of cerebellar neurostimulation on socio-affective deficits experienced by patients with cerebellar abnormalities, as SCA patients. Nevertheless, conclusions remain tentative at this stage due to the heterogeneity characterizing stimulation protocols, study methodologies and patients' samples.

How does the "default mode" network contribute to semantic cognition?

This review examines whether and how the "default mode" network (DMN) contributes to semantic processing. We review evidence implicating the DMN in the processing of individual word meanings and in sentence- and discourse-level semantics. Next, we argue that the areas comprising the DMN contribute to semantic processing by coordinating and integrating the simultaneous activity of local neuronal ensembles across multiple unimodal and multimodal cortical regions, creating a transient, global neuronal ensemble. The resulting ensemble implements an integrated simulation of phenomenological experience - that is, an embodied situation model - constructed from various modalities of experiential memory traces. These situation models, we argue, are necessary not only for semantic processing but also for aspects of cognition that are not traditionally considered semantic. Although many aspects of this proposal remain provisional, we believe it provides new insights into the relationships between semantic and non-semantic cognition and into the functions of the DMN.

Age-related trajectories of the development of social cognition

Age-related trajectories of intrinsic functional connectivity (iFC), which represent the interconnections between discrete regions of the human brain, for processes related to social cognition (SC) provide evidence for social development through neural imaging and can guide clinical interventions when such development is atypical. However, due to the lack of studies investigating brain development over a wide range of ages, the neural mechanisms of SC remain poorly understood, although considerable behavior-related evidence is available. The present study mapped vortex-wise iFC features between SC networks and the entire cerebral cortex by using common functional networks, creating the corresponding age-related trajectories. Three networks [moral cognition, theory of mind (ToM), and empathy] were selected as representative SC networks. The Enhanced Nathan Kline Institute-Rockland Sample (NKI-RS, N = 316, ages 8-83 years old) was employed delineate iFC characteristics and construct trajectories. The results showed that the SC networks display unique and overlapping iFC profiles. The iFC of the empathy network, an age-sensitive network, with dorsal attention network was found to exhibit a linear increasing pattern, that of the ventral attention network was observed to exhibit a linear decreasing pattern, and that of the somatomotor and dorsal attention networks was noted to exhibit a quadric-concave iFC pattern. Additionally, a sex-specific effect was observed for the empathy network as it exhibits linear and quadric sex-based differences in iFC with the frontoparietal and vision networks, respectively. The iFC of the ToM network with the ventral attention network exhibits a pronounced quadric-convex (inverted U-shape) trajectory. No linear or quadratic trajectories were noted in the iFC of the moral cognition network. These findings indicate that SC networks exhibit iFC with both low-level (somatomotor, vision) and high-level (attention and control) networks along specific developmental trajectories. The age-related trajectories determined in this study advance our understanding of the neural mechanisms of SC, providing valuable references for identification and intervention in cases of development of atypical SC.

Measures of individual differences in adult theory of mind: A systematic review

Theory of mind (ToM), the ability to understand and reason about mental states, has been extensively studied in young children and clinical populations. A growing interest in examining ToM in adults has emerged over the past two decades, but the extent to which existing measures are suitable for studying adults, especially in detecting individual differences, remains understudied. In this systematic review of 273 studies, 75 measures used to investigate individual differences in adults' ToM were identified. Their sensitivity to individual differences, reliability, and validity were examined. Results suggest that ceiling effects were prevalent, and there was limited evidence to establish the reliability or validity of these measures due to the lack of reports of psychometric properties. Interrelations among measures were inconsistent. These findings highlight the need for future empirical and theoretical work to broaden the evidence base regarding psychometric properties of measures, to develop new measures, and to lay out more specific hypotheses about the relevance of ToM for different social outcomes.

Establishing the Roles of the Dorsal and Ventral Striatum in Humor Comprehension and Appreciation with fMRI

Humor comprehension (i.e., getting a joke) and humor appreciation (i.e., enjoying a joke) are distinct, cognitively complex processes. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) investigations have identified several key cortical regions but have overlooked subcortical structures that have theoretical importance in humor processing. The dorsal striatum (DS) contributes to working memory, ambiguity processing, and cognitive flexibility, cognitive functions that are required to accurately recognize humorous stimuli. The ventral striatum (VS) is critical in reward processing and enjoyment. We hypothesized that the DS and VS play important roles in humor comprehension and appreciation, respectively. We investigated the engagement of these regions in these distinct processes using fMRI. Twenty-six healthy young male and female human adults completed two humor-elicitation tasks during a 3 tesla fMRI scan consisting of a traditional behavior-based joke task and a naturalistic audiovisual sitcom paradigm (i.e., Seinfeld viewing task). Across both humor-elicitation methods, whole-brain analyses revealed cortical activation in the inferior frontal gyrus, the middle frontal gyrus, and the middle temporal gyrus for humor comprehension, and the temporal cortex for humor appreciation. Additionally, with region of interest analyses, we specifically examined whether DS and VS activation correlated with these processes. Across both tasks, we demonstrated that humor comprehension implicates both the DS and the VS, whereas humor appreciation only engages the VS. These results establish the role of the DS in humor comprehension, which has been previously overlooked, and emphasize the role of the VS in humor processing more generally.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Humorous stimuli are processed by the brain in at least two distinct stages. First, humor comprehension involves understanding humorous intent through cognitive and problem-solving mechanisms. Second, humor appreciation involves enjoyment, mirth, and laughter in response to a joke. The roles of smaller subcortical brain regions in humor processing, such as the DS and VS, have been overlooked in previous investigations. However, these regions are involved in functions that support humor comprehension (e.g., working memory ambiguity resolution, and cognitive flexibility) and humor appreciation (e.g., reward processing, pleasure, and enjoyment). In this study, we used neuroimaging to demonstrate that the DS and VS play important roles in humor comprehension and appreciation, respectively, across two different humor-elicitation tasks.

