The Brain's Intention to Imitate: The Neurobiology of Intentional versus Automatic Imitation
The Brain's Intention to Imitate: The Neurobiology of Intentional versus Automatic Imitation
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DOI：
10.1093/cercor/bhn251
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发表时间：
2009-10-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.7
通讯作者：
Sack, Alexander T.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Bien, Nina;Roebroeck, Alard;Sack, Alexander T.
每当我们观察到同视物的运动时，我们的镜像神经元系统就会被激活，促使我们模仿观察到的运动。然而，由于这种自动模仿并不总是合适的，因此阻止我们模仿我们所看到的一切的抑制因素似乎对有效的社会行为至关重要。这在像回声恐惧症这样的神经心理疾病中变得很明显，在这种情况下，这种抑制是不存在的。在这里，我们通过测量和操纵刺激-反应相容性范式执行过程中的大脑活动，揭示了这种自动模仿抑制的神经动力学基础。在已识别的连接网络中，右侧额叶中下皮层向参与自动模仿的右侧运动前皮层发送有关一般反应抑制的神经输入。随后，充分准备的模仿反应被发送到左眼皮层，作为有意模仿的最终门控机制。我们提出了一个自动模仿抑制的知情神经认知模型，表明自动模仿和故意模仿之间存在功能分离。
Whenever we observe a movement of a conspecific, our mirror neuron system becomes activated, urging us to imitate the observed movement. However, because such automatic imitation is not always appropriate, an inhibitive component keeping us from imitating everything we see seems crucial for an effective social behavior. This becomes evident from neuropsychological conditions like echopraxia, in which this suppression is absent. Here, we unraveled the neurodynamics underlying this proposed inhibition of automatic imitation by measuring and manipulating brain activity during the execution of a stimulus-response compatibility paradigm. Within the identified connectivity network, right middle/inferior frontal cortex sends neural input concerning general response inhibition to right premotor cortex, which is involved in automatic imitation. Subsequently, the fully prepared imitative response is sent to left opercular cortex that functions as a final gating mechanism for intentional imitation. We propose an informed neurocognitive model of inhibition of automatic imitation, suggesting a functional dissociation between automatic and intentional imitation.