Precursors to morality in development as a complex interplay between neural, socioenvironmental, and behavioral facets
Precursors to morality in development as a complex interplay between neural, socioenvironmental, and behavioral facets
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DOI：
10.1073/pnas.1508832112
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发表时间：
2015-10-13
影响因子：
11.1
通讯作者：
Decety, Jean
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Cowell, Jason M.;Decety, Jean
婴儿看似复杂的第三方社会评价的性质和基础仍然存在很大争议。理论观点在对相同表达偏好的丰富和贫乏解释之间摇摆。虽然有些人认为婴儿和幼儿拥有基于社会世界核心知识的“道德感”，但其他人认为社会评价本质上是分层的，是注意力分配和接近与回避等基本一般过程整合的产物。此外，这些生物学上准备好的头脑在社会环境中相互作用，包括显著的变化，这可能会影响早期的社会评价和行为。本研究通过一系列相互交织的测量，结合多层次的分析，包括电生理学，眼动追踪，行为和社会环境，检查了婴儿和幼儿（n = 73，年龄12-24个月）道德敏感性的神经基础和前兆。连续脑电图和时间锁定事件相关电位（ERP）和凝视的记录，而儿童观看字符从事亲社会和反社会的行动在两个不同的任务。所有儿童表现出神经分化的频谱EEG功率密度调制和时间锁定ERP感知亲社会或反社会代理。时间锁定的神经差异预测儿童的亲社会字符的偏好，并受到父母的价值观，公正和公平。总的来说，这项研究揭示了道德认知的基本性质，包括其在一般过程中的基础，如注意力和接近-退缩，提供了早期变化的合理机制，并为发展社会神经科学领域的发展奠定了基础。
The nature and underpinnings of infants' seemingly complex, third-party, social evaluations remain highly contentious. Theoretical perspectives oscillate between rich and lean interpretations of the same expressed preferences. Although some argue that infants and toddlers possess a "moral sense" based on core knowledge of the social world, others suggest that social evaluations are hierarchical in nature and the product of an integration of rudimentary general processes such as attention allocation and approach and avoidance. Moreover, these biologically prepared minds interact in social environments that include significant variation, which are likely to impact early social evaluations and behavior. The present study examined the neural underpinnings of and precursors to moral sensitivity in infants and toddlers (n = 73, ages 12-24 mo) through a series of interwoven measures, combining multiple levels of analysis including electrophysiological, eye-tracking, behavioral, and socio-environmental. Continuous EEG and time-locked event-related potentials (ERPs) and gaze fixation were recorded while children watched characters engaging in prosocial and antisocial actions in two different tasks. All children demonstrated a neural differentiation in both spectral EEG power density modulations and time-locked ERPs when perceiving prosocial or antisocial agents. Time-locked neural differences predicted children's preference for prosocial characters and were influenced by parental values regarding justice and fairness. Overall, this investigation casts light on the fundamental nature of moral cognition, including its underpinnings in general processes such as attention and approach-withdrawal, providing plausible mechanisms of early change and a foundation for forward movement in the field of developmental social neuroscience.