Moral foundations elicit shared and dissociable cortical activation modulated by political ideology

Moral foundations theory (MFT) holds that moral judgements are driven by modular and ideologically variable moral foundations but where and how these foundations are represented in the brain and shaped by political beliefs remains an open question. Using a moral vignette judgement task (n = 64), we probed the neural (dis)unity of moral foundations. Univariate analyses revealed that moral judgement of moral foundations, versus conventional norms, reliably recruits core areas implicated in theory of mind. Yet, multivariate pattern analysis demonstrated that each moral foundation elicits dissociable neural representations distributed throughout the cortex. As predicted by MFT, individuals' liberal or conservative orientation modulated neural responses to moral foundations. Our results confirm that each moral foundation recruits domain-general mechanisms of social cognition but also has a dissociable neural signature malleable by sociomoral experience. We discuss these findings in view of unified versus dissociable accounts of morality and their neurological support for MFT.

Functional reorganization of the brain in distinct frequency bands during eyes-open meditation

Meditation is a self-regulatory process practiced primarily to reduce stress, manage emotions and mental health. The objective of this work is to study the information exchange between electrodes within and across the hemispheres during meditation using functional connectivity (FC) measures. We investigate the changes in the coherence between EEG electrode pairs during the meditation with open eyes practiced by long-term Brahmakumaris Rajyoga meditators and during listening to music by controls as the comparable task. FC derived from coherency, pairwise phase consistency (PPC) is used to study the changes in intra and interhemispheric coherence. Integrating connectivity (IC) derived from node degree strength has also been analyzed. Meditators show increased PPC in higher theta and alpha bands both within and across hemispheres. However, the control subjects with no knowledge of meditation show no change in theta band during the music session. Further, during baseline conditions, higher interhemispheric anterior to posterior IC is found in meditators in higher beta and slow gamma bands than controls. Distinct patterns of changes are observed with the PPC and IC measures in different frequency bands during meditation in the meditators and music-listening session in the control subjects indicating varied information processing between the right and left hemispheres. Increased IC is found between the frontal electrodes implying increased self-awareness in meditators. The PPC between the occipital electrodes in meditators is less than the controls in baseline condition indicating a possible modified visual information processing in Rajyoga meditators due to the long-term practice of meditation with open eyes. Overall, the changes in PPC and associated IC indicate increased functional integration during meditation supporting the hypothesis of communication through coherence and cortical integration theory during the non-ordinary state of consciousness induced by meditation.

Teachers recruit mentalizing regions to represent learners' beliefs

Teaching enables humans to impart vast stores of culturally specific knowledge and skills. However, little is known about the neural computations that guide teachers' decisions about what information to communicate. Participants (N = 28) played the role of teachers while being scanned using fMRI; their task was to select examples that would teach learners how to answer abstract multiple-choice questions. Participants' examples were best described by a model that selects evidence that maximizes the learner's belief in the correct answer. Consistent with this idea, participants' predictions about how well learners would do closely tracked the performance of an independent sample of learners (N = 140) who were tested on the examples they had provided. In addition, regions that play specialized roles in processing social information, namely the bilateral temporoparietal junction and middle and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex, tracked learners' posterior belief in the correct answer. Our results shed light on the computational and neural architectures that support our extraordinary abilities as teachers.

Exposure to Multicultural Context Affects Neural Response to Out-Group Faces: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Recent migration and globalization trends have led to the emergence of ethnically, religiously, and linguistically diverse countries. Understanding the unfolding of social dynamics in multicultural contexts becomes a matter of common interest to promote national harmony and social cohesion among groups. The current functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study aimed to (i) explore the neural signature of the in-group bias in the multicultural context; and (ii) assess the relationship between the brain activity and people's system-justifying ideologies. A sample of 43 (22 females) Chinese Singaporeans (M = 23.36; SD = 1.41) was recruited. All participants completed the Right Wing Authoritarianism Scale and Social Dominance Orientation Scale to assess their system-justifying ideologies. Subsequently, four types of visual stimuli were presented in an fMRI task: Chinese (in-group), Indian (typical out-group), Arabic (non-typical out-group), and Caucasian (non-typical out-group) faces. The right middle occipital gyrus and the right postcentral gyrus showed enhanced activity when participants were exposed to in-group (Chinese) rather than out-group (Arabic, Indian, and Caucasian) faces. Regions having a role in mentalization, empathetic resonance, and social cognition showed enhanced activity to Chinese (in-group) rather than Indian (typical out-group) faces. Similarly, regions typically involved in socioemotional and reward-related processing showed increased activation when participants were shown Chinese (in-group) rather than Arabic (non-typical out-group) faces. The neural activations in the right postcentral gyrus for in-group rather than out-group faces and in the right caudate in response to Chinese rather than Arabic faces were in a significant positive correlation with participants' Right Wing Authoritarianism scores (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the activity in the right middle occipital gyrus for Chinese rather than out-group faces was in a significant negative correlation with participants' Social Dominance Orientation scores (p < 0.05). Results are discussed by considering the typical role played by the activated brain regions in socioemotional processes as well as the role of familiarity to out-group faces.

