Cognitive Neuroscience Sector, International School for Advanced Studies, ISAS-SISSA, Via Bonomea 265, 34136 Trieste, Italy.
Cognitive Neuroscience Sector, International School for Advanced Studies, ISAS-SISSA, Via Bonomea 265, 34136 Trieste, Italy.
Neuroimage. 2014 Sep;98:134-46. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2014.04.053. Epub 2014 Apr 26.
To study the neuronal basis of altruistic behavior, we investigated functional connectivity within brain networks of participants who exhibited either a self-benefit behavior or an altruistic one in a life-threatening situation simulated in a virtual environment. In particular, participants were asked to evacuate a virtual building on fire and, without being previously informed, they were faced with a decision on whether to stop and help a trapped virtual human, at the possible cost of losing their own life in the virtual experience. Group independent component analysis (gICA) applied on blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) functional images revealed significant differences between the group of participants who showed selfish behavior and those who acted prosocially. Specifically, an increased functional connectivity in the salience network, comprising the anterior insula (AI) and the anterior mid cingulate cortex (aMCC), was observed in the selfish group compared to the prosocial one. Conversely, higher ICA weights in the medial prefrontal cortex and temporo-parietal junction (TPJ), were observed in the prosocial group. The findings show that an increased functional connectivity of the salience network, which suggests an enhanced sensitivity to the threatening situation and potential danger for the individual, resulted in more selfish choices, while the engagement of the medial prefrontal and temporo-parietal cortices subserved prosocial behavior, possibly due to their role in perspective-taking. The study provides the first online neurophysiological measurement of prosocial decision-making during threatening situations, opening new avenues to the investigation of neuronal substrates of complex social behaviors.
为了研究利他行为的神经基础，我们研究了在虚拟环境中模拟的危及生命情况下表现出自利行为或利他行为的参与者的大脑网络内的功能连接。特别是，要求参与者疏散虚拟建筑物中的火灾，并在没有事先被告知的情况下，他们面临是否停下来帮助被困的虚拟人的决定，这可能会使他们在虚拟体验中失去自己的生命。应用于血氧水平依赖性（BOLD）功能图像的组独立成分分析（gICA）揭示了表现出自私行为的参与者组与表现出亲社会行为的参与者组之间存在显著差异。具体而言，与亲社会组相比，自私组的显着网络（包括前岛叶（AI）和前中扣带皮层（aMCC））的功能连接增加。相反，亲社会组的内侧前额叶皮质和颞顶联合（TPJ）的 ICA 权重更高。研究结果表明，显着网络的功能连接增加表明对威胁情况和个体潜在危险的敏感性增强，导致更多的自利选择，而内侧前额叶和颞顶联合皮质的参与则支持亲社会行为，这可能是由于它们在观点采集中的作用。该研究提供了在线研究威胁情况下亲社会决策的神经生理学测量的首次研究，为研究复杂社会行为的神经元基础开辟了新途径。
