1
|
Chen X, Liu J, Luo YJ, Feng C. Brain Systems Underlying Fundamental Motivations of Human Social Conformity. Neurosci Bull 2023; 39:328-342. [PMID: 36287291 PMCID: PMC9905476 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-022-00960-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
From birth to adulthood, we often align our behaviors, attitudes, and opinions with a majority, a phenomenon known as social conformity. A seminal framework has proposed that conformity behaviors are mainly driven by three fundamental motives: a desire to gain more information to be accurate, to obtain social approval from others, and to maintain a favorable self-concept. Despite extensive interest in neuroimaging investigation of social conformity, the relationship between brain systems and these fundamental motivations has yet to be established. Here, we reviewed brain imaging findings of social conformity with a componential framework, aiming to reveal the neuropsychological substrates underlying different conformity motivations. First, information-seeking engages the evaluation of social information, information integration, and modification of task-related activity, corresponding to brain networks implicated in reward, cognitive control, and tasks at hand. Second, social acceptance involves the anticipation of social acceptance or rejection and mental state attribution, mediated by networks of reward, punishment, and mentalizing. Third, self-enhancement entails the excessive representation of positive self-related information and suppression of negative self-related information, ingroup favoritism and/or outgroup derogation, and elaborated mentalizing processes to the ingroup, supported by brain systems of reward, punishment, and mentalizing. Therefore, recent brain imaging studies have provided important insights into the fundamental motivations of social conformity in terms of component processes and brain mechanisms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xinling Chen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Jiaxi Liu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Yue-Jia Luo
- Department of Applied Psychology, University of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Qingdao, 266113, China.
- The State Key Lab of Cognitive and Learning, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China.
- The Research Center of Brain Science and Visual Cognition, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, 650506, China.
- College of Teacher Education, Qilu Normal University, Jinan, 250200, China.
| | - Chunliang Feng
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Harada T. Exploring the effects of risk-taking, exploitation, and exploration on divergent thinking under group dynamics. Front Psychol 2023; 13:1063525. [PMID: 36743628 PMCID: PMC9890061 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1063525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
This study examined the effects of risk-taking and exploitation/exploration trade-off on divergent thinking in individuals, dyads, and triads. We adopted a simple Q-learning model to estimate risk attitudes, exploitation, and exploration parameters. The results showed that risk-taking, exploitation, and exploration did not affect divergent thinking in dyads. Instead, loss aversion was negatively related to divergent thinking. In contrast, risk attitudes and the inverse temperature as a ratio between exploitation and exploration were significant but with contrasting effects in individuals and triads. For individuals, risk-taking, exploitation and loss aversion played a critical role in divergent thinking. For triads, risk aversion and exploration were significantly related to divergent thinking. However, the results also indicated that balancing risk with exploitation/exploration and loss aversion is critical in enhancing divergent thinking in individuals and triads when learning coherence emerges. These results could be interpreted consistently with related literature such as the odd-vs. even-numbered group dynamics, knowledge diversity in group creativity, and representational change theory in insight problem-solving.
Collapse
|
3
|
Fayyaz Z, Altamimi A, Zoellner C, Klein N, Wolf OT, Cheng S, Wiskott L. A Model of Semantic Completion in Generative Episodic Memory. Neural Comput 2022; 34:1841-1870. [PMID: 35896150 DOI: 10.1162/neco_a_01520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Many studies have suggested that episodic memory is a generative process, but most computational models adopt a storage view. In this article, we present a model of the generative aspects of episodic memory. It is based on the central hypothesis that the hippocampus stores and retrieves selected aspects of an episode as a memory trace, which is necessarily incomplete. At recall, the neocortex reasonably fills in the missing parts based on general semantic information in a process we call semantic completion. The model combines two neural network architectures known from machine learning, the vector-quantized variational autoencoder (VQ-VAE) and the pixel convolutional neural network (PixelCNN). As episodes, we use images of digits and fashion items (MNIST) augmented by different backgrounds representing context. The model is able to complete missing parts of a memory trace in a semantically plausible way up to the point where it can generate plausible images from scratch, and it generalizes well to images not trained on. Compression as well as semantic completion contribute to a strong reduction in memory requirements and robustness to noise. Finally, we also model an episodic memory experiment and can reproduce that semantically congruent contexts are always recalled better than incongruent ones, high attention levels improve memory accuracy in both cases, and contexts that are not remembered correctly are more often remembered semantically congruently than completely wrong. This model contributes to a deeper understanding of the interplay between episodic memory and semantic information in the generative process of recalling the past.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zahra Fayyaz
- Institute for Neural Computation, Faculty of Computer Science, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Aya Altamimi
- Institute for Neural Computation, Faculty of Computer Science, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Carina Zoellner