The complexity of theory of mind deficit in schizophrenia: A cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from a longitudinal schizophrenia study

A large number of trials have supported the functional significance of Theory of Mind (ToM) impairment in schizophrenia. However, the nature and the extent of the impairment are still unclear. Reviews on the topic suggest that, in many cases, studies use only one tool to assess the levels of difficulty in the field, limiting the validity of the measurement to one aspect of ToM. On the other hand, the divergence of the used assessment tools makes it hard to compare the result of these studies. Thus, we decided to use additional assessment tools to evaluate the extent of ToM in order to describe several aspects of the phenomenon. A hierarchical cluster analysis of variables was used on a sample of 68 participants with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, to determine the similarity between variances of the assessed ToM subcomponents. Further cross-sectional correlational analysis was then performed to investigate the association between the identified clusters and other used measures (e.g.: neurocognition). The statistical analysis supported a five-cluster model. Identified clusters illustrate the difference between Hypo and HyperToM as well as the degree of ToM task complexity, allowing for a more accurate description of the nature of ToM deficit in schizophrenia.

Weaving a story: Narrative formation over prolonged time scales engages social cognition and frontoparietal networks

Forming narratives is of key importance to human experience, enabling one to render large amounts of information into relatively compacted stories for future retrieval, giving meaning to otherwise fragmented occurrences. The neural mechanisms that underlie coherent narrative construction of causally connected information over prolonged temporal periods are yet unclear. Participants in this fMRI study observed consecutive scenes from a full-length movie either in their original order, enabling causal inferences over time, or in reverse order, impeding a key component of coherent narratives-causal inference. In between scenes, we presented short periods of blank screens for examining post-encoding processing effects. Using multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) followed by seed-base correlation analysis, we hypothesized that networks involved in online monitoring of incoming information on the one hand, and offline processing of previous occurrences on the other would differ between the groups. We found that despite the exposure to the same scenes, the chronological-order condition exhibited enhanced functional connectivity in frontoparietal regions associated with information integration and working memory. The reverse-order condition yielded offline, post-scene coactivation of neural networks involved in social cognition and particularly theory of mind and action comprehension. These findings shed light on offline processes of narrative construction efforts, highlighting the role of social cognition networks in seeking for narrative coherence.

To Do or Not to Do: The cerebellum and neocortex contribute to predicting sequences of social intentions

Humans read the minds of others to predict their actions and efficiently navigate social environments, a capacity called mentalizing. Accumulating evidence suggests that the cerebellum, especially Crus 1 and 2, and lobule IX are involved in identifying the sequence of others' actions. In the current study, we investigated the neural correlates that underly predicting others' intentions and how this plays out in the sequence of their actions. We developed a novel intention prediction task, which required participants to put protagonists' behaviors in the correct chronological order based on the protagonists' honest or deceitful intentions (i.e., inducing true or false beliefs in others). We found robust activation of cerebellar lobule IX and key mentalizing areas in the neocortex when participants ordered protagonists' intentional behaviors compared with not ordering behaviors or to ordering object scenarios. Unlike a previous task that involved prediction based on personality traits that recruited cerebellar Crus 1 and 2, and lobule IX (Haihambo et al., 2021), the present task recruited only the cerebellar lobule IX. These results suggest that cerebellar lobule IX may be generally involved in social action sequence prediction, and that different areas of the cerebellum are specialized for distinct mentalizing functions.

Narcolepsy and emotions: Is there a place for a theory of mind approach?

Narcolepsy type 1 is a central disorder of hypersomnolence characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness, rapid eye movement sleep-related manifestations, and cataplexy. In the current literature there is general agreement regarding neural correlates of Narcolepsy type 1 that appear to be related to anatomical and functional abnormalities in the hypothalamic region. In the last two decades, researchers shed light on the neurological bases of cataplexy by focusing on the neurobiological correlates of emotions. Although the results of these studies differ, they all point to an impairment in the amygdala and hypothalamus functions that are known to be involved in emotional processing, suggesting an impairment in this domain in narcoleptic patients. Indeed, despite heterogeneous results, several studies showed that narcoleptic patients differed from healthy controls in processing emotional stimuli. From a behavioral point of view, these findings suggest that alterations in emotional processing may be driven, at least in part, by compensatory strategies to avoid or reduce the frequency of cataplexy attacks. Surprisingly, the only study exploring in NT1 the behavioural performances in emotional facial recognition found no differences between NT1 adults and controls. We hypothesize that narcoleptic patients may present an alteration in a more complex socio-cognitive ability that is related to emotional processing, namely Theory of Mind. This review aims to investigate the literature supporting this hypothesis and to propose possible future developments on this topic.

Relationships between neuropsychological performance, insight, medication adherence, and social metacognition in schizophrenia

BACKGROUND

Social metacognition is still poorly understood in schizophrenia, particularly its neuropsychological basis and its impact on insight and medication adherence. We therefore quantified social metacognition as the agreement between objective and subjective mentalization and assessed its correlates in a sample of individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

METHODS

Participants consisted of 143 patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorders who underwent a metacognitive version of a mentalization task, an extensive neuropsychological battery, and a clinical evaluation to assess their insight into illness and medication adherence. We studied potential interactions between confidence judgments and several neuropsychological and clinical variables on mentalization accuracy with mixed-effects multiple logistic regressions.

RESULTS

Confidence judgments were closely associated with mentalization accuracy, indicative of good social metacognition in this task. Working memory, visual memory, and reasoning and problem-solving were the three neuropsychological dimensions positively associated with metacognition. By contrast, the two measures of medication adherence were associated with poorer metacognition, whereas no association was found between metacognition and clinical insight. The multiple regression model showed a significant positive impact of better working memory, older age at onset, longer duration of hospitalization, and worse medication adherence on social metacognition.

