Developmental Functions of the MNS: Social anticipation and imitation

来自不同实验室和方法的证据表明， 用于感知和产生动作的神经表征（称为镜像神经元或镜像神经元） 神经元系统，MNS）。虽然人们普遍认为， MNS支持社会感知和社会反应的发展，很少有直接调查 这些可能性。所提出的实验通过调查 MNS在两个基本社会能力的发展：行动预期，能力产生 对他人行为结果的预测，以及目标模仿，复制有意义的行为的能力， 他人行为的组成部分。 这项研究的第一个目标是使用行为方法来检验假设， 发展动作产生系统有助于婴儿预测和模仿他人动作的能力。为此目的。小组1开发的眼动跟踪措施的行动预期和小组2开发的目标模仿的行为措施。每个小组将调查焦点能力和婴儿自身发展行为之间的关系，以及运动训练和运动干预的效果。此外，借鉴项目III的见解，这些研究将测试婴儿的预期和模仿反应是否受到调节灵长类动物镜像神经元功能的背景因素的调节。 拟议研究的第二个目标是在评估与婴儿的动作预期和目标模仿相关的神经过程的研究中实施这些措施。小组3的研究通过将小组1和小组2中开发的行为测量与 μ节律抑制的脑电图（EEG）研究，这是一种被认为反映MNS激活的神经反应。为实现这一目标，这些研究将借鉴项目一和项目四中制定的方法。 除了解决这两个主要的研究目标，这些实验的数据将是 被招募来为Project IV中的计算模型的开发提供信息。

Converging evidence from across laboratories and approaches has documented the existence of shared neural representations for the perception and production of action (termed mirror neurons or the mirror neuron system, MNS) in adult nonhuman and human primates. Although it is widely hypothesized that the MNS supports the development of social perception and social responses, there is little direct investigation of these possibilities. The proposed experiments address this issue by investigating the potential role of the MNS in the development of two foundational social abilities: action anticipation, the ability to generate predictions about the outcomes of others' actions, and goal imitation, the ability to reproduce the meaningful components of others' actions. The first goal of the proposed research is to use behavioral methods to test the hypothesis that developing action production systems support infants' abilities to anticipate and imitate others' actions. To this end. Panel 1 develops eye-tracking measures of action anticipation and Panel 2 develops behavioral measures of goal imitation. Each panel will investigate relations between the focal ability and infants' own developing actions, as well as the effects of motor training and motor interference. In addition, drawing on insights from Project III, these studies will test whether infants' anticipatory and imitative responses are modulated by the contextual factors that modulate mirror neuron function in primates. The second goal of the proposed research is to implement these measures in studies that assess the neural processes that correlate with infants' action anticipation and goal imitation. The studies in Panel 3 pursue this goal by integrating the behavioral measures developed in Panels 1 and 2 with electroencephalogram (EEG) studies of mu rhythm suppression, a neural response that has been argued to reflect MNS activation. To achieve this goal, the studies will draw on methods developed in Projects I and IV. In addition to addressing these two primary research goals, the data from these experiments will be recruited to inform the development of computational models in Project IV.