- Cognitive Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Nicole Klein
- Cognitive Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Oliver T Wolf
- Cognitive Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Sen Cheng
- Institute for Neural Computation, Faculty of Computer Science, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| | - Laurenz Wiskott
- Institute for Neural Computation, Faculty of Computer Science, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801 Bochum, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Harada T. Three heads are better than two: Comparing learning properties and performances across individuals, dyads, and triads through a computational approach. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0252122. [PMID: 34138907 PMCID: PMC8211165 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0252122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Although it is considered that two heads are better than one, related studies argued that groups rarely outperform their best members. This study examined not only whether two heads are better than one but also whether three heads are better than two or one in the context of two-armed bandit problems where learning plays an instrumental role in achieving high performance. This research revealed that a U-shaped correlation exists between performance and group size. The performance was highest for either individuals or triads, but the lowest for dyads. Moreover, this study estimated learning properties and determined that high inverse temperature (exploitation) accounted for high performance. In particular, it was shown that group effects regarding the inverse temperatures in dyads did not generate higher values to surpass the averages of their two group members. In contrast, triads gave rise to higher values of the inverse temperatures than their averages of their individual group members. These results were consistent with our proposed hypothesis that learning coherence is likely to emerge in individuals and triads, but not in dyads, which in turn leads to higher performance. This hypothesis is based on the classical argument by Simmel stating that while dyads are likely to involve more emotion and generate greater variability, triads are the smallest structure which tends to constrain emotions, reduce individuality, and generate behavioral convergences or uniformity because of the ‘‘two against one” social pressures. As a result, three heads or one head were better than two in our study.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tsutomu Harada
- Graduate School of Business Administration, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Corrêa F, Araujo ABDSM, Buratto LG. Conformidade em Memória de Reconhecimento: Revisão Breve e Potenciais Direções de Pesquisa. PSICOLOGIA: TEORIA E PESQUISA 2021. [DOI: 10.1590/0102.3772e371104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Resumo Conformidade de memória é o fenômeno em que relatos de memória de uma pessoa são modificados após exposição aos relatos de outra pessoa. Estudos sobre conformidade de memória são importantes tanto no âmbito puro quanto aplicado, especialmente quando os estímulos são carregados emocionalmente. No entanto, estudos de conformidade de memória com estímulos emocionais ainda são escassos. Além disso, os poucos estudos sobre o tema apresentam resultados contraditórios. Nesta revisão, apresentamos um breve resumo de pesquisas sobre conformidade de memória em tarefas de reconhecimento e avaliamos o papel moderador da emocionalidade na conformidade. Sugerimos como possível direção de pesquisas futuras a avaliação de duas variáveis, intervalo de retenção e distintividade dos estímulos, que podem ser cruciais para elucidar as inconsistências empíricas.
Collapse
|
6
|
Li Y, Wang J, Ye H, Luo J. Modulating the Activity of vmPFC Regulates Informational Social Conformity: A tDCS Study. Front Psychol 2020; 11:566977. [PMID: 33041931 PMCID: PMC7527649 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.566977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2020] [Accepted: 08/28/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Social conformity has been evaluated in many different contexts, ranging from an emotional contagion in psychology, to speculative episodes in economics, to mass protests concerning politics. Previous neuroscience studies suggest that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) participates in social conformity, especially when it comes to the value integration process, but the specific mechanism of vmPFC is still unclear. In this study, we aimed to identify a direct link between the vmPFC and conformity tendencies by means of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Conformity tendencies are measured by the probability that participants change their decisions when they observe the majority responses. In our experiment, subjects could make two decisions in each trial, once without social information and once with social information, which allowed us to directly observe the conformity tendency of subjects in different conditions. We found that cathodal stimulation of the vmPFC significantly increased conformity tendency and decreased response time when the initial decision of participants differs from the majority opinion. Based on the experimental results, our study suggests that the vmPFC mainly inhibits and regulates the informational conformity behavior. These findings complement investigations of the neural mechanism of conformity and the role of the vmPFC in the neural circuit behind conformity behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yuzhen Li
- School of Economics, Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, China.,Center for Economic Behavior and Decision-Making (CEBD), Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jinjin Wang
- School of Economics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.,Interdisciplinary Center for Social Sciences (ICSS), Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Hang Ye
- School of Economics, Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, China.,Center for Economic Behavior and Decision-Making (CEBD), Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, China.,Interdisciplinary Center for Social Sciences (ICSS), Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jun Luo
- School of Economics, Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, China.,Center for Economic Behavior and Decision-Making (CEBD), Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, China