CONCLUSIONS

We discuss possible mechanisms underlying the apparent association between social metacognition and working memory. Adherence should be monitored when remediating social metacognition, and psychoeducation should be given to patients with a high level of awareness of their capacity to mentalize.

Linking fine motor skills with theory of mind in school-age children

Motor skills have been linked to language and social development with implications for theory of mind. This study examined theory of mind (attribution of intentions task) in school-age children ( N = 62, mean age 8 years; 2 months, standard deviation [ SD] = 1;3) in relation to fine motor skills (grooved pegboard), receptive vocabulary (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test), receptive grammar (Test for the Reception of Grammar), reading comprehension (Woodcock Reading Mastery Tests), verbal short-term (nonword repetition), and visual-spatial working memory (one-shape array memory). All variables except verbal short-term memory correlated with accuracy on theory of mind. In regression models, fine motor skills accounted for variance in theory of mind after controlling for age, language, and working memory. The results add to research linking fine motor skills with faux pas understanding, indicating the potentially broad impact of motor skills on social cognition. Given the cross-sectional study design, longitudinal research is warranted to address causality.

Neural alterations in opioid-exposed infants revealed by edge-centric brain functional networks

Prenatal opioid exposure has been linked to adverse effects spanning multiple neurodevelopmental domains, including cognition, motor development, attention, and vision. However, the neural basis of these abnormalities is largely unknown. A total of 49 infants, including 21 opioid-exposed and 28 controls, were enrolled and underwent MRI (43 ± 6 days old) after birth, including resting state functional MRI. Edge-centric functional networks based on dynamic functional connections were constructed, and machine-learning methods were employed to identify neural features distinguishing opioid-exposed infants from unexposed controls. An accuracy of 73.6% (sensitivity 76.25% and specificity 69.33%) was achieved using 10 times 10-fold cross-validation, which substantially outperformed those obtained using conventional static functional connections (accuracy 56.9%). More importantly, we identified that prenatal opioid exposure preferentially affects inter- rather than intra-network dynamic functional connections, particularly with the visual, subcortical, and default mode networks. Consistent results at the brain regional and connection levels were also observed, where the brain regions and connections associated with visual and higher order cognitive functions played pivotal roles in distinguishing opioid-exposed infants from controls. Our findings support the clinical phenotype of infants exposed to opioids in utero and may potentially explain the higher rates of visual and emotional problems observed in this population. Finally, our findings suggested that edge-centric networks could better capture the neural differences between opioid-exposed infants and controls by abstracting the intrinsic co-fluctuation along edges, which may provide a promising tool for future studies focusing on investigating the effects of prenatal opioid exposure on neurodevelopment.

Increased retention of tau PET ligand [18F]-AV1451 in Alzheimer's Disease Psychosis

Psychosis in Alzheimer's disease (AD) represents a distinct disease subtype with a more rapid progression of illness evidenced by an increased velocity of cognitive decline and a hastened mortality. Previous biomarker and post-mortem studies have implicated tau neuropathology as a possible mediator of the accelerated decline in AD psychosis. Tau positron emission tomography (PET) neuroimaging provides the opportunity to evaluate tau pathology in-vivo, so that clinical symptomatology can be correlated with disease pathology. [¹⁸F]-AV1451 (Flortaucipir) is a PET ligand with high affinity for insoluble paired-helical filaments (PHFs) of hyperphosphorylated tau. In order to determine whether the development of psychosis and worsened prognosis in AD is associated with an increased burden of tau pathology that can be identified with tau imaging, we identified subjects within the Alzheimer's disease neuroimaging initiative (ADNI) who had [¹⁸F]-AV1451 imaging at baseline and became psychotic over the course of the study (N = 17) and matched them 1:3 for gender, age, and education to subjects who had [¹⁸F]-AV1451 imaging at baseline and did not become psychotic (N = 50). We compared baseline [¹⁸F]-AV1451 retention, in addition to cognitive and functional baseline and longitudinal change, in those who became psychotic over the course of participation in ADNI with those who did not. Results suggest that increases in tau pathology in frontal, medial temporal, and occipital cortices, visualized with [¹⁸F]-AV1451 binding, are associated with psychosis and a more rapid cognitive and functional decline.

People with High Empathy Show Increased Cortical Activity around the Left Medial Parieto-Occipital Sulcus after Watching Social Interaction of On-Screen Characters

People with high empathy interpret others’ mental states in daily social interactions. To investigate their characteristics of social cognitive processing, we compared neuromagnetic activities between 20 males with high empathy and 23 males with low empathy while watching social interactions between two characters. Twenty stories of four-panel comic strips were presented; the first three panels described social interactions, and the last panel described empathic/nonempathic behaviors. People with high empathy exhibited increased cortical activity in the right occipital region, medial part of the bilateral superior frontal gyri, and right posterior insula while watching social interaction scenes, which suggests that they paid attention to others’ faces and bodies, and inferred others’ mental states. They also exhibited increased cortical activity in the left superior frontal gyrus while watching empathic behaviors. Moreover, they exhibited increased cortical activity in the region around the left medial parieto-occipital sulcus, which is related to self-projection, while passively watching both empathic and nonempathic endings. Taken together, these results suggest that people with high empathy pay attention to others and actively infer others’ mental states while watching social interactions and that they reconstruct others’ mental states and intentions through self-projection after watching a sequence of others’ behaviors.

