Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferences

The ability to accurately estimate another person’s preferences is crucial for successful social life. In daily interactions, we often do this on the basis of minimal information. The aims of the present study were a) to examine whether people can accurately judge about others based only on a brief...

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Main Authors: Pyungwon eKang, Jongbin eLee, Sunhae eSul, Hackjin eKim
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2013-11-01
Series:Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Subjects:
Online Access:http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnhum.2013.00686/full
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author Pyungwon eKang
Pyungwon eKang
Jongbin eLee
Jongbin eLee
Sunhae eSul
Sunhae eSul
Hackjin eKim
Hackjin eKim
author_facet Pyungwon eKang
Pyungwon eKang
Jongbin eLee
Jongbin eLee
Sunhae eSul
Sunhae eSul
Hackjin eKim
Hackjin eKim
author_sort Pyungwon eKang
collection DOAJ
description The ability to accurately estimate another person’s preferences is crucial for successful social life. In daily interactions, we often do this on the basis of minimal information. The aims of the present study were a) to examine whether people can accurately judge about others based only on a brief exposure to their appearances, and b) to reveal the underlying neural mechanisms using fMRI. Participants were asked to make guesses about unfamiliar target individuals’ preferences for various items after looking at their faces for 3 seconds. Behavioral results showed that participants estimated others' preferences above chance level. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data revealed that higher accuracy in preference estimation was associated with greater activity in dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (DMPFC) while participants were guessing targets’ preferences relative to thinking about their own preferences. These findings suggest that accurate estimation of others' preferences may require increased activity in DMPFC. Functional connectivity analysis revealed that higher accuracy in preference estimation was related to increased functional connectivity between DMPFC and brain regions that are known to be involved in theory of mind (ToM) processing, such as temporoparietal junction (TPJ) and posterior cingulate cortex (PCC)/precuneus during correct vs. incorrect guessing trials. These findings imply that DMPFC may be a core part in estimating preferences of others and that higher accuracy may require stronger communication between DMPFC and a network of neural structures including TPJ and PCC/precuneus, which are now widely known to be involved in taking another person 's perspective during mentalizing.
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spelling doaj.art-f28eef073cce4d3ba02d133a550c538f2022-12-22T00:16:41ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience1662-51612013-11-01710.3389/fnhum.2013.0068653294Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferencesPyungwon eKang0Pyungwon eKang1Jongbin eLee2Jongbin eLee3Sunhae eSul4Sunhae eSul5Hackjin eKim6Hackjin eKim7Korea UniversityKorea UniversityKorea UniversityKorea UniversityKorea UniversityKorea UniversityKorea UniversityKorea UniversityThe ability to accurately estimate another person’s preferences is crucial for successful social life. In daily interactions, we often do this on the basis of minimal information. The aims of the present study were a) to examine whether people can accurately judge about others based only on a brief exposure to their appearances, and b) to reveal the underlying neural mechanisms using fMRI. Participants were asked to make guesses about unfamiliar target individuals’ preferences for various items after looking at their faces for 3 seconds. Behavioral results showed that participants estimated others' preferences above chance level. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data revealed that higher accuracy in preference estimation was associated with greater activity in dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (DMPFC) while participants were guessing targets’ preferences relative to thinking about their own preferences. These findings suggest that accurate estimation of others' preferences may require increased activity in DMPFC. Functional connectivity analysis revealed that higher accuracy in preference estimation was related to increased functional connectivity between DMPFC and brain regions that are known to be involved in theory of mind (ToM) processing, such as temporoparietal junction (TPJ) and posterior cingulate cortex (PCC)/precuneus during correct vs. incorrect guessing trials. These findings imply that DMPFC may be a core part in estimating preferences of others and that higher accuracy may require stronger communication between DMPFC and a network of neural structures including TPJ and PCC/precuneus, which are now widely known to be involved in taking another person 's perspective during mentalizing.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnhum.2013.00686/fullTheory of MindPosterior cingulate cortexDorsomedial prefrontal cortextemporoparietal junctionpreference estimationthin-slice judgment
spellingShingle Pyungwon eKang
Pyungwon eKang
Jongbin eLee
Jongbin eLee
Sunhae eSul
Sunhae eSul
Hackjin eKim
Hackjin eKim
Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferences
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Theory of Mind
Posterior cingulate cortex
Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex
temporoparietal junction
preference estimation
thin-slice judgment
title Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferences
title_full Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferences
title_fullStr Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferences
title_full_unstemmed Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferences
title_short Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others’ preferences
title_sort dorsomedial prefrontal cortex activity predicts the accuracy in estimating others preferences
topic Theory of Mind
Posterior cingulate cortex
Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex
temporoparietal junction
preference estimation
thin-slice judgment
url http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnhum.2013.00686/full
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