Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong; Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong; Center for Cognition and Brain Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
School of Natural Sciences & Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, UK; Institute of Psychology, Health & Society, University of Liverpool, UK.
Cortex. 2019 Feb;111:1-15. doi: 10.1016/j.cortex.2018.10.005. Epub 2018 Oct 16.
Observers can simulate aspects of other people's tactile experiences. We asked whether they do so when faced with full-body social interactions, whether emerging representations go beyond basic sensorimotor mirroring, and whether they depend on processing goals and inclinations. In an EEG/ERP study, we presented line-drawn, dyadic interactions with and without affectionate touch. In an explicit and an implicit task, participants categorized images into touch versus no-touch and same versus opposite sex interactions, respectively. Modulations of central Rolandic rhythms implied that affectionate touch displays engaged sensorimotor mechanisms. Additionally, the late positive potential (LPP) being larger for images with as compared to without touch pointed to an involvement of higher order socio-affective mechanisms. Task and sex modulated touch perception. Sensorimotor responding, indexed by Rolandic rhythms, was fairly independent of the task but appeared less effortful in women than in men. Touch induced socio-affective responding, indexed by the LPP, declined from explicit to implicit processing in women and disappeared in men. In sum, this study provides first evidence that vicarious touch from full-body social interactions entails shared sensorimotor as well as socio-affective experiences. Yet, mental representations of touch at a socio-affective level are more likely when touch is goal relevant and observers are female. Together, these results outline the conditions under which touch in visual media may be usefully employed to socially engage observers.
观察者可以模拟其他人的触觉体验。我们想知道，当他们面对全身社交互动时，是否会这样做；新兴的表现是否超越了基本的感觉运动镜像；以及它们是否依赖于处理目标和倾向。在一项 EEG/ERP 研究中，我们呈现了带有和不带有亲昵触摸的线描二元互动。在一个明确和一个隐含的任务中，参与者分别将图像分类为有触摸和无触摸，以及同性和异性互动。中央 Rolandic 节律的调制表明，亲昵触摸显示出了感觉运动机制的参与。此外，与没有触摸的图像相比，有触摸的图像的正后电位 (LPP) 更大，表明涉及到更高阶的社会情感机制。任务和性别调节了触摸感知。以 Rolandic 节律为指标的感觉运动反应相当独立于任务，但女性的反应比男性的反应更不费力。由 LPP 表示的触摸引起的社会情感反应，从明确处理到隐含处理在女性中下降，在男性中消失。总之，这项研究首次提供了证据，表明来自全身社交互动的替代性触觉需要共享的感觉运动和社会情感体验。然而，当触摸与目标相关并且观察者是女性时，触摸在社会情感层面的心理表现更有可能出现。这些结果共同概述了在视觉媒体中使用触摸来有效地吸引观察者的条件。