Assessment of theory of mind in Tunisian verbal children with autism spectrum disorder

The present study examined performance in Theory of Mind (ToM) in a group of 31 Arabic-speaking verbal children (7-12 years-old) with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), in comparison with neurotypical controls (NT) matched for age and for cognitive abilities. An innovative task in a digital format named "The Tunisian Social Situations Instrument" (TSSI) was used and allowed us to study four different subdomains of ToM: attribution of intention and epistemic ToM (cognitive ToM), affective ToM, and detection of faux pas (advanced ToM). Our study showed impairments in ToM in children with ASD, similar to those reported in the literature. Our findings additionally suggested that affective and advanced ToM, specifically the detection of faux pas, might be more challenging for ASD children than other components of ToM. Future studies with larger number of children may lead us to specify which subdomains are the most impaired in order to develop specific tools targeting these specific impairments.

Cognitive and affective theory of mind double dissociation after parietal and temporal lobe tumours

Extensive neuroimaging literature suggests that understanding others' thoughts and emotions engages a wide network encompassing parietal, temporal and medial frontal brain areas. However, the causal role played by these regions in social inferential abilities is still unclear. Moreover very little is known about ToM deficits in brain tumours and whether potential anatomical substrates are comparable to those identified in fMRI literature. This study evaluated the performance of 105 tumour patients, before and immediately after brain surgery, on a cartoon-based non-verbal task evaluating Cognitive (Intention Attribution) and Affective (Emotion Attribution) ToM, as well as a non-social control condition (Causal Inference). Across multiple analyses, we found converging evidence of a double dissociation between patients with right superior parietal damage, selectively impaired in Intention Attribution, and those with right antero-medial temporal lesion, exhibiting deficits only in Emotion attribution. Instead, patients with damage to the frontal cortex were impaired in all kinds of inferential processes, including those from the non-social control conditions. Overall, our data provides novel reliable causal evidence of segregation between different aspects of the ToM network from both the cognitive and also the anatomical point of view.

Intention Attribution in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: An EEG Study

The ability to infer intentions from observed behavior and predict actions based on this inference, known as intention attribution (IA), has been hypothesized to be impaired in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The underlying neural processes, however, have not been conclusively determined. The aim of this study was to examine the neural signature of IA in children and adolescents with ASD, and to elucidate potential links to contextual updating processes using electroencephalography. Results did not indicate that IA or early contextual updating was impaired in ASD. However, there was evidence of aberrant processing of expectation violations in ASD, particularly if the expectation was based on IA. Results are discussed within the context of impaired predictive coding in ASD.

Impaired Perception of Unintentional Transgression of Social Norms after Prefrontal Cortex Damage: Relationship to Decision Making, Emotion Recognition, and Executive Functions

OBJECTIVE

Patients with prefrontal cortex damage often transgress social rules and show lower accuracy in identifying and explaining inappropriate social behavior. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between the ability to perceive other unintentional transgressions of social norms and both decision making and emotion recognition as these abilities are critical for appropriate social behavior.

METHOD

We examined a group of patients with focal prefrontal cortex damage (N = 28) and a group of matched control participants (N = 28) for their abilities to detect unintentional transgression of social norms using the "Faux-Pas" task of theory of mind, to make advantageous decisions on the Iowa gambling task, and to recognize basic emotions on the Ekman facial affect test.

RESULTS

The group of patients with frontal lobe damage was impaired in all of these tasks compared with control participants. Moreover, all the "Faux-Pas", Iowa gambling, and emotion recognition tasks were significantly associated and predicted by executive measures of inhibition, flexibility, or planning. However, only measures from the Iowa gambling task were associated and predicted performance on the "Faux-Pas" task. These tasks were not associated with performance in recognition of basic emotions. These findings suggest that theory of mind, executive functions, and decision-making abilities act in an interdependent way for appropriate social behavior. However, theory of mind and emotion recognition seem to have distinct but additive effects upon social behavior. Results from VLSM analysis also corroborate these data by showing a partially overlapped prefrontal circuitry underlying these cognitive domains.

Social Cognition in Patients With Cerebellar Neurodegenerative Disorders

Objective

Cerebellar neurodegenerative disorders (CDs) are a heterogeneous group of disorders. It is known that the cerebellum plays a role not only in motor, but also in cognitive and social cognitive functions. The aim of this study was to investigate social cognition in patients with different CDs.

Materials and Methods

Social cognition was examined in 34 patients, 12 with spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1), 6 with spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2), and 16 with idiopathic late onset cerebellar ataxia (ILOCA). All patients were clinically evaluated using the Scale for the Rating and Assessment of Ataxia. In addition, 34 age, sex, and education-matched healthy control (HC) subjects were similarly analyzed. Social cognition was studied using two tests: the Faux Pas Recognition Test and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). An appropriate array of neuropsychological tests was used to assess the global cognitive status as well as the frontal functions and mood.

Results

CD patients achieved significantly worse results on both tests of social cognition compared to the HCs. The SCA1 + 2 group achieved the poorest results on the Faux Pas Recognition Test and exhibited poor performance on all cognitive tests, but was only significantly worse compared to the ILOCA group on the Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test (FCSRT) – recognition. The patients in the SCA1 + 2 and ILOCA groups obtained similar scores on RMET. In the SCA1 + 2 group the findings significantly correlated with clinical parameters of disease severity and duration and executive functions (EFs), and with mood and executive functions in the ILOCA group. In the SCA group EFs appeared as the only significant predictor of RMET achievement. The Boston Naming Test (BTN) was a significant predictor of the CD patients’ achievement on RMET, while the BTN, the Trail Making Test Part A and FCSRT – Delayed free recall predicted their performance on the Faux Pas Recognition Test.

Conclusion

Patients with CD have social cognitive impairments as demonstrated by the Faux Pas Test and the RMET test results. The SCA1 and 2 patients exhibited a more pronounced impairment compared with the ILOCA patients. The independent cognitive predictors of social cognition impairment were EFs and language.