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Shamay-Tsoory SG, Saporta N, Marton-Alper IZ, Gvirts HZ. Herding Brains: A Core Neural Mechanism for Social Alignment. Trends Cogn Sci 2019; 23:174-186. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2019.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2018] [Revised: 11/25/2018] [Accepted: 01/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
|
8
|
Hertz N, Wiese E. Under Pressure: Examining Social Conformity With Computer and Robot Groups. HUMAN FACTORS 2018; 60:1207-1218. [PMID: 30004798 DOI: 10.1177/0018720818788473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The authors investigate whether nonhuman agents, such as computers or robots, produce a social conformity effect in human operators and examine to what extent potential conformist behavior varies as a function of the human-likeness of the group members and the type of task that has to be performed. BACKGROUND People conform due to normative and/or informational motivations in human-human interactions, and conformist behavior is modulated by factors related to the individual as well as factors associated with the group, context, and culture. Studies have yet to examine whether nonhuman agents also induce social conformity. METHOD Participants were assigned to a computer, robot, or human group and completed both a social and analytical task with the respective group. RESULTS Conformity measures (percentage of times participants answered in line with agents on critical trials) subjected to a 3 × 2 mixed ANOVA showed significantly higher conformity rates for the analytical versus the social task as well as a modulation of conformity depending of the perceived agent-task fit. CONCLUSION Findings indicate that nonhuman agents were able to exert a social conformity effect, which was modulated further by the perceived match between agent and task type. Participants conformed to comparable degrees with agents during the analytical task but conformed significantly more strongly on the social task as the group's human-likeness increased. APPLICATION Results suggest that users may react differently to the influence of nonhuman agent groups with the potential for variability in conformity depending on the domain of the task.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Eva Wiese
- George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Mallinson DJ, Hatemi PK. The effects of information and social conformity on opinion change. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0196600. [PMID: 29718958 PMCID: PMC5931497 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0196600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2017] [Accepted: 04/16/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Extant research shows that social pressures influence acts of political participation, such as turning out to vote. However, we know less about how conformity pressures affect one’s deeply held political values and opinions. Using a discussion-based experiment, we untangle the unique and combined effects of information and social pressure on a political opinion that is highly salient, politically charged, and part of one’s identity. We find that while information plays a role in changing a person’s opinion, the social delivery of that information has the greatest effect. Thirty three percent of individuals in our treatment condition change their opinion due to the social delivery of information, while ten percent respond only to social pressure and ten percent respond only to information. Participants that change their opinion due to social pressure in our experiment are more conservative politically, conscientious, and neurotic than those that did not.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel J. Mallinson
- School of Public Affairs, The Pennsylvania State University - Harrisburg, Middletown, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Peter K. Hatemi
- Department of Biochemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Department of Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Department of Political Science, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Schnuerch R, Pfattheicher S. Motivated malleability: Frontal cortical asymmetry predicts the susceptibility to social influence. Soc Neurosci 2017; 13:480-494. [PMID: 28699831 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2017.1355333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Humans, just as many other animals, regulate their behavior in terms of approaching stimuli associated with pleasure and avoiding stimuli linked to harm. A person's current and chronic motivational direction - that is, approach versus avoidance orientation - is reliably reflected in the asymmetry of frontal cortical low-frequency oscillations. Using resting electroencephalography (EEG), we show that frontal asymmetry is predictive of the tendency to yield to social influence: Stronger right- than left-side frontolateral activation during a resting-state session prior to the experiment was robustly associated with a stronger inclination to adopt a peer group's judgments during perceptual decision-making (Study 1). We posit that this reflects the role of a person's chronic avoidance orientation in socially adjusted behavior. This claim was strongly supported by additional survey investigations (Studies 2a, 2b, 2c), all of which consistently revealed that trait avoidance was positively linked to the susceptibility to social influence. The present contribution thus stresses the relevance of chronic avoidance orientation in social conformity, refining (yet not contradicting) the longstanding view that socially influenced behavior is motivated by approach-related goals. Moreover, our findings valuably underscore and extend our knowledge on the association between frontal cortical asymmetry and a variety of psychological variables.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert Schnuerch
- a Department of Psychology , University of Bonn , Bonn , Germany
| | | |
Collapse
|
11
|
