Social Distance Evaluation in Human Parietal Cortex
Author Information
Author(s): Yamakawa Yoshinori, Kanai Ryota, Matsumura Michikazu, Naito Eiichi
Primary Institution: Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University
Hypothesis
Does the cognitive mapping of social concepts arise from shared brain resources for processing social and physical relationships?
Conclusion
The study shows that the parietal cortex is involved in both social and physical distance evaluations.
Supporting Evidence
- Participants arranged dolls to represent social compatibility, showing shorter distances for compatible dolls.
- fMRI results indicated overlapping brain activation for social and physical distance tasks in the parietal cortex.
- Reaction times increased as social distances between faces decreased, indicating a cognitive mapping of social relationships.
Takeaway
This study found that our brains use the same area to think about how far away we are from friends and how far away we are from objects.
Methodology
Participants performed tasks evaluating social and physical distances while their brain activity was measured using fMRI.
Limitations
The study's sample was limited to healthy volunteers, which may not represent broader populations.
Participant Demographics
24 healthy volunteers (20 male, 4 female; ages 19–34 years)
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.001
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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