The Underlying neural mechanisms of interpersonal situations on collaborative ability: A hyperscanning study using functional near-infrared spectroscopy

The collaborative ability to coordinate an individual with others is critical to performance of joint actions. Prior studies found that different types of interpersonal situations have more or less impact on the collaborative ability of joint actions, but the results are controversial. To clarify the influence of interpersonal situations on collaborative ability, we adopted the joint Simon task, a choice-reaction task that two people perform together. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was used to study the neural mechanisms of interpersonal situations on collaborative ability and task performance under payoffs that fostered competition or cooperation. The fNIRS results showed that significant inter-brain neural synchronization (INS) occurred in the bilateral inferior parietal lobule (IPL) for both situations. Moreover, for the competition situation, the pairs also shown a significant INS in the right IPL. These results imply that the bilateral IPL is involved in cooperation and competition due to involvement of common concern and understanding of intention. The right IPL may be more crucial for competition because of the psychological resources involved in distinguishing self and others. Eventually, the INS in competition was better than in the other situations, correlating with higher performance of the joint task as well.

Feeling left out or just surprised? Neural correlates of social exclusion and overinclusion in adolescence

Social belonging is an important human drive that influences mood and behavior. Neural responses to social exclusion are well-characterized, but the specificity of these responses to processing rejection-related affective distress is unknown. The present study compares neural responses to exclusion and overinclusion, a condition that similarly violates fairness expectations but does not involve rejection, with a focus on implications for models of dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) and anterior insula (AI) function. In an fMRI adaptation of the Cyberball paradigm with adolescents aged 11.1-17.7 years (N = 69), we employed parametric modulators to examine scaling of neural signal with cumulative exclusion and inclusion events, an approach that overcomes arbitrary definitions of condition onsets/offsets imposed on fluid, continuous gameplay. We identified positive scaling of dACC and posterior insula response with cumulative exclusion events, but these same regions exhibited trending signal decreases with cumulative inclusion events. Furthermore, areas within the dACC and insula also responded to context incongruency (throws to the participant in the exclusion run; throws between computer players in the overinclusion run). These findings caution against interpretations that responses in these regions uniquely reflect the affective distress of exclusion within social interaction paradigms. We further identified that the left ventrolateral PFC, rostromedial PFC, and left intraparietal sulcus responded similarly to cumulative exclusion and inclusion. These findings shed light on which neural regions exhibit patterns of differential sensitivity to exclusion or overinclusion, as well as those that are more broadly engaged by both types of social interaction.

Theory of minds: managing mental state inferences in working memory is associated with the dorsomedial subsystem of the default network and social integration

We often interact with multiple people at a time and consider their various points of view to facilitate smooth social interaction. Yet, how our brains track multiple mental states at once, and whether skill in this domain links to social integration, remains underspecified. To fill this gap, we developed a novel social working memory paradigm in which participants manage two- or four-people’s mental states in working memory, as well as control trials in which they alphabetize two- or four-people’s names in working memory. In Study 1, we found that the dorsomedial subsystem of the default network shows relative increases in activity with more mental states managed in working memory. In contrast, this subsystem shows relative decreases in activity with more non-mental state information (the number of names alphabetized) managed in working memory. In Study 2, only individual differences in managing mental states in working memory, specifically on trials that posed the greatest mental state load to working memory, correlated with social integration. Collectively, these findings add further support to the hypothesis that social working memory relies on partially distinct brain systems and may be a key ingredient to success in a social world.

The Cerebellum Is a Common Key for Visuospatial Execution and Attention in Parkinson's Disease

Cognitive decline affects the clinical course in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and contributes to a poor prognosis. However, little is known about the underlying network-level abnormalities associated with each cognitive domain. We aimed to identify the networks related to each cognitive domain in PD using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Forty patients with PD and 15 normal controls were enrolled. All subjects underwent MRI and the Mini-Mental State Examination. Furthermore, the cognitive function of patients with PD was assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). We used independent component analysis of the resting-state functional MRI for functional segmentation, followed by reconstruction to identify each domain-related network, to predict scores in PD using multiple regression models. Six networks were identified, as follows: the visuospatial-executive-domain-related network (R² = 0.54, p < 0.001), naming-domain-related network (R² = 0.39, p < 0.001), attention-domain-related network (R² = 0.86, p < 0.001), language-domain-related network (R² = 0.64, p < 0.001), abstraction-related network (R² = 0.10, p < 0.05), and orientation-domain-related network (R² = 0.64, p < 0.001). Cerebellar lobule VII was involved in the visuospatial-executive-domain-related and attention-domain-related networks. These two domains are involved in the first three listed nonamnestic cognitive impairment in the diagnostic criteria for PD with dementia (PDD). Furthermore, Brodmann area 10 contributed most frequently to each domain-related network. Collectively, these findings suggest that cerebellar lobule VII may play a key role in cognitive impairment in nonamnestic types of PDD.

Cortical Structural Connectivity Alterations and Potential Pathogenesis in Mid-Stage Sporadic Parkinson's Disease

Many clinical symptoms of sporadic Parkinson's disease (sPD) cannot be completely explained by a lesion of the simple typical extrapyramidal circuit between the striatum and substantia nigra. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the new potential damaged pathogenesis of other brain regions associated with the multiple and complex clinical symptoms of sPD through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A total of 65 patients with mid-stage sPD and 35 healthy controls were recruited in this study. Cortical structural connectivity was assessed by seed-based analysis using the vertex-based morphology of MRI. Seven different clusters in the brain regions of cortical thickness thinning derived from the regression analysis using brain size as covariates between sPD and control were selected as seeds. Results showed that the significant alteration of cortical structural connectivity mainly occurred in the bilateral frontal orbital, opercular, triangular, precentral, rectus, supplementary-motor, temporal pole, angular, Heschl, parietal, supramarginal, postcentral, precuneus, occipital, lingual, cuneus, Rolandic-opercular, cingulum, parahippocampal, calcarine, olfactory, insula, paracentral-lobule, and fusiform regions at the mid-stage of sPD. These findings suggested that the extensive alteration of cortical structural connectivity is one of possible pathogenesis resulting in the multiple and complex clinical symptoms in sPD.