Zhao C, Liu J, Gong P, Hu J, Zhou X. Investigating the Genetic Basis of Social Conformity: The Role of the Dopamine Receptor 3 (DRD3) Gene. Neuropsychobiology 2017; 74:32-40. [PMID: 27784028 DOI: 10.1159/000450710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2016] [Accepted: 09/09/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND People often change their opinions or behavior to match the responses of others, a phenomenon known as social conformity. Conforming behavior varies substantially across individuals. However, little is known about the genetic basis underlying individual differences in social conformity. A recent study demonstrated an association between enhanced dopaminergic function and increased conforming behavior. Given the effect of the dopamine receptor 3 gene (DRD3) Ser9Gly polymorphism (rs6280) on dopamine release in the striatum, this study investigated to what extent this polymorphism affects conforming behavior. METHODS We categorized Han Chinese individuals according to the polymorphism and tested them with a facial-attractiveness rating task. RESULTS We found that individuals with a greater number of the Gly alleles, which are related to an increased dopamine release in the striatum, were more susceptible to social influence and more likely to change their ratings to match those of other people. CONCLUSIONS This finding demonstrates the importance of DRD3 Ser9Gly as a genetic basis for social conformity and in predicting individual differences in social learning.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chunli Zhao
- Center for Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
12
|
Yildirim BO, Derksen JJL. Mesocorticolimbic dopamine functioning in primary psychopathy: A source of within-group heterogeneity. Psychiatry Res 2015; 229:633-77. [PMID: 26277034 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2015.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2014] [Revised: 04/08/2015] [Accepted: 07/05/2015] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Despite similar emotional deficiencies, primary psychopathic individuals can be situated on a continuum that spans from controlled to disinhibited. The constructs on which primary psychopaths are found to diverge, such as self-control, cognitive flexibility, and executive functioning, are crucially regulated by dopamine (DA). As such, the goal of this review is to examine which specific alterations in the meso-cortico-limbic DA system and corresponding genes (e.g., TH, DAT, COMT, DRD2, DRD4) might bias development towards a more controlled or disinhibited expression of primary psychopathy. Based on empirical data, it is argued that primary psychopathy is generally related to a higher tonic and population activity of striatal DA neurons and lower levels of D2-type DA receptors in meso-cortico-limbic projections, which may boost motivational drive towards incentive-laden goals, dampen punishment sensitivity, and increase future reward-expectancy. However, increasingly higher levels of DA activity in the striatum (moderate versus pathological elevations), lower levels of DA functionality in the prefrontal cortex, and higher D1-to-D2-type receptor ratios in meso-cortico-limbic projections may lead to increasingly disinhibited and impetuous phenotypes of primary psychopathy. Finally, in order to provide a more coherent view on etiological mechanisms, we discuss interactions between DA and serotonin that are relevant for primary psychopathy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bariş O Yildirim
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Radboud University Nijmegen, De Kluyskamp 1002, 6545 JD Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
| | - Jan J L Derksen
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Room: A.07.04B, Radboud University Nijmegen, Montessorilaan 3, 6525 HR Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Toelch U, Dolan RJ. Informational and Normative Influences in Conformity from a Neurocomputational Perspective. Trends Cogn Sci 2015; 19:579-589. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2015.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2015] [Revised: 07/09/2015] [Accepted: 07/23/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
|
14
|
Stallen M, Sanfey AG. The neuroscience of social conformity: implications for fundamental and applied research. Front Neurosci 2015; 9:337. [PMID: 26441509 PMCID: PMC4585332 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2015.00337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2015] [Accepted: 09/07/2015] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The development of closer ties between researchers and practitioners in the domain of behavior and behavioral change offers useful opportunities for better informing public policy campaigns via a deeper understanding of the psychological processes that operate in real-world decision-making. Here, we focus on the domain of social conformity, and suggest that the recent emergence of laboratory work using neuroscientific techniques to probe the brain basis of social influence can prove a useful source of data to better inform models of conformity. In particular, we argue that this work can have an important role to play in better understanding the specific mechanisms at work in social conformity, in both validating and extending current psychological theories of this process, and in assessing how behavioral change can take place as a result of exposure to the judgments of others. We conclude by outlining some promising future directions in this domain, and indicating how this research could potentially be usefully applied to policy issues.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mirre Stallen
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Alan G Sanfey
- Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen Nijmegen, Netherlands ; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour Nijmegen, Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Abstract
In groups, individuals often adjust their behavior to the majority’s. Here, we provide a brief introduction into the research on social conformity and review the first, very recent investigations elucidating the underlying neurocognitive mechanisms. Multiple studies suggest that conformity is a behavioral adjustment based on reinforcement-learning mechanisms in posterior medial frontal cortex and ventral striatum. It has also been suggested that the detection of cognitive inconsistency and the modulation of basic encoding processes are involved. Together, recent findings provide valuable insight into the neural and cognitive mechanisms underlying social conformity and clearly point up the need for further studies in this field.