Situating language in a minimal social context: how seeing a picture of the speaker's face affects language comprehension

Natural use of language involves at least two individuals. Some studies have focused on the interaction between senders in communicative situations and how the knowledge about the speaker can bias language comprehension. However, the mere effect of a face as a social context on language processing remains unknown. In the present study, we used event-related potentials to investigate the semantic and morphosyntactic processing of speech in the presence of a photographic portrait of the speaker. In Experiment 1, we show that the N400, a component related to semantic comprehension, increased its amplitude when processed within this minimal social context compared to a scrambled face control condition. Hence, the semantic neural processing of speech is sensitive to the concomitant perception of a picture of the speaker's face, even if irrelevant to the content of the sentences. Moreover, a late posterior negativity effect was found to the presentation of the speaker's face compared to control stimuli. In contrast, in Experiment 2, we found that morphosyntactic processing, as reflected in left anterior negativity and P600 effects, is not notably affected by the presence of the speaker's portrait. Overall, the present findings suggest that the mere presence of the speaker's image seems to trigger a minimal communicative context, increasing processing resources for language comprehension at the semantic level.

Neuropsychological predictors of driving hazard detection in autism spectrum disorder and ADHD

Driving is a neuropsychologically complex task; this can present challenges for individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) such asautism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Deficits in theory of mind (ToM) and executive function (EF) are common features of ASD and ADHD, respectively, and may influence driving processes such as hazard perception. No studies have directly examined the neuropsychological contributions to hazard detection among drivers with ASD compared to ADHD.In the current study, 48 participants ages 16-30 years (13 ASD, 17 ADHD, 18 typically developing (TD)) completed a driving simulator task in which they encountered hazards in the driving environment. Hazards varied in whether they were social (contained a human component) or nonsocial (were physical objects) to examine the contribution of ToM and social processing to hazard response. Additionally, participants completed a neuropsychological battery targeting ToM and EF/attention skills (cognitive tasks and self-report measures).Within the ASD group, participants responded relatively slower to social compared to nonsocial hazards; no effect of hazard type was observed in the ADHD or TD groups. Additionally, measures of ToM and EF were correlated with driving performanceamong ASD participants; within the ADHD group, only self-reported behavior regulation was associated with driving performance. Broadly, this suggests that cognitive factors such as ToM and EF impact driving hazard performance in ASD and ADHD. The results of the study have implications for developing driving intervention programs for individuals with NDDs.

Neuroanatomical Correlates of Social Intelligence Measured by the Guilford Test

Social interactions are a crucial aspect of human behaviour. Numerous neurophysiological studies have focused on socio-cognitive processes associated with the so-called theory of mind-the ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others. Theory of mind is closely related to social intelligence defined as a set of abilities that facilitate effective social interactions. Social intelligence encompasses multiple theory of mind components and can be measured by the Four Factor Test of Social Intelligence (the Guilford-Sullivan test). However, it is unclear whether the differences in social intelligence are reflected in structural brain differences. During the experiment, 48 healthy right-handed individuals completed the Guilford-Sullivan test. T1-weighted structural MRI images were obtained for all participants. Voxel-based morphometry analysis was performed to reveal grey matter volume differences between the two groups (24 subjects in each)-with high social intelligence scores and with low social intelligence scores, respectively. Participants with high social intelligence scores had larger grey matter volumes of the bilateral caudate. The obtained results suggest the caudate nucleus involvement in the neural system of socio-cognitive processes, reflected by its structural characteristics.

Frontotemporal dementia, music perception and social cognition share neurobiological circuits: A meta-analysis

Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a neurodegenerative disease that presents with profound changes in social cognition. Music might be a sensitive probe for social cognition abilities, but underlying neurobiological substrates are unclear. We performed a meta-analysis of voxel-based morphometry studies in FTD patients and functional MRI studies for music perception and social cognition tasks in cognitively normal controls to identify robust patterns of atrophy (FTD) or activation (music perception or social cognition). Conjunction analyses were performed to identify overlapping brain regions. In total 303 articles were included: 53 for FTD (n = 1153 patients, 42.5% female; 1337 controls, 53.8% female), 28 for music perception (n = 540, 51.8% female) and 222 for social cognition in controls (n = 5664, 50.2% female). We observed considerable overlap in atrophy patterns associated with FTD, and functional activation associated with music perception and social cognition, mostly encompassing the ventral language network. We further observed overlap across all three modalities in mesolimbic, basal forebrain and striatal regions. The results of our meta-analysis suggest that music perception and social cognition share neurobiological circuits that are affected in FTD. This supports the idea that music might be a sensitive probe for social cognition abilities with implications for diagnosis and monitoring.