Collapse
|
16
|
The Role of the BDNF Val66Met Polymorphism in Individual Differences in Long-Term Memory Capacity. J Mol Neurosci 2014; 54:796-802. [DOI: 10.1007/s12031-014-0417-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2014] [Accepted: 08/27/2014] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
|
17
|
Abstract
Humans are strongly influenced by their environment, a dependence that can lead to errors in judgment. Although a rich literature describes how people are influenced by others, little is known regarding the factors that predict subsequent rectification of misleading influence. Using a mediation model in combination with brain imaging, we propose a model for the correction of misinformation. Specifically, our data suggest that amygdala modulation of hippocampal mnemonic representations, during the time of misleading social influence, is associated with reduced subsequent anterior-lateral prefrontal cortex activity that reflects correction. These findings illuminate the process by which erroneous beliefs are, or fail to be, rectified and highlight how past influence constrains subsequent correction.
Collapse
|
18
|
Baeken C, Marinazzo D, Claes S, Wu GR, Van Schuerbeek P, De Mey J, Luypaert R, De Raedt R. COMT Val(158)Met genotypes differentially influence subgenual cingulate functional connectivity in healthy females. Front Hum Neurosci 2014; 8:481. [PMID: 25071511 PMCID: PMC4074702 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2014] [Accepted: 06/13/2014] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Brain imaging studies have consistently shown subgenual Anterior Cingulate Cortical (sgACC) involvement in emotion processing. catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) Val(158) and Met(158) polymorphisms may influence such emotional brain processes in specific ways. Given that resting-state fMRI (rsfMRI) may increase our understanding on brain functioning, we integrated genetic and rsfMRI data and focused on sgACC functional connections. No studies have yet investigated the influence of the COMT Val(158)Met polymorphism (rs4680) on sgACC resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) in healthy individuals. A homogeneous group of 61 Caucasian right-handed healthy female university students, all within the same age range, underwent rsfMRI. Compared to Met(158) homozygotes, Val(158) allele carriers displayed significantly stronger rsFC between the sgACC and the left parahippocampal gyrus, ventromedial parts of the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), and the nucleus accumbens (NAc). On the other hand, compared to Val(158) homozygotes, we found in Met(158) allele carriers stronger sgACC rsFC with the medial frontal gyrus (MFG), more in particular the anterior parts of the medial orbitofrontal cortex. Although we did not use emotional or cognitive tasks, our sgACC rsFC results point to possible distinct differences in emotional and cognitive processes between Val(158) and Met(158) allele carriers. However, the exact nature of these directions remains to be determined.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chris Baeken
- Department of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Ghent, Belgium ; Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital (UZBrussel) Brussels, Belgium ; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent University Ghent, Belgium
| | | | - Stephan Claes
- Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital (UZLeuven) Leuven, Belgium
| | - Guo-Rong Wu
- Department of Data Analysis, Ghent University Ghent, Belgium ; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University Chongqing, China
| | - Peter Van Schuerbeek
- Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging, University Hospital (UZBrussel) Brussels, Belgium
| | - Johan De Mey
- Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging, University Hospital (UZBrussel) Brussels, Belgium
| | - Robert Luypaert
- Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging, University Hospital (UZBrussel) Brussels, Belgium
| | - Rudi De Raedt
- Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University Ghent, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Dumontheil I, Jensen SKG, Wood NW, Meyer ML, Lieberman MD, Blakemore SJ. Preliminary investigation of the influence of dopamine regulating genes on social working memory. Soc Neurosci 2014; 9:437-51. [PMID: 24889756 PMCID: PMC4131246 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2014.925503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Working memory (WM) refers to mental processes that enable temporary retention and manipulation of information, including information about other people ("social working memory"). Previous studies have demonstrated that nonsocial WM is supported by dopamine neurotransmission. Here, we investigated in 131 healthy adults whether dopamine is similarly involved in social WM by testing whether social and nonsocial WM are influenced by genetic variants in three genes coding for molecules regulating the availability of dopamine in the brain: catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT), dopamine active transporter (DAT), and monoamine-oxidase A (MAOA). An advantage for the Met allele of COMT was observed in the two standard WM tasks and in the social WM task. However, the influence of COMT on social WM performance was not accounted for by its influence on either standard WM paradigms. There was no main effect of DAT1 or MAOA, but a significant COMT x DAT1 interaction on social WM performance. This study provides novel preliminary evidence of effects of genetic variants of the dopamine neurotransmitter system on social cognition. The results further suggest that the effects observed on standard WM do not explain the genetic effects on effortful social cognition.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Iroise Dumontheil
- a Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience , University College London , London , UK
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|