Emotional disorders and the cerebellum: Neurobiological substrates, neuropsychiatry, and therapeutic implications

The notion that the cerebellum is devoted exclusively to motor control has been replaced by a more sophisticated understanding of its role in neurological function, one that includes cognition and emotion. Early clinical reports, as well as physiological and behavioral studies in animal models, raised the possibility of a nonmotor role for the cerebellum. Anatomical studies demonstrate cerebellar connectivity with the distributed neural circuits linked with autonomic, sensorimotor, vestibular, associative, and limbic/paralimbic brain areas. Identification of the cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome in adults and children underscored the clinical relevance of the role of the cerebellum in cognition and emotion. It opened new avenues of investigation into higher-order deficits that accompany the ataxias and other cerebellar diseases, as well as the contribution of cerebellar dysfunction to neuropsychiatric and neurocognitive disorders. Brain imaging studies have demonstrated the complexity of cerebellar functional topography, revealing a double representation of the sensorimotor cerebellum in the anterior lobe and lobule VIII and a triple cognitive representation in the cerebellar posterior lobe, as well as representation in the cerebellum of the intrinsic connectivity networks identified in the cerebral hemispheres. This paradigm shift in thinking about the cerebellum has been advanced by the theories of dysmetria of thought and the universal cerebellar transform, harmonizing the dual anatomic realities of homogeneously repeating cerebellar cortical microcircuitry set against the heterogeneous and topographically arranged cerebellar connections with extracerebellar structures. This new appreciation of cerebellar incorporation into circuits that subserve cognition and emotion mandates a deeper understanding of the cerebellum by practitioners in behavioral neurology and neuropsychiatry because it impacts the understanding and diagnosis of disorders of emotion and intellect and has potential for novel cerebellar-based approaches to therapy.

Neural Correlates of Mental Rotation in Preschoolers With High or Low Working Memory Capacity: An fNIRS Study

This study explored the differentiated neural correlates of mental rotation (MR) in preschoolers with high and low working memory capacity using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Altogether 38 Chinese preschoolers (M = 5.0 years, SD = 0.69 years) completed the Working Memory Capacity (WMC) test, the Mental Rotation (MR), and its Control tasks (without MR). They were divided into High-WMC (N₁ = 9) and Low-WMC (N₂ = 18) groups based on the WMC scores. The behavioral and fNIRS results indicated that: (1) there were no significant differences in MR task performance between the High-WMC (M_mr = 23.44, SD = 0.88) and Low-WMC group (M_mr = 23.67, SD = 0.59); (2) the Low-WMC group activated BA6, BA8, BA 9, and BA 44, whereas the High-WMC group activated BA8, BA10 and BA 44 during mental rotation; (3) significant differences were found in the activation of BA44 and BA9 between the High-WMC and Low-WMC groups during mental rotation; and (4) the High-WMC and Low-WMC groups differed significantly in the activation of BA 9 and BA10 during the control tasks, indicating that both areas might be responsible for the group differences in working memory.

Theory of mind in adults with traumatic brain injury: A meta-analysis

Studies of abnormal theory of mind (ToM) performance in adult patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) have reported inconsistent results. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to characterize ToM performance in adult patients with TBI. Random-effects models were employed to estimate the overall effect size and the differential effect sizes across different ToM aspects. Based on a sample of 28 studies (1031 patients and 865 healthy controls), the meta-analytic findings revealed that ToM was significantly impaired in adult patients with TBI compared to healthy controls (g = -1.13). Besides, patients with TBI showed significant impairments in individual ToM tasks, as well as for different stimulus modes and contents involved in these ToM tasks. A meta-regression indicated a positive association between ToM performance and Glasgow Coma Scale score. The results of the current meta-analysis suggest that the performance in ToM tasks may be a good predictor of functional outcomes in adults with TBI, which is important for the identification of targets for cognitive interventions and the development of useful training intervention programs.

Concordance in parent and offspring cortico-basal ganglia white matter connectivity varies by parental history of major depressive disorder and early parental care

Social behavior is transmitted cross-generationally through coordinated behavior within attachment bonds. Parental depression and poor parental care are major risks for disruptions of such coordination and are associated with offspring's psychopathology and interpersonal dysfunction. Given the key role of the cortico-basal ganglia (CBG) circuits in social communication, we examined similarities (concordance) of parent-offspring CBG white matter (WM) connections and how parental history of major depressive disorder (MDD) and early parental care moderate these similarities. We imaged 44 parent-offspring dyads and investigated WM connections between basal-ganglia seeds and selected regions in temporal cortex using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography. We found significant concordance in parent-offspring strength of CBG WM connections, moderated by parental lifetime-MDD and care. The results showed diminished neural concordance among dyads with a depressed parent and that better parental care predicted greater concordance, which also provided a protective buffer against attenuated concordance among dyads with a depressed parent. Our findings provide the first neurobiological evidence of concordance between parents-offspring in WM tracts and that concordance is diminished in families where parents have lifetime-MDD. This disruption may be a risk factor for intergenerational transmission of psychopathology. Findings emphasize the long-term role of early caregiving in shaping the neural concordance among at-risk and affected dyads.

Children and adolescents' neural response to emotional faces and voices: Age-related changes in common regions of activation

The perception of facial and vocal emotional expressions engages overlapping regions of the brain. However, at a behavioral level, the ability to recognize the intended emotion in both types of nonverbal cues follows a divergent developmental trajectory throughout childhood and adolescence. The current study a) identified regions of common neural activation to facial and vocal stimuli in 8- to 19-year-old typically-developing adolescents, and b) examined age-related changes in blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) response within these areas. Both modalities elicited activation in an overlapping network of subcortical regions (insula, thalamus, dorsal striatum), visual-motor association areas, prefrontal regions (inferior frontal cortex, dorsomedial prefrontal cortex), and the right superior temporal gyrus. Within these regions, increased age was associated with greater frontal activation to voices, but not faces. Results suggest that processing facial and vocal stimuli elicits activation in common areas of the brain in adolescents, but that age-related changes in response within these regions may vary by modality.